Hampi Tour - Day 1 - Tungabhadra Dam

Journey Date : 25 Oct, 2023 to 29th Oct, 2023

Mode of Transport : Train and Auto

History of the Hampi City

    The name was derived from the old name of the Tungabhadra River which was Pampa, Pampa is the Sanskrit name of Goddess Parvathi, wife of Lord Shiv, and in the Kannada language, Pampa is called Hampa, so the name Hampi is the English version of the Kannada name Hampa. Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 14th century.

Hampi Stone Chariot

Travel Experience

    This blog is divided into 4 parts, 2 parts about Hampi exploration and 2 parts of near by locations of Hampi, It contains travel experience and details along with information on Hampi monuments and nearby locations.

Day 1 - Tungabhadra Dam
Day 2 - North Hampi
Day 3 - South Hampi
Day 4 - Koppal Fort

    We had planned Hampi last year, but unfortunately unable to execute the plan. This year we decided to execute Hampi plan. We had made a reservation in advance (three months prior) of the train and started searching online for the best guide and best mode of transport within Hampi.

Hampi Guide and Auto

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    On 25th October, we departed for Hampi from Dadar, Mumbai by Dadar Tirunelveli Express at 9:30 pm. We got down at Hubali Junction the next day at around 12:50 p.m. We had to wait for 90 minutes for the Jodhpur Bengaluru Express, so we decided to have lunch. We went outside Hubli station in search of a restaurant, but surprisingly there were no restaurants nearby, we move a little bit far and found one small restaurant cum dhaba, where we decided to have lunch, so we ordered Lemon Rice, which cost 40 Rupees per plate. After having lunch we went to Hubli station and boarded the Jodhpur - Bengaluru Express at around 2:10 pm. and got down at Hosapete Junction at around 5:10 pm. 

Note: Hosapete Junction is the nearest station to Hampi. You can directly book Mumbai (CMST) - Hosapete train (11139) newly started.

Hosapete Junction

Day One

    We decided not to waste a single day, and though the train was delayed by 40 minutes, we decided to visit Tungabhadra dam, We hired an auto rickshaw for 400 Rs. First, we visited Amrutha Residency where we booked our stay for 4 days. We checked in kept our heavy bags and started our journey towards Tungabhadra Dam. We missed the sunset but the shades in the sky were beautiful.

Sunset at Tungabhadra Dam

Tungabhadra Dam office

    After taking some photos we decided to see a fountain light show. We spent more than an hour at T. B. Dam. took some photos of the fountains and decided to return to the hotel for rest, but while returning we saw a small Aquarium so visited the aquarium. Not many varieties were observed, Ordinary fishes we keep in home fish tank, like Flowerhead Horn, Guramee, Shark, Gold fish, etc were kept in the museum.

Fountain show at Tungabhadra Dam

Important Note

• Tungabhadra Dam entry fee : 10 Rs per person
• Bus two way : 20 Rs per person (optional), after 6:00 pm same bus will drop you at light show garden.
• No charges for light show, timing 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
• DSLR or other type of cameras not allowed, you can carry smart phones.

    We called the same Auto rickshaw driver, and he picked us up from T. B Dam gate and reached at hotel. Got fresh and started planning for the next day, we called the Guide Mr. Suresh and the Auto rickshaw driver Mr. Narayan to confirm the timing and meeting place. At around 9:00 pm we went for dinner.

Mess - Shri Annapurneshwari Andhra Bhojanam

    We tried dinner at a mess named "Shri Annapurneshwari Andhra Bhojanam" as we wanted to try local food taste, instead of restaurant food. We are aware of the language barrier, but the mess owner knew the Hindi language a little bit and we are communicating with the waiter using sign language and his expressions. Post dinner went in search of a bus stand in Hosapete with the help of Google map, we located the platform where buses for Hampi and Kamplapura parked.

    We did the advanced booking of Guide, Auto for internal Hampi and Hotel stay. Homestay at Hampi near Virupaaksh temple is the best option, We book stay in Hosapete as homestay was closed due to the G20 summit. on the 21st of October, homestays and shops re-opened.

    

This is the end of Day 1

Spending summary Day 1 (Excluded stay and train ticket charges)

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Day 2 - North Hampi Explore

Day 3 - South Hampi Explore

Day 4 - Koppal Fort

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