I arrived in Hampi from Goa, in the middle of the Indian Republic Day holiday (26/01), which also overlaps the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s Death (30/01). I was unaware of this at the time, so did not realize the whole of the Indian population takes a holiday and books a weekend away! The train to Hospette from Margao went by without too much of a hitch, leaving and arriving 30 minutes late and taking around 8 hours. I did get on the wrong carriage for a part of the journey, apparently carriage 2A and 2AV are not then same, meaning at one stop I had to get off and rush 6 coaches down and get on the correct one before the train left the station! From Hospette I caught a rickshaw the 12km to Hampi Bazaar costing 250 INR with some amazing scenery on the way. It was just getting dark so the sun was setting over the palm trees and ruins, which really was an amazing site.
Upon arrival at Hampi Bazaar I went to every single guesthouse/hostel/hotel/homestay that I could find, but everywhere was full due to the holiday. At this point it was pitch black and I was in a right pickle. I was advised to cross the river to Virupapura Gaddi, as there were meant to be more accommodation options. First I had to get across the river. There is the option of walking across the rocks and shallow water, but I didn’t fancy that in the dark, so decided to take the boat. I paid 75 INR, normally 50 but it was past 18:00 so the price goes up… apparently. I was shoved into a circular boat, not a motorized one and was paddled across, the boat spinning its way through the rocks and boulders before landing at the other side. Again, I visited every single guesthouse/hostel/hotel/homestay I could find but to no avail. Eventually I was offered a place on a restaurant floor by a lovely restaurant owner, which was incredibly lucky or I would have been on the street! The guy was really nice, allowing me to sleep in the restaurant and giving me a sleeping bag so I didn’t get cold. The following day I ended up going to a bar with him to watch the cricket, which England obviously lost!
The following morning I checked into one of his rooms for 2 nights, as one became available after an early check out, and I had a much needed shower. The sleep in the restaurant wasn’t too bad really, it is where all the staff sleep as they come down from the north of the country to work. I did however get a couple of mosquito bites on the forehead. I went for a walk in the day, exploring the landscape with some HUGE boulders and taking a trip up to sunset point, to watch the sun set over Hampi. It was beautiful and really made up for the night before.
The next day I hired a moped for 250 Rupees and paid 180 Rupees for 2 liters of fuel. I drove out to Hampi Waterfalls, which were in fact not waterfalls at all. It is a lovely setting on the river, surrounded by rocks and huge boulders, but the waterfalls were just hoses. I then visited Anjanadri Hill and hiked up the 575 steps to Monkey Temple and the amazing views from atop the rocks. On the ascent and the decent I ran into a family of mischievous monkeys, with some babies who were messing around in the trees. This is well worth the visit and effort to climb all the steps. From there I headed back towards Hampi Waterfalls, but took a right at the crossroads to Rangapura, instead of a left towards the falls. This is a fantastic road to drive on, with new tarmac and some amazing scenery. You drive past a beautiful lake, some small villages and the landscape is like nothing I have seen. I stopped in the Whispering Rocks Cafe a few miles down the road which I can highly recommend. The food was fantastic and there was a very relaxed atmosphere in a beautiful setting.
For the next 2 nights I decided to move across to Hampi Bazaar, back across the river, as the Indian holiday was over and there was accommodation available. This gave me best of both worlds, 2 days in Virupapura Gaddi and 2 in Hampi Bazaar. I booked into Kiran’s Guesthouse and went for a short walk to explore the temples and adjoining temples. The main temple was lovely, but pretty busy and cost 2 Rupees to enter. I did however see Lakshmi the temple elephant inside, munching away on a mountain of bananas. If you head up the granite rocks behind the temple there are hundreds of ruins that nobody seems to bother with, offering lovely views of the valley. I spent a bit of time exploring and chilling in the shade before heading to the Mango Tree restaurant for dinner.
The next day I rented a bicycle for 50 INR for the day, and set out for some more exploration. I cycled toward the Vitthala Temple Complex, locked up the bike and walked the remaining 1.5km to the temple. You can get right to the gate by bike but its a 12km road around the rocks, so I decided on the 1.5km walk, which went past some more fantastic ruins and gave beautiful views of the river in the valley. A ticket into the Vitthala Temple Complex costs 30 INR for a local and 500 INR for a foreigner. Then is a crazy difference which I really wasn’t happy paying, so I didn’t. It turns out I should have paid as the ticket gets you into most of the paid sites, which I ended up visiting later and therefore paying the 500 INR. After walking back to the bike, I cycled for around 20 minutes to a large collection of ruins, including the elephant stables, which is where I paid for my ticket and explored for a couple of hours.
Hampi is amazing place, like no where I have been in the world and is a must do if you are in India. However if its an Indian holiday make sure you have some accommodation sorted, or risk sleeping on the streets. Across the river, at Virupapura Gaddi, there is a lovely atmosphere with some chilled out bars and restaurants. Across at Hampi Bazaar the atmosphere isn’t as good but is still a lovely place. Nowhere is allowed to sell alcohol as its so near the temples, whereas on the other side of the river they are. Just something to think about if you like a drink. I’d recommend 2 full days on each side of the river, taking in the best of both worlds. From Hampi I am heading to Udaipur via Mumbai.