Group of Monuments at Hampi

Hampi feels like another planet: a landscape of giant granite boulders, balanced impossibly on top of each other, with the Tungabhadra river winding between banana plantations and paddy fields. Scattered across this setting are the ruins of Vijayanagara, once one of the largest and richest cities in the world.

Start at the Virupaksha Temple, still an active place of worship, then walk along Hampi Bazaar to the hilltop at Hemakuta for sunrise. Further on lie the Vittala Temple with its famous stone chariot and "musical" pillars, the Royal Enclosure with its stepped tank, the Lotus Mahal and the Elephant Stables. Renting a bicycle or hiring a guide for a full day is the best way to cover the area.

Vijayanagara was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire, founded in the 14th century, which reached its height under Krishnadevaraya in the early 16th century. Foreign travellers described its markets, palaces and festivals with wonder. In 1565, after the empire's defeat at the Battle of Talikota, the city was sacked and largely abandoned. The Group of Monuments at Hampi was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.

Hampi preserves an extraordinary range of Dravidian temple architecture, royal buildings, water systems and fortifications from a great South Indian empire, set within a dramatic natural landscape.

The nearest railway station is Hosapete (Hospet), about 13 km away, with connections to Bengaluru and Hubballi. The nearest airports are at Ballari (Vidyanagar) and Hubballi; many visitors also travel overnight by bus or train from Bengaluru. Autos, bicycles and mopeds are the usual ways to move between monument groups.