--- title: "Top 10 Things To Do in Mysore, India (2026 Guide) | Wimup" description: "The 10 best things to do in Mysore, ranked. The palace and its Sunday illumination, the Chamundi Hill climb, and how to time a trip around Dasara." url: https://wimup.com/city/mysore type: City guide updated: 2026-10-19 publisher: Wimup (https://wimup.com) --- # Top 10 Things To Do in Mysore Mysore, India · Asia · By Wimup Editorial, 12 min read Mysore ran a kingdom for nearly six centuries and still carries itself that way. The Wadiyars' palace sits at the centre of the grid, the goddess the city is named for looks down from Chamundi Hill, and the streets between them trade in silk, sandalwood and jasmine. Bengaluru is two hours away and feels further. ## Quick answer The best things to do in Mysore are Amba Vilas Palace, lit by close to 100,000 bulbs on Sunday evenings, the Chamundeshwari temple at the top of Chamundi Hill, the jasmine and kumkum aisles of Devaraja Market, and the Hoysala carving at Somanathapura, 35 km east. Two days covers the city. A third buys Srirangapatna, a Kaveri waterfall or a safari at Bandipur. ## Quick facts - **Best months:** Oct · Dec · Jan - **Ideal length:** 2–3 days - **Budget per day:** $25–60 - **Language:** Kannada, with English widely understood - **Getting around:** On foot, by auto, by hired car - **Tourism board:** [Official site](https://karnatakatourism.org/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## The 10 best things to do in Mysore ### 1. Mysore Palace Palace · Sayyaji Rao Road, Agrahara, Mysuru 570001 The seat of the Wadiyars, rebuilt in grey granite and pink marble by Henry Irwin after fire took the previous palace in 1897 and finished in 1912. Indo-Saracenic outside, a run of durbar halls, mirrored ceilings and stained glass inside. It is India's most visited monument after the Taj Mahal, and the queue says so. - **Time:** 2 hours - **Cost:** Ticketed, foreign visitors pay several times the Indian rate - **Best at:** Sunday evening, for the illumination - **Tip:** Shoes come off at the gate and the floors are stone. Carry socks. Links: [Website](https://mysorepalace.karnataka.gov.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 2. Chamundeshwari Temple, Chamundi Hill Temple · Chamundi Hills, Mysuru 570010 The goddess the city is named for stands 13 km from the palace at the top of a hill you can drive up or climb. The stairway of just over a thousand steps was cut in 1659, and two thirds of the way up sits a Nandi carved from a single block of granite, 4.9 m tall. Weekend queues at the shrine are long. - **Time:** 2 to 3 hours - **Cost:** Free to enter - **Best at:** Early morning - **Tip:** Climb up and take a bus or an auto down. The steps are steep and unshaded above the Nandi. ### 3. Devaraja Market Market · Sayyaji Rao Road, Devaraja Mohalla, Mysuru 570001 Some 800 stalls under one roof, built out in stages from the 1900s and named for Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar. Come for the cones of kumkum powder, the banked fruit and above all the flowers: Mysore mallige, the local jasmine, is strung here by the metre from first light. - **Time:** 45 minutes - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Early morning, when the flowers arrive - **Tip:** Prices are quoted high for visitors. Agree a number before anything is weighed or wrapped. ### 4. Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura Temple · Somanathapura, T. Narasipura taluk, 35 km east of Mysuru A three-shrined Hoysala temple finished in 1258 and carved as though the stone were soft: elephants, horsemen and full narrative friezes wrapped around a star-shaped plinth. UNESCO listed it in 2023 as part of the Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas. The shrines are empty, so this is architecture rather than worship. - **Time:** 1 hour - **Cost:** ASI ticket, higher for foreign visitors - **Best at:** Morning, for light on the east face - **Tip:** Pair it with Talakadu. Both sit on the same road east along the Kaveri. Links: [Website](https://asi.nic.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 5. Srirangapatna Historic town · Srirangapatna, Mandya district, 16 km north of Mysuru Tipu Sultan's island capital, stormed by the East India Company in 1799. What survives is three separate visits: the Ranganathaswamy temple inside the fort walls, the teak and fresco summer palace at Daria Daulat Bagh, and the Gumbaz where Tipu, Hyder Ali and Fatima Begum are buried. - **Time:** Half a day - **Cost:** Small ASI tickets at the palace and the Gumbaz - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** It sits on the Bengaluru road, so it works as a stop on the way in or out. Links: [Website](https://karnatakatourism.org/en/destinations/srirangapatna?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 6. Mysore Zoo Zoo · Indiranagar, Ittigegud, Mysuru 570010 Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens opened in 1892 in the maharaja's own grounds, which is why it reads as a park with mature trees rather than a compound. It is among the better-regarded zoos in the country, it is closed on Tuesdays, and it adjoins Karanji Lake. - **Time:** 2 to 3 hours - **Cost:** Ticketed, cheaper on weekdays - **Best at:** The first hours after opening - **Tip:** Closed Tuesdays. Animals are least visible through the middle of the afternoon. Links: [Website](https://mysuruzoo.info/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ### 7. St Philomena's Cathedral Church · Ashoka Road, Bannimantap, Mysuru 570015 A neo-Gothic cathedral finished in 1936, its twin spires 53 m high and modelled on Cologne. The nave seats around 800 under stained glass that runs from the Nativity to the Ascension. It is one of the tallest churches in Asia and still a working parish. - **Time:** 30 minutes - **Cost:** Free - **Best at:** Late afternoon - **Tip:** Dress as you would for any working church. Services take priority over sightseeing. ### 8. Brindavan Gardens Garden · Krishnaraja Sagara dam, 21 km north of Mysuru Terraced gardens laid out below the Krishnaraja Sagara dam on the Kaveri, with a musical fountain added in 1985 and lit at dusk. This is a mass evening out rather than a quiet one: close to two million people come a year, most of them for the water. - **Time:** 2 hours - **Cost:** Small entry fee - **Best at:** Dusk, for the fountain - **Tip:** Fountain times move with the season and run longer at weekends. Check on the day. ### 9. Jaganmohan Palace and art gallery Gallery · Jaganmohan Palace Road, Chamrajpura, Mysuru 570004 Built in 1861 and pressed into service as the royal residence while Amba Vilas was rebuilt. The Jayachamarajendra gallery inside holds around 2,000 works, Raja Ravi Varma canvases among them, alongside Mysore and Mughal painting. The lighting is dim and the labels are thin, so give it time. - **Time:** 1 hour - **Cost:** Ticketed - **Best at:** Midday, when the palace queue is at its worst - **Tip:** A five-minute walk west of Amba Vilas, which makes it the obvious pairing. ### 10. Karanji Lake Nature park · Off Lalitha Mahal Road, Ittigegud, Mysuru 570010 A lake dug in the 1860s for the Lalitha Mahal grounds, now a nature park holding the largest walk-through aviary in India and a butterfly park on the bank. The Regional Museum of Natural History stands at the water's edge, and Chamundi Hill fills the view across it. - **Time:** 1 to 2 hours - **Cost:** Small entry fee - **Best at:** Early morning, for birds - **Tip:** It shares a boundary with the zoo, so the two make one afternoon. ## Best palaces & heritage in Mysore Five more Wadiyar buildings, and what each one is now. 1. **Lalitha Mahal** (Guest palace · Lalitha Mahal Road): A white guest palace below Chamundi Hill, modelled on St Paul's and now a heritage hotel. 2. **Jayalakshmi Vilas Mansion** (1905 · Manasagangotri): Built in 1905 for the maharaja's sister, now the university's folklore museum. 3. **Rajendra Vilas** (Chamundi Hill · Chamundi Hill): The Wadiyars' summer palace, on the summit of Chamundi Hill beside the temple road. 4. **Dufferin Clock Tower** (1886 · K.R. Circle): Chikka Gadiyara, 1886, at the market end of the road. The city kept time by it. 5. **Rangacharlu Memorial Hall** (1880s · Sayyaji Rao Road): The town hall, raised in the 1880s for the diwan who gave Mysore a representative assembly. ## Best temples & shrines in Mysore Four shrines inside the palace fort and on the hill above the city. 1. **Trinesvaraswamy Temple** (Palace fort · Amba Vilas grounds): A Dravidian Shiva temple inside the palace fort, older than the palace around it. 2. **Prasanna Krishnaswamy Temple** (1829 · Amba Vilas grounds): Raised in 1829 by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III, who gave it 40 bronze figures. 3. **Mahabaleshwara Temple** (950 CE · Chamundi Hill): The oldest shrine on Chamundi Hill. Its records run back to 950 CE. 4. **Sri Nandi Temple** (17th century · Chamundi Hill steps): The monolithic bull on the stairway, cut under Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar in the 17th century. [Website](https://www.incredibleindia.gov.in/en/karnataka/mysuru/sri-nandi-temple?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) ## Best restaurants in Mysore Six kitchens Mysore has kept, from a 1930s pulao counter to a dosa bench. 1. **Vinayaka Mylari** (Dosa · Nazarbad): Butter-soft benne dosa off a very short menu, with coconut chutney. Trading since 1938. 2. **Gayatri Tiffin Room** (Tiffin · Chamundipuram): GTR to everyone here. Benne masala dosa and set dosa, from breakfast on. 3. **Hotel Hanumanthu** (Mutton pulao · Mandi Mohalla): Mutton pulao and chops from a counter that has been at it since 1930. [Website](https://hotelhanumanthu.com/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 4. **Hotel RRR** (Andhra meals · Gandhi Square): Andhra meals on a banana leaf, served fast and hot near Gandhi Square. 5. **Mahesh Prasad** (Vegetarian · Chamrajpura): Vegetarian South Indian thalis and bonda soup in a converted mid-century house. [Website](https://karnatakatourism.org/en/experiences/mahesh-prasad-veg-restaurant?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) 6. **Guru Sweet Mart** (Sweets · Sayyaji Rao Road): Mysore pak from the family of the palace cook credited with inventing it. ## Best markets & shopping in Mysore Silk, sandalwood, and the state-run shops that sell them at a fixed price. 1. **KSIC Silk Factory and Showroom** (Silk · Mananthavadi Road): The state silk mill. Walk the power looms, then buy the saree next door. 2. **Cauvery Handicrafts Emporium** (Handicrafts · Sayyaji Rao Road): The government emporium: sandalwood carving, rosewood inlay, no haggling. 3. **Government Sandalwood Oil Factory** (Sandalwood · Ashokapuram): Running since 1916, and the source of the oil in Mysore Sandal soap. 4. **Sayyaji Rao Road** (Street · City centre): The old commercial spine: silk shops and sweet counters either side of the market. ## Best museums & galleries in Mysore Four museums, none of them large, each worth an hour. 1. **Folk Lore Museum** (6,500 objects · Manasagangotri): Over 6,500 objects of rural Karnataka inside Jayalakshmi Vilas, one of Asia's biggest folk collections. 2. **Rail Museum** (Since 1979 · KRS Road): Opened by Indian Railways in 1979, with royal saloon carriages and old locomotives. 3. **Regional Museum of Natural History** (Natural history · Karanji Lake): Western Ghats ecology, pitched at children, on the bank of Karanji Lake. 4. **Mysuru Sand Sculpture Museum** (Sand art · Chamundi Hill Road): The palace, the goddess and the Dasara elephants, carved in sand at the foot of the hill. ## Best parks & gardens in Mysore Four lakes and lawns that fill at dawn and again after work. 1. **Kukkarahalli Lake** (Birdlife · Manasagangotri): A university-managed lake with a walking loop and well over a hundred bird species. 2. **Lingambudhi Lake** (217 acres · Srirampura): Mysore's largest freshwater lake, declared a bird sanctuary in 2001. 3. **Curzon Park** (22 acres · Near the palace): Twenty-two acres of old planting near the palace, named for the viceroy. 4. **Cheluvamba Park** (9 acres · Yadavagiri): Nine acres of lawn and flowerbeds in Yadavagiri, named for a Wadiyar princess. ## Best day trips in Mysore Six trips out, from a Kaveri waterfall to a tiger reserve. 1. **Bandipur Tiger Reserve** (80 km · Chamarajanagar district): A Project Tiger park since 1973. Forest-department jeeps run morning and afternoon. 2. **Nagarhole** (80 km · Kodagu border): The reserve across the Kabini backwaters, at its best for elephants late in the dry season. 3. **Shivanasamudra Falls** (85 km · Mandya district): The Kaveri splits and drops twice, at Gaganachukki and Barachukki. Best after the rains. 4. **Talakadu** (45 km · T. Narasipura taluk): Temples half-buried in river sand on the Kaveri, dug out and covered again by turns. 5. **Melukote** (55 km · Mandya district): A hill temple town of steps and tanks, built around the Cheluvanarayana Swamy shrine. 6. **Madikeri** (120 km · Kodagu): Coffee estates and cloud in the Kodagu hills. A long day, and better as an overnight. ## Festivals & annual events in Mysore (2026) - **Mahashivaratri** (Feb/Mar): Night-long queues at the Shiva shrines, Mahabaleshwara on Chamundi Hill among them. - **Ugadi** (Mar/Apr): The Kannada new year, marked with neem and jaggery and a house full of fresh obbattu. - **Vairamudi festival, Melukote** (Mar/Apr): The Cheluvanarayana idol wears a diamond crown brought up under police escort. - **Ganesh Chaturthi** (Aug/Sep): Neighbourhood pandals for ten days, then immersion processions to the lakes. - **Mysuru Dasara** (Oct): Ten days of the Wadiyars' state festival, closing with the Jamboo Savari procession. - **Dasara Exhibition** (Oct–Dec): A fair on Doddakere Maidan that opens with the festival and outlasts it by weeks. - **Kaveri Sankramana** (Oct): Pilgrims gather at Talakaveri in Kodagu for the river's rising. A day trip from the city. - **Deepavali** (Oct/Nov): Lamps along the market stalls, and the palace lit on the public holidays. ## Must-try dishes in Mysore, India - **Mysore pak**: Gram flour, sugar and a great deal of ghee, invented in the palace kitchen. - **Mysore masala dosa**: A dosa spread inside with red chilli chutney before the potato goes in. - **Benne dosa**: Soft in the middle, crisp at the rim, finished with a spoon of white butter. - **Ragi mudde**: Finger-millet balls, swallowed rather than chewed, with lentil or bone curry. - **Bisi bele bath**: Rice, toor dal and tamarind cooked hot together. Said to start in the palace. - **Mysore rasam**: Darker and thicker than the Tamil version, with coconut in the spice mix. - **Obbattu**: Flatbread stuffed with jaggery and chana dal, served warm under ghee. - **Mysore bonda**: Fried lentil batter with coconut and green chilli. Coconut chutney alongside. ## Mysore transport & airports - **Mysore Airport** (MYQ): At Mandakalli, about 10 km south of the centre. It is a small domestic field with a thin schedule, so most visitors fly into Bengaluru instead and come the rest of the way overland. [Website](https://www.aai.aero/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Trains from Bengaluru** (2 hours): Mysuru Junction is the end of the line. The fastest services cover the 140 km from Bengaluru in about two hours, and they sell out at weekends and through Dasara. [Website](https://www.irctc.co.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **The Bengaluru expressway** (Road): The ten-lane expressway took the drive from Bengaluru down to comfortably under three hours. State buses run through the day from the city and suburban stands. [Website](https://ksrtc.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - **Autos and city buses** (In town): Autos are everywhere and metered in principle. Agree the fare first. The palace, the market and most hotels sit inside one walkable square kilometre. ## Mysore at a glance - **Country:** India - **Region:** Karnataka, in the south of the state, about 140 km southwest of Bengaluru - **Population:** 920,550 in the city (2011 census), about 990,900 across the urban agglomeration - **Founded:** Capital of the Kingdom of Mysore from 1399, when the Wadiyar line began, to 1947 - **Nickname:** City of Palaces - **Language:** Kannada, with English and Hindi widely understood - **Currency:** Indian rupee (₹) - **Time zone:** IST (UTC+5:30) - **Calling code:** +91 821 - **Airports:** Mysore (MYQ), 10 km south; Bengaluru (BLR), about 190 km northeast - **Power:** 230V, plug types C, D and M - **Emergency:** 112 national, 100 police, 101 fire, 108 ambulance ## Interesting facts - Mysore takes its name from Mahishasura, the buffalo demon the goddess Chamundeshwari killed on the hill above the city. - The Wadiyars ruled from here for nearly 550 years, from 1399 until Indian independence in 1947. - Amba Vilas Palace is the most visited monument in India after the Taj Mahal. - Mysore Sandal soap has been made by a state-owned factory in the city since 1916, from Karnataka's own sandalwood. - Mysore-style Ashtanga yoga is named for this city, where K. Pattabhi Jois taught from 1948 and later moved his school to Gokulam. ## Mysore travel FAQ ### How many days do you need in Mysore? Two full days. One for the palace, Devaraja Market and the art gallery, one for Chamundi Hill and either the zoo or Karanji Lake. A third day buys Somanathapura and Talakadu on the road east, or a safari at Bandipur. ### Is Mysore worth visiting from Bengaluru? Yes, and it is easy. The fastest trains cover the 140 km in about two hours and the expressway does it by road in under three. A day trip works for the palace alone, but the hill, the market and the temples need a night. ### When is Dasara in Mysore? Dasara follows the lunar calendar and lands in September or October. In 2026 the festival runs from 11 to 21 October, with the Jamboo Savari elephant procession on the closing day. Book beds and trains weeks ahead. ### What is Mysore famous for? The palace, the Dasara festival, Mysore silk and sandalwood, Mysore pak, and Ashtanga yoga, which takes its Mysore-style name from the school K. Pattabhi Jois built here. ### Is it Mysore or Mysuru? Both. Karnataka officially renamed the city Mysuru in 2014, closer to the Kannada Maisuru, and signage follows it. Mysore stays the common English form, and it is the name on the palace, the silk and the sweet. ## Nearby guides - [Munnar](https://wimup.com/city/munnar.md): India · 10 picks - [Alappuzha](https://wimup.com/city/alappuzha.md): India · 10 picks - [Hampi](https://wimup.com/city/hampi.md): India · 10 picks - [All of Asia →](https://wimup.com/asia): 109 cities Part of the [India guide](https://wimup.com/country/india.md) · [Asia](https://wimup.com/asia.md) ## Sources - [Mysore tourism board](https://karnatakatourism.org/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Mysore Palace (official site)](https://mysorepalace.karnataka.gov.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura (official site)](https://asi.nic.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Srirangapatna (official site)](https://karnatakatourism.org/en/destinations/srirangapatna?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Mysore Zoo (official site)](https://mysuruzoo.info/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Sri Nandi Temple (official site)](https://www.incredibleindia.gov.in/en/karnataka/mysuru/sri-nandi-temple?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Hotel Hanumanthu (official site)](https://hotelhanumanthu.com/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Mahesh Prasad (official site)](https://karnatakatourism.org/en/experiences/mahesh-prasad-veg-restaurant?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Mysore Airport (official site)](https://www.aai.aero/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [Trains from Bengaluru (official site)](https://www.irctc.co.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - [The Bengaluru expressway (official site)](https://ksrtc.in/?utm_source=wimup.com&utm_medium=referral) - Rankings are Wimup editorial picks. Prices, durations and budgets are editorial estimates, not live quotes; check the official site before you go.