Hampi, Karnataka
Overview
Hampi is a village located in the north of Karnataka, amongst the ruins of the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. The place is a significant religious centre of the Vijayanagara Empire due to the presence of the historic Virupaksha temple along with many other monuments of the old city. The architectural ruins of Hampi are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rock-climbing enthusiasts will adore Hampi, which is considered the bouldering capital of India, and the city’s rocky landscape, dotted with ancient temple ruins, makes for a unique climbing experience.
Best time to visit : October to March
The best time to visit Hampi is between October to March when the coolness in the air helps you take a complete tour of this village. October marks the beginning of winter and the temperature begins to settle around this time. During the day one can move about comfortably as the temperature is just right and apt for sightseeing. The gorgeous view of the city is accentuated from atop the Matanga hill, which has rich foliage and spellbinding landscape and best enjoyed with your loved ones during October to March.
Travel Options
In order to reach Hampi by air, one can take a flight to Bellary Airport or the Belgaum Airport. One can also land at Bangalore Airport & then we will arrange for your travel by road to Hampi.
There are plenty of options to reach Hampi by rail, although it doesn’t have its own station. Hospet is the closest railway station, which is situated at a distance of 13 kms from Hampi. There are about 10 trains that ply on a daily basis as well as 5 special trains operating few times in a week. There are two trains that originate from Bangalore to Hampi as well. People from any part of the country can travel to Bangalore and then catch the train that operates from Bangalore to Hampi.
Hampi is well connected by bus services from all major cities and towns.There are many private buses, tourist buses, luxury buses and state buses that run from place to place so tourists can easily reach the place without any difficulty. Pickup / drop from bus stand will be arranged by us.
We will arrange the commutation to / from your home to Hampi in a private vehicle driven by a trustworthy driver. However you always have an option to self drive. Coorg is a short drive from Bengaluru, about 372 kms, 361 kms from Hyderabad, 264 kms from Belgaum and 162 kms from Hubli.
Itinerary - 2N/3D
Day 1 - Explore the ruins of Hampi
Once you are at Hampi, we will arrange a pickup for you to reach the resort destination. Check into a beautiful resort, nestled on the banks of the Tungabhadra river in the Yamini Hills. The resort is characterized by fascinating frontage of a network of water eroded boulders. You can always choose to lay back and order room service for your lunch or walk down to the resort restaurant for some lipsmacking food.
Post lunch, you can either relax at the resort or can explore the Vijayanagara Era temple ruins. We will arrange for a guided tour in a car (till the banks of Tungabhadra) to explore and learn about the architectural marvel of the great Vijayanagara kingdom by crossing the beautiful Tungabhadra river by a ferry, which is 7 kms away from the mainland.
Once you are on Hampi trail, you should start your rich historical journey by visiting the Vittala Temple complex, which is an ancient monument that is well known for its exceptional architecture and unmatched craftsmanship. The iconic temple has amazing stone structures such as the incomparable stone chariot and the fascinating musical pillars. Notable among these structures are the shrine of the Goddess (also known as Devi shrine), Maha Mantapa or main hall (also known as Sabha Mantapa or congregation hall), Ranga Mantapa, Kalyana Mantapa (marriage hall), Utsava Mantapa (festival hall) and the famous Stone Chariot.
You can spend about 3 hours visiting the temple complex and appreciating the age old architecture.
Once you complete your tour, our guide will walk you through the Hampi Bazaar, 1 km stretch of old pavilions lining the street on both sides, which used to be a thriving market during the days of the Vijayanagara Empire.
One can enjoy local shopping experience, by exploring through embroidered shawls, textiles, traditional costumes, antique coins, jewellery, colourful bags, stone figurines, carved artefacts, handicraft items, clay dolls etc.
One of the interesting things found in the Hampi Bazaar is the replica of Hampi ruins.
A large statue of Nandi Bull can be seen standing at the east end of the street. A two-storied pavilion near the bull acts as a photo gallery. It contains various unique photos of the Hampi site that date back to 1856 and were taken by the famous international photographer Alexander Greenlaw.
Post shopping, you can stop by the famous Geeth River View restaurant for some quick evening bites.
Try the delicious vegetable kofta here, listening to good music and enjoying a great river side view.
After snacks, the car would take you back to the resort, where you can enjoy a bonfire by your cottage. For dinner, you can try the sumptuous buffet spread at the resort.
Stay overnight in the resort.
Day 2 - Explore the archaeological museum
Wake up early and enjoy your breakfast at the resort. Our car will be waiting to take you to the Virupaksha Temple, which is one of India’s oldest functioning temples. The temple walls have carvings that are different in genre from each one. Each carving sequence has a historical or mythological story behind it. Some of them are carved just for the simple reason that they are auspicious.
You can go around for about an hour exploring the temple and observing temple rituals in the morning and in the evening. Inside there is a shrine for the Virupaksha and a shrine for the sage Vidyaranya.
Around noon, leave for the archaeological museum of Hampi which houses collections of sculptures and assorted antiques. At present this museum consists of four galleries, the contents of which are listed as follows:
Gallery 1 – Holds sculptures of Virabhadra, Bhairava, Bhikshatanamurti, Mahishasuramardini, Shakti, Ganesha, Kartikeya with his consorts and Durga.
Central Hall - This hall is alike of Hampi temple consisting of Shivalinga, Nandi and Dwaramantapa.
Gallery 3 – Has an array of antiquities such as armoury, copper plate grants, religious metal objects, brass plates and gold and copper coins of the Vijaynagara dynasty.
Gallery 4 - This gallery displays antiquities belonging to the prehistoric and protohistoric period, medieval hero stones and sati stones. It also exhibits some other excavated items such as Stucco figurines, iron objects, shards of porcelain, among other things.
Timings of Visit from 10.00 AM to 5.00 PM. Closed on Fridays and other national holidays. Entrance Fee: Rs. 5/- per person. Children up to 15 years are admitted free. Photography is not allowed inside the galleries. However you can photograph the exhibits on display in the lawn outside.
Post your museum visit, you can go to the popular Mango Tree restaurant for lunch.
Do try the delicious south indian meals here.
Post lunch, our car will drive you to the Lotus Mahal to see the architectural splendor of the Vijanagara Empire, which is a beautiful blend of Hindu and Islamic architecture. Bearing a decrepit and damp appearance, exquisite carvings of artistic patterns, birds, etc., can be seen on the Palace's walls while on some of the arches you can make out the carvings of Makara Torana, a popular sea creature from Hindu mythology, also the vehicle of goddess Ganga. Yet another fascinating aspect of this two storied elegant pavilion replete with massive pillars and exquisite stucco mouldings, are the traces of pipelines that can be spotted between the arches and sides of the roof, possibly used to cool the Palace and maintain its temperature.
Near the Lotus Mahal, there are ancient elephant stables, which was once used to tie up elephants is now preserved as a monument. There are eleven rooms adorned with high domes and roofed with amazing carvings. The centre hall is quite big and more decorated and it has a larger dome. There are metal hooks hanging on the top which were used to tie the elephants and manholes are located at the rear of each hall through which mahouts can enter the elephant compartments. The architecture clearly displays the royal extravaganza in olden days and detailed workmanship.
From here one may proceed to the Guard's Quarters and to the Ranga Temple located nearby, along with the Queen’s baths.
After an enriching architectural tour of the day, our car would take you back to the resort, where a romantic candle light dinner would be waiting for you.
Stay overnight in the resort.
Day 3 - Watch the bear
After a goodnight sleep, wake up to a delicious breakfast buffet spread at the resort. Post breakfast, get ready for Daroji Sloth Bear sanctuary visit, where you can catch a glimpse of sloth bears relishing on honey and termites, rock-strewn hillocks stretching across a vast lush green area, magnificent variety of wild fruit-bearing trees and bushes, natural water bodies, different species of birds and butterflies. To watch the bears one must be in the watch-tower on a hillock and sit quietly to look at the bears descending from the opposite Karadikallu Gudda. This hillock has hundreds of caves where the bears take shelter.
Visiting hours : 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM on all days.| Best time to visit the sanctuary is between August and April.
Enterance Fees : Rs 50 per person (Indian National) / Rs 300 per person (Foreign Tourists) / Rs 500 per car
After spending some time in the wild you can leave for your home destination with the lovely memories of Hampi.
Our special travel itinerary will definitely create memories for you which you can relish forever.
Resort to Stay
Hampi's Boulders - It is an inbound centric resort near Hampi offering Cottages having a view of the river and rock landscape. Activities offered include nature treks in the property and caves, visiting the natural waterfall, fishing, beach volleyball, river rafting and bird watching besides visits to Hampi world heritage site. Recommended for experiential and inbound travellers to Hampi
Travel Tips
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Do carry good pair of walking shoes
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Carry an umbrella
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Do not forget to negotiate while shopping in Hampi bazaar
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For the travel enthusiasts, who nurture plans to visit this sanctuary, it is advisable to wear natural dark colored clothes. Avoid white and light colored garments. Arm yourself with binoculars and cameras.
Cost of Trip
Rs 18,999 approx. per couple ( All inclusive ) *
Add-ons - Customized Special Itinerary
You have the flexibility and freedom to add or remove whatever you like / dislike. If you have a higher budget you can choose to add more activities from the add-ons list below or if you’re budget is tight or would like more time to relax, you could remove a few activities from the itinerary above. Below are some of the add ons which can be added to your itinerary.
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Indulge in a photography workshop designed to cover a wide range of interesting subjects that goes beyond the architectural splendours of Hampi. Explore all the corners of Hampi to bring you the best in landscapes, wildlife and architecture of Hampi.
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Outdoor camping on the banks of the Tungabhadra, folk music and dance performances can be arranged on request at an extra cost.
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Guides who are well versed in the architecture and can converse in English, Hindi and French can be arranged as well.
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Breakfast and lunch can be arranged at exclusive outdoor locations in the vicinity of Hampi on for groups of 10 or more guests on request at the time of reservation.
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You can trail past quaint villages, paddy fields, and even learn a crash course in growing millets from a farmer.
Inclusions *
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2N/3D stay in Hampi's Boulders resort with Halfboard meal plan (Accommodation + breakfast + dinner).
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Rates applicable for 2 persons staying together, sharing the same room.
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Helputravel.in's service charge (15%) + Service Tax (as applicable)
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Local transportation(car) & parking charges (as per itinerary only)
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Entrance fees of all sightseeing places to be visited (as per itinerary only)
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One candlelight dinner for couple
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Guide services
Exclusions
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Transportation from your home / source destintion to the holiday destination
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Video, film and professional camera fees
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Insurance, gratuities,telephone calls, laundry,mineral water, soft & hard drinks,porterage (coolie charges) or any personal expenses
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Any tour extensions unless specifically mentioned as part of the journeys
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Additional sightseeing or extra usage of vehicle, other than mentioned in the itinerary.
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Any cost arising due to natural calamities like landslides, road blockage, political disturbances (strikes), etc. (to be borne by the client, which is directly payable on the spot)
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Any increase in taxes or fuel price, leading to increase in cost on surface transportation & land arrangements, which may come into effect prior to departure
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Any extra cost incurred on behalf of an individual due to illness, accident, hospitalisation, or any personal emergency
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Anything which is not included in the inclusion
Terms & Conditions
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Refund on cancellation depends upon concerned hotel's / service providers cancellation policy. Helputravel.in's service charge is Non-Refundable
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Helputravel.in reserves the right to change / modify or terminate the offer any time at its own discretion and without any prior notice
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In case of unavailability in mentioned hotels, alternate accommodation will be arranged in a similar category hotel.
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Package rates are valid for INDIAN NATIONALS only. Rates for FOREIGN NATIONALS to be provided on request.
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