[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by vinukm

you can also plan for Sandur .. its around 20 KM from Hyatt and places to visit is Shivavilas palace and kumaraswamy temple. You also get to see the neelakurunji flowers which only blooms once in 12 years.

Thanks, will try to do this if we manage to get up early on Day 3. My native place is close to the land of Neelakurunji - Munnar and has witnessed the full beauty of the blossoms in past and would love to see it again, let me see if I can manage

Originally Posted by luvurride

The first three are not actually functioning temples. They are just statues which would just need a few pictures to move on. You could complete all the three in 30-45 mins and still do Virupaksha temple.

Thanks again, below is the plan now.

Day 1 – Reach Hampi by 4.30 pm, Visit Sasivekalu Ganesha, Kadalekalu Ganesha, Badavilinga temple, Monolithic Bull pavilion and Virupaksha. Hoping to complete all by 8 pm.

Day 2 – Start by 9 from hotel and reach Hampi by 10 am. Visit Queens Bath/Chandrahekara temple, Yoganarishma and Vittala temples. Go to Malyavanta Raghunatha temple for sunset. Try lunch at Heritage resort

Day 3 – Check Shivavilas palace and kumaraswamy temple in Sandur depending on whether we manage to catch the morning sunlight, return to Bangalore by noon.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Try lunch at Heritage resort

There is a Clarks Inn at Kamlapur. You can have your lunch there.

[Tempelhof]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

That will be great, Please let me know the vehicle I need to be looking for( mine is a black fortuner), that should be the easiest way to identify there.

Should be easy to find a Violet Pearl Civic with lots of stickers

Originally Posted by NPV

*Look up recent posts where some folks have driven via Ananthpur-Bellary also.

If I were to use the Anantapur-Ballari route, which is a good place for breakfast (with good restrooms)?

Thanks in advance.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Tempelhof

If I were to use the Anantapur-Ballari route, which is a good place for breakfast (with good restrooms)?

There are a few eateries both on Karnataka and Andhra side. The best one I would say is Nandi Upachar near Nandi Hills turn off but they open around 6:30am so you need to time your start accordingly. Swagath also seems decent and not too far off from Nandi. Kamat is average and can be avoided in favor of Nandi & Swagath.

During a trip to Hyderabad last year, I stopped at Blue Moon near Gooty and found it to be decent, service was slow though. Now, there is lot of negative feedback about the place, but I think it's mostly due to slow service and careless attitude of staff there.

The options are (Consolidating some additions from me & pasting others from Rajiv's earlier post (Bangalore - Mantralayam : Route Queries)):
1.Nandi Upachar (~50kms) left side.
2.Kamat Upachar (~75kms) left side.
3.Swagath Delicacy (~85kms) left side.
4.Dolphin Restaurant (~200kms) right side.
5.Blue Moon (~270kms) left side.
6.A1 Plaza almost next door to Blue Moon (A1 could also be a decent option as per other posts on the forum)
7.Ravi Theja (opposite to A1, but may not be great as per recent reports)

*Note:To go to Bellary you need not go till Gooty (where you have A1, Blue Moon and Ravi Theja), you can take the diversion from Anantpur itself, but I'm not sure if that route is good, but gmaps does suggest that by default.

[satishkv]

Originally Posted by deehunk

I saw reports of heavy rains around Bellary and neighboring places on regional news channel. Yesterday 2 buses were stranded in the middle of water, so not a right time for the trip.

Deehunk,
Thanks .
Looks like the weather has turned a little better but some stretches of road could be damaged but I have decided to go ahead on the trip. Leaving from Bangalore today.

[gadadhar]

Did Hampi over the 3 day weekend. We took Tumakuru, Hiriyu, Challakere route, I was little surprised by the last stretch of around 30 kms through narrow village, farm and forest rout which finally passed near mines and a brick factory and was wondering if it is the same route that was suggested by BHPians. However it was a very scenic drive and roads were in good shape with no vehicles and we enjoyed every bit of the drive. But if not for Google, you will be completely lost with none to ask the direction.

Hyatt proved to be an excellent choice and the Jindal township is simply splendid. We decided not to drive to Hampi on Day 1 and stayed back to explore the Jindal campus and watch their 3D show on Hampi in Kaladham which is next door to Hyatt. So we were forced to cover whatever possible in Hampi in 1 day (need to go again).

There was heavy traffic on the way back with long queue at Toll plazas (no dedicated lane for fasttag and it was not working in 1 plaza). Another vehicle rear-ended my Fortuner in Nandi toll plaza, but I was lucky to escape with minor paint damages on the bumper.

Originally Posted by Tempelhof

Should be easy to find a Violet Pearl Civic with lots of stickers

Kept an eye for the Civic, but no luck

Originally Posted by deehunk

I saw reports of heavy rains around Bellary and neighboring places on regional news channel. Yesterday 2 buses were stranded in the middle of water, so not a right time for the trip.

Our guide in Hampi told there was hardly any rains there during this year. Whole place was looking dry and water level in Thungabhadra was very low. It is surprising that Bellary which is not too far from Hampi has got heavy rains.

[Tempelhof]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

Kept an eye for the Civic, but no luck

Very unfortunately, I fell sick a couple days before the trip, from which I could never recover ... limping back to normalcy. Better luck next time. Sorry, though

[gadadhar]

Originally Posted by Tempelhof

Very unfortunately, I fell sick a couple days before the trip, from which I could never recover ... limping back to normalcy. Better luck next time. Sorry, though

That's very unfortunate, but always there is a next time. Hampi festival is starting next week, see if you can make it. Get well soon.

[luvurride]

Originally Posted by gadadhar

So we were forced to cover whatever possible in Hampi in 1 day (need to go again).

Yes, it is a wonderful place with lots of history and we felt we couldn't do justice even after spending 2 full days. Definitely worth a second visit!

[aithalsandy]

Originally Posted by luvurride

....we felt we couldn't do justice even after spending 2 full days. Definitely worth a second visit!

It can fill for a week also. If there is any place in India for restoration of pride, definitely Hampi is one of them.

[DigitalDragon]

Ok guys..just came back yesterday after a 3-day trip to Hampi.

We took the Bangalore-Hiriyur-Challakere-Rampura-Toranagulu-Hosapet route to reach Royal Orchid central. 6 lane road till Hiriyur is fantastic. Hiriyur to Rampura is a 2-lane road, however, in excellent condition with scenic views post Challakere, with few occasional patches. Rampura to Toranugulu route is a single lane village road with lots of turns and some bad patches around Rajapura area. Watch out for the humps. Villagers at some places may demand money with rope-barricade, in pretext of some Puja and all. It will take around 1.5 - 2 hours to cross this stretch. It may be a better idea to continue on NH 150A till Bellary outskirt and then take the Bellary-Hosapet road.

On return, we took the Hosapet-Hulligi-Sanapur-Anegundi New Bridge-Bukkasagara-Kampli-Kuduthni-Bellary-Joladarashi-Uravakonda-Anantapur-Bangalore route. Huligi-Sanapur-Kampli stretch is single lane but in good condition with occasional patches. Beautiful sceneries both sides. Road construction work in several stretches between Kampli-Kuduthni while the rest of the stretch have very good newly laid road. Kuduthni-Bellary is in good condition. Bellary-Joladarashi is bad. Joladarashi to Anantapur is beautiful 2 lane road and very scenic. Anantapur-Bangalore is 4 -lane super expressway. After Hiriyur, there are very less good food options. Similarly, on return, you will not find any good restaurant after you leave Hosapet/Bellary till Anantapur.

Onward, it took around 7:30 minutes from parking to parking with one stop for breakfast and few small stops for tea and photography. It took around 8 hours for the return trip with 30 minute lunch break and another 30 minutes for small stops.

In Hampi, do visit the Vithala Temple, Sanapur lake, Lotus Mahal and surrounding monuments, Hemakuta Hill and Virupaksha temple We could not visit many places due to less time. You need at least 3 full days if you want to explore Hampi in a relaxed fashion. You will not find good standalone restaurants in Hampi barring few in Hampi Bazaar. Better to have food in the hotel you stay or carry food with you.

Will post pics shortly.

[DigitalDragon]

Here is one pic from my Hampi Trip.. Lotus Mahal

[Red Liner]

What is the weather like in hampi these days? Has it cooled off considerably?

[DigitalDragon]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

What is the weather like in hampi these days? Has it cooled off considerably?

Not really. pleasant in the evening. Hot during the day time.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by DigitalDragon

Not really. pleasant in the evening. Hot during the day time.

So the best time to be there continues to be during the monsoons for sure... Less of a crowd, beautiful rainy days.