Delhi Tourism

Situated in the southern part of the Deccan Plateau, Mysore District is an undulating tableland, covered in parts by granite outcrops and fringed by verdant forests. From ancient times, this district has played a significant role in the history of South India. Mysore is located at 770 m above sea level and 135 km from Bangalore at 12.18° N 76.42° E. Mysore is known for its palaces and proximity to several attractions.Mysore (Hadinadu at that time) is believed to have been established sometime in the eleventh century, becoming the capital of a small kingdom founded by Yaduraya (A chandravamshi kshatriya kinsman) from Dwaraka who rescued a local princess from the clutches of a local chieftan Maranayaka, after the unitimely death of her father around the year 1399. Most of such small kingdoms around Mysore were tributaries of the Vijayanagara empire and were under the control of the viceroy of the Vijayanagar Empire who was based at Srirangapattana (Seringapatam). After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, Raja Wodeyar taking advantage of resulting power vacuum, procalimed his independence and shifted the capital to Sriranagapattana in 1610. From 1610 to 1704 The Kingdom of Mysore flourished and expanded from strength to strength, growing to include most of the southern sections of modern-day Karnataka.

Mysore Palace
Built in around AD 897 in Saracenic style, the Mysore palace has both Hindu as well as Muslim influences. The palace, designed by an English architect and completed in 1912, was built in place of an earlier palace which was burnt down in 1897. Designed in Indo-Saracenic style by the well-known British architect, Henry Irwin, the palace is a treasure house of exquisite carvings and works of art from all over the world. The three storeyed building, 245 feet in length and 156 in breadth has a series of square towers with arches covered by domes. There is wide-open space in the front and a gold-plated dome about 145 feet from the ground covers the open courtyard in the center.

Chamundi Hills
Standing as the crown jewel of Mysore, Chamundi Hills is the abode of all powerful Goddess, Chamundi or Chamundeswari. A motorable road, besides a flight of 1,000 steps, take the visitors to its top, where stands the beautiful tall Gopuram of the temple, one of the best examples of the Dravidian school of architecture. The hill rises to a height of 3,489 feet. Half-way to it, near the steps and the road, there is a beautiful 16-foot monolith statue of Nandi, carved in granite, black because of regular anointing with oil and other sacred waters. The beautiful carved statue was a gift by the Maharaja, Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar, in 1659. Nearby the Chamundi Temple is the Lalithadri Palace, used by the former Mysore Maharajas, whenever they visited the Hills, for worshipping the Goddess, their home deity, in the temple. By the side of the famous Chamundi Temple, there is another temple, the temple of Mahabaleswara.


Srirangapatnam
This place is located about 15 KMs towards Nort-East of Mysore city and on the Mysore-Bangalore State Highway. This place is on the banks of river Kaveri. One specialty is that this place is an Island! Where River Kaveri splits into two parts as North Kaveri and South Kaveri and again combines near a village called "Ganjam" and the place in between the two parts of the river is the town of srirangapattanam.A simple gravestone marks the place where Tipu was wounded and found dead. but it was in happier days that Tipu Sulatn had built the Summer Palace called the Dariya Daulat ('Splendour of the Sea'), near the Srirangapatnam fort, in 1784. Laid out in a vast, formal garden, the palace, a neat charming structure, stands in the centre. the palace walls have been elaborately painted with panels and decorative motifs. On one wall there is a mural painting of a procession with Hyder Ali and Tipu on horseback.

Brindavan Gardens
This important and not to be missed place is located about 15 KMs towards North-West from mysore city. This place is in "Mandya District". A dam has been constructed across river Kaveri that originates from "Bhagamandala" in Kodagu district and is used for irrigation purposes. This project was dreamt by "Krishnaraja Wodeyar the fourth" and brought "Sir M. Vishweshvariah" from Bombay government and took him as Chief Engineer for Mysore State. This dam was completed in 1932 and brought joy and helped the farmers from Mysore and Mandya district.

Mysore Rail Museum
The Railway Museum at Mysore, the first regional Rail Museum in India was set up in 1979. The Museum sets a good pattern for regional display and has good collections. A circular gallery called Chamundi Gallery has interesting collections of photographs, series of paintings showing the development of the Railways and signaling signs right from its inception. The adjacent building named Sri Ranga Pavilion houses two Royal coaches that formed part of the Royal train of Maharaja of Mysore reflecting the era of bygone splendour. In outdoor exhibits are the various locomotives, coaches and rail motor car. The star attraction of the museum is the battery operated mini train especially for the children. It is located on K.R.S road in the heart of the city opposite to the Central Food Technology Research and Training Institute.

Bandipur National Park
Bandipur is about 220 km from Bangalore and only 80 km from Mysore. Gundelpet is the closest town.There are three cottage resorts at the boundary of the park. One is inside the park and is run by the Forest Department, another is a Karnataka Tourism Department hotel at the boundary of the park, and the third is privately managed. It is advisable to make weekend reservations beforehand. Gundelpet is about 20 km from the park and has more hotels and inns.Bandipur forest office runs forest safaris of 45 minutes duration in well guarded buses which start each morning. Deer, antelope, elephants and peacocks can be easily seen. Tigers and elephants may be occasionally sighted.If you have a good group you can do a trek through the forest with help of the forest department. The forest office located in Bandipur can provide you with trained professionals who can guide you through the forest.

How to reach

By Air
The nearest airport from Mysore is 140 km away in Bangalore, from where one can take flights for most of the important cities in India.

By Rail
Mysore is connected with most of the metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Chennai through regular trains.

By Road
There is a good network of roads that connects Mysore to other important cities of the region.