Karnataka

Mysuru & Coorg — palace, coffee and the Kaveri

4 Days / 3 Nights · 1N Mysuru + 2N Coorg (Madikeri)

1. 1

   Bengaluru to Mysuru

   Three hours on a good road, and an afternoon in the cultural capital.

   • •Pickup in Bengaluru and drive to Mysuru — about 145 km on the expressway
   • •Srirangapatna en route: Tipu Sultan's summer palace at Daria Daulat Bagh, and the Gumbaz
   • •Mysore Palace in the afternoon
   • •Chamundi Hill for the temple and the view over the city

   Overnight — Mysuru

   ⚠️ The palace is illuminated on Sunday evenings and public holidays. If your dates include one, we time the day around it.

2. 2

   Into Coorg

   • •Drive to Madikeri — about 120 km, three hours, climbing into the Western Ghats
   • •Dubare Elephant Camp on the Kaveri, if you want the morning with the elephants
   • •Namdroling Monastery at Bylakuppe — the Golden Temple of a Tibetan settlement
   • •Check in; Raja's Seat for sunset over the valley

   Overnight — Coorg (Madikeri)
3. 3

   Coffee country

   • •Guided walk through a working coffee estate — arabica and robusta, and how the two differ
   • •Abbey Falls, at its heaviest just after the monsoon
   • •Talakaveri, the source of the Kaveri, and Bhagamandala
   • •Evening free in Madikeri

   Overnight — Coorg (Madikeri)
4. 4

   Back to Bengaluru

   • •Morning at leisure
   • •Drive to Bengaluru — about 250 km, five to six hours
   • •Drop at the airport, station or your address

   ⚠️ Bengaluru traffic is genuinely unpredictable. Keep a departing flight to the evening.

Coffee Hills — Coorg and Chikkamagaluru

5 Days / 4 Nights · 2N Coorg (Madikeri) + 2N Chikkamagaluru

1. 1

   Bengaluru to Coorg

   • •Drive to Madikeri, about 250 km and five to six hours
   • •Namdroling Monastery at Bylakuppe on the way
   • •Raja's Seat for sunset

   Overnight — Coorg (Madikeri)
2. 2

   Coorg

   • •Coffee estate walk
   • •Abbey Falls and Madikeri Fort
   • •Dubare Elephant Camp on the Kaveri
   • •Talakaveri and Bhagamandala in the afternoon

   Overnight — Coorg (Madikeri)
3. 3

   Across to Chikkamagaluru

   A cross-hill drive rather than a return to the plains.

   • •Drive to Chikkamagaluru — about 170 km, four to five hours on hill roads
   • •Belur and Halebidu en route if you want the Hoysala temples — some of the finest stone carving in India
   • •Check in among the estates

   Overnight — Chikkamagaluru

   ⚠️ Belur and Halebidu add roughly two hours. They are worth it, and this is the only day they fit.

4. 4

   Mullayanagiri and the estates

   • •Mullayanagiri — the highest peak in Karnataka, reachable by road then a short flight of steps
   • •Baba Budangiri and the ridge road
   • •Hebbe Falls, reached by jeep through an estate
   • •Coffee tasting in the afternoon

   Overnight — Chikkamagaluru

   ⚠️ Hebbe Falls needs a forest jeep — private cars are not allowed on that track. It is booked locally on the day.

5. 5

   Back to Bengaluru

   • •Drive back, about 245 km and five hours
   • •Drop at the airport, station or your address

Stone Karnataka — Hampi, Badami, Aihole and Pattadakal

6 Days / 5 Nights · 3N Hampi + 2N Badami

1. 1

   Bengaluru to Hampi

   A long road day. Everything after it is on foot.

   • •Early start; about 340 km and seven hours via Chitradurga
   • •Chitradurga Fort en route if you leave early enough
   • •Check in at Hampi or Hospet

   Overnight — Hampi

   ⚠️ This is the drive that makes the trip six days rather than four. An overnight train to Hospet is a real alternative — ask and we will price both.

2. 2

   The sacred centre

   • •Virupaksha Temple, still in worship after seven centuries
   • •Hampi Bazaar and the monolithic Nandi
   • •Vittala Temple and the stone chariot; the musical pillars
   • •Sunset from Hemakuta Hill

   Overnight — Hampi
3. 3

   The royal centre and across the river

   • •Lotus Mahal, the Elephant Stables and the Queen's Bath
   • •Mahanavami Dibba and the stepped tank
   • •Coracle across the Tungabhadra to Anegundi, older than Hampi itself
   • •Sunrise or sunset from Matanga Hill for anyone who will make the climb

   Overnight — Hampi
4. 4

   North to Badami

   • •Drive to Badami — about 140 km, three hours
   • •Badami cave temples, cut into red sandstone above Agastya Lake
   • •Bhutanatha temples on the far side of the tank

   Overnight — Badami
5. 5

   Aihole and Pattadakal

   Where the Chalukyas experimented, and then perfected.

   • •Pattadakal — a UNESCO site where northern and southern temple styles stand side by side
   • •Aihole, often called the cradle of Indian temple architecture — Durga temple and Lad Khan
   • •Mahakuta on the way back

   Overnight — Badami
6. 6

   Back to Bengaluru

   • •Long drive south, about 450 km and eight hours
   • •Drop at the airport or station

   ⚠️ The return is the longest day of the trip. Flying out of Hubballi instead cuts it in half — say so and we will route it that way.

Karnataka Coast — Gokarna, Murudeshwar and the Malnad falls

6 Days / 5 Nights · 3N Gokarna + 1N Murudeshwar + 1N Sagara / Shivamogga

1. 1

   Bengaluru to Gokarna

   • •The long haul west, about 500 km and nine to ten hours
   • •Check in at Gokarna or Om Beach

   Overnight — Gokarna

   ⚠️ This is a full day in the car. An overnight bus or a flight to Goa's Dabolim, two and a half hours north, are both faster — ask and we will compare.

2. 2

   The beach walk

   Four beaches on foot, over the headlands between them.

   • •Kudle Beach, then the cliff path to Om Beach
   • •Half Moon and Paradise beaches beyond, reachable on foot or by boat
   • •Mahabaleshwar Temple in Gokarna town
   • •Sunset from the Om Beach headland

   Overnight — Gokarna
3. 3

   Gokarna, unplanned

   • •Nothing fixed — swim, read, or take a dolphin boat out in the early morning
   • •Yana rocks, two hours inland, for anyone who wants a day trip

   Overnight — Gokarna
4. 4

   Down the coast to Murudeshwar

   • •Drive south along the coast, about 80 km
   • •Murudeshwar — the second-tallest Shiva statue in the world, on a headland with sea on three sides
   • •The temple gopura lift for the view down onto the statue

   Overnight — Murudeshwar
5. 5

   Inland to Jog Falls

   • •Drive inland into the Malnad, about 110 km
   • •Jog Falls — the Sharavathi dropping 253 metres in four separate falls
   • •The stairway to the base, for anyone with the knees for the climb back
   • •Night at Sagara or Shivamogga

   Overnight — Sagara / Shivamogga

   ⚠️ Jog depends entirely on dam releases. It is thunderous from August to December and can be a trickle in April. We will tell you which you are likely to get.

6. 6

   Back to Bengaluru

   • •Drive back, about 350 km and seven hours
   • •Drop at the airport or station

• →South India tourist cabs run on a daily kilometre allowance with extra running charged per kilometre. Your quote states the allowance for the route and the rate beyond it — see the South India section of our Trip Policies.
• →Toll and parking are charged at actuals and sit outside the base rate. We can fold an estimate into the package if you would rather have a single figure — ask when you book.
• →Coorg is at its best from October to March. In the monsoon the falls are spectacular and the estate walks are leeches and mud — some people love it, and they should know first.
• →Karnataka has dry days on certain dates when alcohol is not served anywhere in the state.
• →Hill roads here are narrow and slow. A 170 km day is genuinely four to five hours, and pushing it is how people end up driving after dark.
• →October to March is the settled season. The monsoon is beautiful and the estate tracks turn to mud.
• →Hampi is walked and climbed, over boulders and uneven stone. Bring real shoes and start early — by eleven the rock radiates heat.
• →November to February is the season. April and May reach the mid-forties and we would rather talk you out of those dates than sell them.
• →Hampi village is largely dry and vegetarian by local custom. Hospet, 13 km away, is not.
• →Gokarna's beaches are joined by headland paths, not roads. The walk between them is part of the point, but it is a scramble in places and not step-free.
• →This coast has a strong undertow in and just after the monsoon. Swim where local people are swimming, and not elsewhere.
• →Gokarna is a temple town first and a beach town second. Dress modestly in town, whatever the beach is wearing.

Booking, payment and cancellation terms are the same as every trip we run — see our Trip Policies.