Bangalore Sightseeing, Quick Facts, History, Packages, Tours & Excursions

Tipu Sultan Palace

Located in the old city, on Albert Victor Road, the atmospheric palace was built around 1790. Dilapidated though it is today, it evokes vivid memories of the legendary soldier king who bravely repulsed the power-hungry British. The wooden edifice is marked by a profusion of balconies, graceful arches and lofty pillars. Replicating the Daria Daulat Bagh at Srirangapatna, it served as Tipu's summer palace.

The Temples:

Gavi Gangadhareshwara Temple

The 16^th century temple is a popular city hub and is one of the city's oldest shrines.   Sited in an old cave the temple with its linga and Nandi bull was built by Kempe Gowda to celebrate his release from imprisonment by Rama Raya. The Makar Sakranti Festival is a vibrant affair. Buy flowers from the numerous stalls lining the approach, browse for religious paraphernalia for your shrine back home.

Venkataramanaswamy Temple

Built in the 18^th century by the Wodeyar rulers of Mysore, it is located close to the old palace of Tipu Sultan in the old quarter.

The Gardens:

Cubbon Park

This serene expanse of greenery was established in 1864 by the chief engineer of Mysore, Richard Sankey. Spread over 334 acres, this formal garden is punctuated by several statues. The red bricked Sheshadri Iyer Memorial located in the gardens houses a library.

Lal Bagh

Established way back in 1740 by Hyder Ali, it is home to a mango tree planted by the legendary warrior king Tipu Sultan. Housed here are several species of plants imported from London's Kew Gardens by the Raj-era Garden's Superintendent John Cameron in the 1870s. It was he who also commissioned the Glass House here. Every year around August 15, a flower show is held at Lal Bagh attracting gardening enthusiasts from around the city.

Art Galleries:

Karnatak Chitrakala Parishath

Explore the rich collection of noted painter Roerich, Rabindranath Tagore sketches and a lot of folk art. The centre has permanent galleries and an art school. Check the local papers for performances theatre, music and dance recitals; check out the New Years Day art bazaar here

Venkatappa Art Gallery

Located in the state museum which was established in 1866 and is one of India's oldest museums, the art gallery is one of the best here. The artist after who the gallery is named was patronised by the Wodeyar kings of Mysore. The greenish tinge on the paintings comes from the traditions of rubbing jade on the final coat of paint, as practiced by the Mysore school. Spend time over the Satvahana, Hoyasala and Vijayanagara era sculptures and the leather puppets.

Performing Arts

Check out the offerings at the Ranga Shankara Theatre, and Kalakshiti and the Smriti Nandan Cultural Centre.

Bangalore Turf Club

The horse races are an integral part of Bangalore's social seasons --May to August and again from November to March. Its celebrity spectators are splashed all over the papers during the legendary Kingfisher Bangalore Derby in the month of July.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Pub hopping

This is India's pub city. Trawl the famous MG Road, Church Street and Brigade Road to check out the most happening watering holes. If you are in the IT business, head for Windsor on 1st Main Road Vasantnagar, the favourite pub to meet like-minded folk. The food here is great too. Arty types head for Opus behind Carmel College. Enjoy art shows, poetry readings, etc, while quaffing your favourite brew. For draft beer it is Pecoes off Brigade Road. Battle your way through the smog of smoke and chatter in this favoured hangout for backpackers and the media crowd.

Golf

Bangalore Golf Club is India's second oldest. You can get a game here even if you are not a member. Take your handicap card along. If there is a slot available the weekday green fee is Rs 1000, and Rs 1500 on weekends. Equipment and caddies cost extra. It is an hour's drive to Eagletons Golf Course out of town. Eagletons is a public course and much cheaper than the Bangalore Golf Club. Book at least a week in advance for a slot to get a game.
 

Excursions:

Camp Gee Dee

Located about 30km from town it offers outdoor enthusiasts a range of activities to recharge their batteries. You can go bird watching, mountain biking, take in a few treks in the Bannerghata National Park area and for the more adventurous there's rock climbing in close proximity to the camp. You can opt for a day trip or stay the weekend.

Ved Vignan

An hours drive out of town takes you to the ashram of world renowned spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar who established of the Art Of Living Foundation in 1981. You can learn yoga, meditation and anti stress measures. You can do a day trip or enroll for a course, on offer year round with stay options.

Tourism Info:

Karnataka Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC)

Badami House

NR Square

Bangalore

Karnataka's largest city and one of Asia's fastest growing metropolises, Bangalore is an amalgam of the finest of the old and the new in terms of industry, education and talent. From the 50s this beautiful city of gardens with its temperate climate, lovely bungalows, tree-lined broad avenues and laid back ambience was a pensioner's paradise for retiring officers and bureaucrats.

However its emergence as the new futuristic Silicon Valley of India has played a pivotal role in diminishing its graceful beauty and peace. The software business here alone is 55 percent of the over one billion dollars worth of Indian exports in the IT industry. The Indian Institute of Science located here has played a pivotal role in pioneering research traditions in science and engineering. The city produces an endless stream of high tech professionals and entrepreneurs, most lapped up by the country's top multinational companies.

Bangalore has paid a high price for such a rapid economic growth - overdevelopment with the easy availability of land, a doubled population in the past two decades, pollution and poor traffic conditions. Yet ask Bangaloreans to quit the city and move to another and they stand firm and loyal.

This is the city of youth, with about 7 million of its populace being under the age of 25. Little wonder that it is India's biggest pub town. The city pulsates with the  lively interests of its youth power rock bands, cricket, the races, multiplexes and Inox cinema, ride together with theatre, classical music, dance recitals, Ayurvedic spas and yoga courses.

Bangalore finds its beginnings in 1587, in a mud fort and a Nandi bull built by Kempe Gowda I, a local chieftain who was a vassal of the legendary Vijayanagar kingdom. The city was to change several hands with the decline of the Vijayanagar Empire. Among those who steered its fortunes was the Wodeyar king of Mysore in 1759; Hyder Ali the Mysore army's commander-in-chief; and after him his son Tipu Sultan - the Tiger of Mysore. With the defeat of Tipu, an expert soldier, diplomat, poet and scholar, it fell into the hands of the conquering British who permitted the Maharaja of Mysore to run it for them. Bangalore became the capital of the Mysore raja and developed as a twin city to Mysore. India's independence from British rule saw the city emerge as an important manufacturing and engineering hub especially in the field of aerospace, machine tools and telecommunications. The city reverted to its original Kannada name Bengaluru in 2006.