Wondering where to see a good sunrise near Bangalore? Ask any Bangalorean and Nandi Hills will be the concurrent answer! It’s Bangalore’s pet getaway destination, where crowds throng early morning on the weekends.

It is one of the Navdurgas, the nine fortified hills around Bangalore and the ruins are still visible. It is also called Nandi Durga or Nandi Betta.

Duration and Time of Visit

1 day
December beginning

To and From

Itinerary

• Nandi Hills is best visited at sunrise, hence we started off around 5am, reaching by 6:30am
  • We drove to the top, instead of trekking up the hill (very few people trek up actually). It’s amazing how just next to a highway, you can get the beautiful “hill station” vibe - gorgeuos views, pleasant weather and the curving roads
  • Parking is a pain at that hour - it’s a narrow road and a long queue lines up

• We went to the Sunrise View Point first. The view is amazing, but it’s usually quite crowded

• Right next to it is the Yoga Nandeeshwar Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva
  • It’s a beautiful complex of historical significance, actually housing three temples, dedicated to Arunachaleshwar, Uma Maheshwar and Bhoga Nandeeshwar (representing Shiva’s youth, marriage and renunciation)
• Then we walked to Tipu’s Drop, which provides the best view from Nandi Hills
  • Legends say that Tipu Sultan used to hurl his prisoners down this 600m high cliff to meet their death
  • There is a huge rocky area on this side of the hill, where most people sit at length - looking at the landscape, the sun, the clouds. So did we
  • After about 45 minutes, we decided to take a tour of the rest of the things

• Walking down, we came across the Amrutha Sarovar (meaning “The Lake of Nectar”), a small pond with steps to the water, formed by perennial springs

• Further down the road was Tipu Sultan’s Fort (Summer Residence), which he also called Tashk-e-Jannat, meaning “Heaven’s Envy”

• It was 9:15am and we headed to the Food Stalls for a quick breakfast, before leaving for Bangalore
• On our way back, we took a small detour to visit the beautiful and popular Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple at the base of the hill

Summary of Things To Do

Things we did:

• Sunrise View Point
• Yoga Nandeeshwar Temple
• Tipu’s Drop
• Amrutha Sarovar
• Tipu’s Summer Residence
• Food Stalls
• Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple

Things we didn’t do:

• Trek to the peak: A flight of 1,175 steps leads from the base to the top
• Brahmashram: This cave was used by the sage Ramakrishna Paramhansa for meditation
• Nehru Nilaya: Also called Cubbon House, this was the summer residence of Mark Cubbon, the commissioner of Mysore during late 1800s

Major Expenses

• Self-drive rental car: ~Rs. 2,500 (including fuel)
• Parking and Entrance Fee
• Food and drinks

Tips and Resources

• Access to the hill opens only at 6am
• Nandi Hills is very crowded on weekends. If possible, try to go early morning on a weekday
• Obviously, monsoon is the best time to visit
• Beware of monkeys - do not carry or keep food in the open