India has a beautiful history filled with forts, palaces, temples and others. The desi-styled fairytale looks beautiful even when it is in ruins today. One such ruin site is Hampi. Hampi is a heritage site that stands as a remainder of Vijayanagara Empire that flourished between 14th and 16th century. During this period, Hampi was the second richest city in the world. You can find many temples and ruined monuments built in Dravidian style. The main attraction of this spot is Virupaksha temple. This is an important pilgrimage spot here. It is considered as a sacred temple.
This ancient city is filled with many manmade fascinating structures like Vittala temple, Hampi bazar, lotus mahal, elephant stable and others. This city was an important trade and culture spot in 2nd century. The Hampi Bazaar stands as a remainder of the trade center. You can find ancient aqueducts, barracks, canals and other establishments here. This ruin city is an important destination for exploration enthusiasts and photographers.
Other interesting spots to visit in Hampi are Queen’s bath, Matanga hill, monolithic bull, zenana enclosure, Lakshmi Narayan temple, Hemakuta hill temple complex, Hanuman temple, Achyutraya temple, old temple and others.
Are you tired of exploration? You can relax by taking a trip to the archeological museum, which houses some artifacts that were found amidst the ruins. If you love nature, there is a bear sanctuary, a little away from Hampi. It is inhabited with sloth bears.Are you up for shopping? There are a few shops in Hampi that sells handicrafts and souvenirs.
For adventure lovers, exploration is not the only activity here. Hampiis always filled with rock climbers. The place is also ideal for bouldering. Since the number of tourists from international destination visiting Hampi is higher, you can find many multi-cuisine restaurants along the sides of Tungabhadra River. Talking about the river, crossing the river on a country styled circular bamboo boat is another tourists activity here.You can enjoy a luxury coffee time or try Indian cuisine here.
Hampi’s legacy is something that is known around the world. The government of India has honored this city by making it a part of both the Maharajas Express train itineraries that serve Southern India. Southern Sojourn and Southern Jewels are two new itineraries that were compiled by Maharajas’ Express and both the itineraries give equal importance to Hampi. Maharajas Express is the luxury train in India which gives full comfort inside the train.
It is advisable to visit Hampi when there is day light. You can always find tourists and school children here. Out of the numerous ruin cities in India, Hampi is the cherry on top of the sundae.