Top 20 Places to Visit in Mysore-Bangalore Highway (Route-1: Via Mysore Road)

In this post, you will learn about the pit stops you can make in places which serve great beauty and peaceful atmosphere, which are often very easily missed out of your itineraries. There are two major routes to travel from Bangalore to Mysore/Vice Versa. The distances of these two routes are not far apart. But they do have very different places on their ways to visit.

I will talk about the first route, Mysore Road here. The distance through this route is approximately 145 kms and takes 3 hours to reach with usual traffic considered. It travels through the below towns.

Bangalore -> Bidadi -> Ramanagara -> Channapatna -> Maddur -> Mandya -> Srirangapatna -> Mysore

It is 40 kms from Bangalore, with a slight deviation near Kengeri – Suburb of Bangalore. The dam is built across Arkavathi river. The water reflecting sunshine, greenery around and away from the busy city, it ranks as a perfect spot to spend a peaceful evening.

The dam water can be accessed by its backwater via Magadi road. There are water sporting activities like boating, etc. The place is made for bird enthusiasts. Birdwatchers are in for a treat. The species of bird that can be spotted are Blue Kingfisher, Purple Heron, Ringed Plover, Booted Wobbler, Pied Bush-cat and many more. It also makes it a very good picnic spot for people wanting to enjoy the scenery.

It is 28 kms from Bangalore. The tree is the biggest in the whole of Karnataka. It is 400 years old and occupies 3 acres of land. The canopy of the tree is the best for one-day picnics, family outings and relaxing.

It houses variety of birds and a very large number of monkeys. It is best to stay aware at all times when it comes to personal belongings. The soil here has remained consistent for years and serves for research by botanists. The cool atmosphere and off the busy roads has made it a pretty famous tourist attraction.

Considered to be one of the largest monolith hills in India, Savanadurga is located 46 kms from Bangalore. You can deviate at Hanchikuppe via Mysore road. The hill is in the middle of nature and makes a good one day adventure. Leopards and variety of birds are very often spotted.

Savanadurga is known to be a trekking spot. It is nearly a 700 to 950 feet, not so difficult climb to the top. The trek is 2 kms one way which can be completed in a day’s time. When you ascend to the top, you can find a fortress built by Kempegowda – II. The climb can be tricky during monsoon, but other than that it is a perfect place for an adventure enthusiast.

It is located at 69 kms from Bangalore. A deviation of 8 kms from Kengal Anjaneya Temple, Ramanagara. Kanva reservoir is an artificial lake built for irrigation purposes and spans for 15 kms in length. The lake rarely stores water to its full capacity, hence bikes and cars can reach closer to the water.

It is 50 kms from Bangalore and about 3 kms off the Highway from Ramanagara. More famously known as ‘Sholay Spot’, the blockbuster Bollywood movie Sholay was shot here among these huge boulders. The hill is 3000 ft above the ground and gives a beautiful view of the green surroundings.

Did you know that this place was declared as ‘India’s first Vulture Sanctuary’? It is because it nests endangered Long Billed Vultures. Even though the numbers are not as big as it were decades ago, it has remained constant for the past few years.

Located approximately 20 kms from Ramanagara is Jalamangala. Narayanagiri hills is a hill lesser known. The ascend will take anytime upto 45 mins – 1 hour. The climb is pretty steep and needs one to hold onto the branches or anything available there.

The ascend and descend of this hill are on two different sides, each steeper in their own way. The cool breeze, thrilling technical climbs and the fact that it is lesser known to people makes it a place perfect to explore.

It is located in Ramanagara (approximately 53 kms from Bangalore) and you can spot this place on the main Highway itself. Janapada Loka in Kannada means ‘Folk World’. And as the name suggests, it is a folk museum that has a display of folk arts of Karnataka. It preserves the cultural essence of Karnataka folk and promotes the same to everyone visiting here.

The displays here include life-size dolls of artists who perform Yakshagana, Veeragase and other folk dances of Karnataka. It also houses creative old-school hand-looms, housewares, rustic agricultural equipments and artifacts related to traditional folk music, festivals and literature.

Famous festivals like Dussera and traditional Kite festivals are celebrated here where artists from different parts of Karnataka take part. The place also has a eatery joint which serves authentic North Karnataka food. Something everybody should try and savor on. They also have complexes selling regional food treats and a peaceful environment to sit back and relax in the greenery.

This hill is located in Doddabyadarahalli village which is 13 kms from Mandya district. It is 400 meters from above the ground and has steps to reach the top. The view is a panoramic giving a glimpse of the paddy and sugarcane fields of Mandya.

The village has the biggest coconut market in India. It also houses artisans who design and manufacture wooden toys which is exported throughout the country. The Kite festival and their annual Jatre (a traditional festival exclusive for the village) can be witnessed in the months of July and October.

The place has a historical importance to it. It is named Kunti Betta because it is believed that Kunti, the mother of Pandavas took shelter here during her exile. Located right in the middle of sugarcane, paddy and coconut trees in Pandavapura village of Mandya, this hill provides one of the best views.

During monsoon season, a green lake is formed at the foot of the hills and is called ‘Kunti Kund’. There is also a temple at the top of the hill. The Pujari of this temple reside in a cave that was used by the Pandavas. Trekking is an option chosen by visitors here. The trek is a steep climb among huge boulders and rocks.

There is a lake called ‘Thonnur Lake’, 10 kms from Kunti Betta Peak. It is the source of water for the nearby villages there. The lake is used for water sport activities and can be reached after the trek.

Melukote is located in Pandavapura of Mandya district, 55 kms away from Mysore and 130 kms from Bangalore. It is considered a sacred place and is believed that Ramanuja stayed here for 12 years. The temple Cheluvanarayana is famous for its precious jewels collection which is only brought out during special occasions. It is also believed that Lord Rama has visited this temple.

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This rocky fortress is a part of numerous movies and because of its close proximity of major cities, it has become a famous religious/tourist site. The Melukote temple sanctuary protects grey wolves. Birds are found in abundance and is a treat for bird watchers.

This largest bird sanctuary in Karnataka is located in Mandya district. The islets in Ranganathittu were formed by a wall built across the Kaveri river. It soon started to attract birds in very large numbers and became their main nesting ground.

They roughly have around 170 species of birds. There are boating facilities available for visitors around the islets. The sanctuary is open from 9 AM to 6 PM and offers a calm surrounding with plenty of colorful birds around.

Kokkare is the name for Painted Stork in Kannada language. It is located in Mandya district and is 800 meters from the west of river Shimsha. Pelicans and Storks have been coming here to breed for hundreds of years. the story has it that during the Plague in 1916, an entire village had to relocate from across the river and these birds followed the village people.

The main occupation of the people here is agriculture and the bird’s droppings are widely used as manure in this village. The best time to visit might be from November to June where the birds are seen maximum. This co-existence between nature and humans is a must visit.

Located in Srirangapatna, it is the Summer palace very similar to the one at Bangalore and is also the place where Tipu Sultan faced his death. The entire palace represents perfectly the Indo-Islamic architecture.

It is now a museum to the public. The displays include old inscriptions, Tipu’s clothing and weaponary. It is a two-storey building and the top floor has 4 rooms which was exclusively built for the women of the Royal family. The outside of the palace has abundant greenery, fountains and an atmosphere apt to suit the summer heat of Southern India.

These two man made check-dams are located in Srirangapatna and are 1 km away from each other. Balmuri means ‘turn right’ and Yedmuri means ‘turn left’ in Kannada language. The water flow turns the respective directions from their points in Srirangapatna and hence the names.

This place is an ideal spot for picnics and family outings. The water falls down from a height of just 6 feet forming a soft sheet. Visitors can walk along the stream of water and this particular reason is why the location is a part of many regional language movies.

Karighatta translates to ‘Elephant Hill’ in Kannada language. Located in Srirangapatna, this hill is 2700 feet high and is accessible in two ways. To reach the hill top, you can use the Karighatta road in your vehicles or choose to climb 450 steps.

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On the top there is a temple dedicated to Lord Srinivasa and the panoramic view of Srirangapatna, Mysore and Kaveri river is absolutely beautiful. The hill also has a forest full of tamarind and gooseberry trees.

One of the very famous temples, it is located a few kms after Srirangapatna. The temple is situated on the banks of river Kaveri and is 300 years old. ‘Nimisha’ means minute in Kannada. The people believe that they will be relieved off their problems within minutes after praying here, and hence the name Nimishamba. The temple’s old architecture and ceremonies celebrated has made it come under the HR&CE of Mysore state of Karnataka.

The largest chain of amusement parks in India, they have 3 operations in Hyderabad, Kochi and the biggest one yet in Bangalore. Located in Bidadi, 28 kms from Bangalore, Wonderla has a great variety of dry high rides and water rides to choose from.

It is an Indian movie theme park, located in Bidadi, 40 kms away from Bangalore. The 58 acres of property has 3 divisions. One if you are looking to walk around explore and relax, second if you want to get involved in the amusement park games and third to see the world of glamour and movies.

20. Heritage Wine Tour

Located in Ramanagara, it it a perfect day out for all the wine lovers. Visitors will experience the whole wine making process right from the fermentation to the bottling of the wine. You can participate in tasting 6 different variety of wines, savor in an all European-Indian lunch and get a tour of the vineyard.

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