Hampi: Places To Visit And Things To Do In Hampi

Hampi, the architectural marvel and epitome of ancient civilization is situated on the banks of river Tungabhadra in Ballari, Karnataka. The city of ruins which is spread over 41.5 sq km was the capital of the mighty Vijayanagara Empire in the 14th century. It is an open museum with 100’s of locations surrounded by 500 odd ancient monuments or structures to explore. This place was declared as the UNESCO World Heritage Site in the year 1986. This blog post will throw light on some of the best places you can visit and things to do in Hampi.

Places To Visit And Things To Do In Hampi

Hemakuta Hills

Hemakuta hills are home to a collection of a large number of shrines that belongs to pre Vijayanagar dynasty times. Once upon a time, these hills were topped with beautiful temples, mandapas, pavilions, gateways, galleries, archways, and fort walls. But, what remains now is only the ruins of the architectural wonder that sustained the attacks of various rulers.

It is a short trek of 15 minutes to climb the hill. You need to take steps carved on a humongous rock, to the north of Virupaksha temple to reach the Hilltop. After reaching the top, flat land stuffed with magnificent monuments welcomes you with open arms.

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Vittala temple In Hampi

Vittala temple dates back to the 15 century and it is the grandest of all temples and monuments in Hampi. This temple complex is spread over a large area with high walls, 3-tower gateways, halls, and multiple shrines. In fact, each of these structures present in the temple is built in the Dravidian style of architecture using stone. Outside of this, this temple also hosts the “Stone Chariot” which is one of the iconic symbols of Indian architecture. Not just that, it also houses one of the biggest mysteries of Indian Temples, yes we are talking about” Musical Pillars”.

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Stone Chariot Hampi

Iconic Chariot is built on a rectangular platform using giant granite blocks. You can witness the carving of mythical battle scenes all around the base of the chariot. In fact, it is not a chariot, but a shrine dedicated to “Garuda” carrier of Lord Vishnu. Moreover, this is the same chariot that you normally see depicted on the 50 Rupee note.

Coracle Ride-In Hampi

Like every great kingdom begins on the banks of the river, so did the great Vijayanagar empire on the banks of the river Tungabadra. The ancient town of Hampi is well known for its culture, architectural beauty, as well as the great and wealthy lifestyle they followed.

 The round-shaped boats or coracles made of bamboo were used by everyone to ferry people and livestock, during the heydays of the Vijayanagar empire to move across the Tungabhadra river. Even to date these coracles are being used by locals and have become immensely popular among the travelers. This little beauty carries around 6 to 8 people on a go and will take you across to ancient temples, ruins & historical places that are perched on top of rocky boulders. Try hitting this place in evenings, as sunsets in these regions are truly magical when watched from coracles as you glide through the water.

Never say never, to the merry go-arounds rides on the coracles, it is just an out of the world experience.