I just can’t seem to get enough of Hampi. I visited first over two years ago when I dragged Ben there after reading about it in Lonely Planet. Later, I went on a tour with goMowgli and saw even more that I’d missed.
This time, we took the easiest route by hiring a rickshaw driver to show us around from 1-530 and we saw most everything on the temple side. We were meant to see the chilled out reservoir side the following day, but decided not to for a variety of reasons (boat sickness, timing, being tired, not wanting to cliff jump).
Want more notes on ONE day in Hampi (because this is mostly photos of what you’ll see in one day) my post on the top things to do in Hampi!
We went here from Goa and had Babu drive. It took about 8 hours and we took the route through Hubli to Hospet. It’s anywhere from 9,000 rs to 15,000 rs for a driver there and back. At peak season, it’ll run closer to the higher end of that spectrum.
As it was Christmas time, all great rooms were booked in Hampi (Shanthi Guesthouse and Mowgli Guesthouse) so we had to stay at the Hyatt about 30 km away. I was a pain, but worth having a lovely (but expensive!) buffet and soft clean bed to sleep in.
My parents LOVED their one day in Hampi. Here’s what we got up to below; if you want to see it all make your life easy and hire a rickshaw. We got ripped off at 1200 rs per rickshaw (we took 2) but I didn’t feel like negotiating after a long car ride. You can get it down to 800 rs easily.
coconuts outside the Queen’s Stables are a must
The Lotus Mahal is my favorite bit of Hampi
walking down the main strip
the main attraction: the chariot
best views in Hampi
I stared at this cute dog and played with it about 2 minutes before I realized there were a bunch of baby goats in the bottom of the truck! OMG cuteness!
parents loved the monkeys!
one of my favorite shots
standard tourist pic! Love it!
One of the perks of staying at the Hyatt, other than an amazing bed, is that it is located in this little modern village set up entirely for the steel workers. There is a small mall, temple, lake, and amazing gardens around the Hyatt. It was a bit Surreal.
For some reason I didn’t take a photo of the main temple, but it was a very new Ganesh temple. Everything was covered in jewels that I’m pretty sure were real. It was all gold painted. My parents were in awe! If you stay at the Hyatt it’s just a 5 min drive here and very worth the stop on your way out in the AM.
Did you enjoy this post? Let me know in the comments or by sharing it with the social media links! I’d love to keep giving you travel tricks & tips so feel free to subscribe by e-mail in the big purple box below. Don’t forget you can follow me on facebook, twitter, instagram & bloglovin‘.
Hampi is in my wishlist for a long time, but I always end up in Goa. I am not done with it yet! Phew
this place looks gorgeous! thanks for sharing. those baby goats have my heart!
i love that your dad was representin OSU all the way across the world :) hope to get to hampi one day!
Hahha heck ya!! And first time I sent to bombay I wore an OSU shirt at gateway of India as well
You have partially covered Hampi…there is more to it and also you could have highlighted the nearby places from Hampi…which is a masterpiece of ancient heritage. You can see more of such pictures on Hampi & surroundings from my facebook .
shankar
As I said, this is just my parents trip, I haven’t written about Hampi in 3 additional articles..and have linked a couple in intro.
Hey! We’re planning to visit Hampi later this month and have also booked ourselves a room at the Hyatt – how does one go about hiring the rickshaw for the day trip to Hampi? We have a car but would much rather get a local guide to take us to all the places