Bangalore Palace
A royal home built to look like an English castle, with turrets and carved wood. Foreign visitors pay about Rs 460. Days and hours differ between sources, so check before you go.
1 to 3 daysHow long to stay
Budget to luxuryRough cost
Couples, Families, Friends, SoloWho it suits
KarnatakaSouth India
Is this for you?
Bengaluru is for food, drink and a break from the road, with a mild climate most of the year. It has few big sights, so a day or two is enough. It suits friends and couples who like a good evening out, and it's a handy start for Mysuru and Hampi.
When to go
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Go in the coloured months. The black ones are best avoided.
What to do
Lalbagh Botanical Garden
A large old garden with a Victorian glasshouse, open from about 6:00 to 19:00. Come early. The big flower shows are in January and August.
Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace
A teak palace from the 1700s, painted and pillared, in the old town near the city market.
Sources differ on this, or we have only one, so check locally.
VV Puram Food Street
A lane of street food stalls, at its best in the evening. Come hungry and share plates.
Sources differ on this, or we have only one, so check locally.
What to eat
Bengaluru's old tiffin rooms, small vegetarian breakfast houses, are the heart of the city's food. Come early for crisp dosas, and stay for coffee.
Bisi bele bath
A hot, spiced mix of rice, lentils and vegetables, a Karnataka comfort food.
Vegetarian
Dosa and idli
Dosa is a crisp rice and lentil pancake and idli a soft steamed rice cake. Here dosas often come dripping with butter.
Vegetarian
Filter coffee
Strong South Indian coffee with hot milk, a city habit since at least the 1920s.
Vegetarian
Rava idli
A steamed cake of semolina rather than rice, said to have been created at MTR during a wartime rice shortage.
Vegetarian
Where to go
CTRMalleshwaram
Masala dosa and filter coffee at a friendly, cheap old favourite.
Cheap eats, vegetarianMTRNear Lalbagh
Rava idli and filter coffee, in a tiffin room serving since 1924.
Cheap eats, vegetarianVidyarthi BhavanBasavanagudi
Crisp masala dosa, the house speciality since 1943. Expect a queue.
Cheap eats, vegetarian
Getting there
Kempegowda International is far north of the city, around 40 km out. Allow an hour or more by taxi or airport bus, and longer at rush hour. Daytime trains run to Mysuru and overnight trains to Hampi.
Where to stay
Indiranagar Lively in the evening, with cafes and bars on the doorstep.
Malleshwaram An older, leafy neighbourhood with great cheap breakfasts.
MG Road Central, on the metro, and close to bars and restaurants.
