Bangalore, India Hotels and City Guide

Bangalore - Attractions

Bangalore Attractions

Bangalore, the Garden City of India, invites tourists from all over the world to experience its typical urban Indian culture. With a mix of nature, ancient architecture, religious sites, vast shopping opportunities and technological centres, Bangalore creates a unique experience for the traveller, an experience of the past blended in with the city’s promising future. The extreme religious devotion, to various deities and the animals used as vehicle-mounts by the deities, has given birth to a culture where parades, festivals and flashy poojas (worshipping events) are held nearly everyday. Quite often, the roads are dominated by decorated bulls, considered sacred in India as the bull is believed to be the vehicle-mount of god Shiva.

Expect the unexpected in Bangalore. You never know when you’ll witness a religious procession filled with colourful decorations, dancers and statues of deities. The chaotic shopping streets filled with bargains, packed-to-capacity dining venues and the endless religious parades are the ultimate tests provided to travellers. You get the choice of two extremes; despise it, or as many foreign tourists do, simply love it.

Lal Bagh Botanical Gardens
Mahatma Gandhi Road, Bangalore

Spreading over 240-acres of lush green land, Lal Bagh is the most popular urban garden in Bangalore. Laid out in the eighteenth century, the garden currently has a large collection of tropical plants and red roses in bloom throughout the seasons. A glass house inspired by Crystal Palace in London and a lawn-clock are also seen here.

Cubbon Park
Mahatma Gandhi Road, Bangalore

This landscaped urban park was laid out in 1864, and spreads for 300-acres. An illuminated fountain and the colonial style buildings bring added charm to this park. The Seshadri Iyer Memorial Hall, housing the Bangalore Public Library, the Government Museum, the Technology Museum, the Government Aquarium, High Court and Jawaharlal Bal Bhavan are all located inside Cubbon Park.

Jawaharlal Bal Bhavan
Mahatma Gandhi Road, Bangalore

An imaginative and fun-filled amusement park designed for children, the Jawaharlal Bal Bhavan is also a recreation centre for adults. The park has boat rides, a toy train, Dolls Museum, fairground, kid’s park, film shows and theatre performances for children.

Vidhan Soudha
Mahatma Gandhi Road, Bangalore

Built in neo-Dravidian style, this architectural splendour is located on the northern boundary of Cubbon Park. Housing several government offices including the Secretariat and the State Legislature, this building resembles ancient Mysore palaces. The building is floodlit on Sunday evenings, creating a wonderful sight.

Bangalore Palace
City Centre, Bangalore

Inspired by the Windsor Palace, this edifice was built in 1887, by King Chamaraja Wodeyar. The medieval Normandy and English architecture in its appearance is evident and the Tudor-style structure stands in the midst of vast gardens.

Tipu’s Palace
City Fort, Bangalore

Constructed entirely from teak wood, the palace is a marvelling two-storey structure with floral patterns and motifs all over the walls and ceilings. Begun by Haider Ali, a Moghul ruler, the palace was completed and used by Tipu Sultan, his son.

Bull Temple
Basavanagudi, Bangalore, India

Dedicated to Nandi, the bull-mount of god Shiva, this is one of the oldest temples built in Bangalore. Four and half metres in height and six metres in length, the carving of the bull is completely out of a granite monolith. The carving itself is supposedly much older than the temple giving it shelter. It's believed among devotees, the source of the River Vishva Bharti begins from the feet of the statue. The massive statue is regularly worshipped by Hindu devotees and many festivals are held here. The small shrine behind the statue is dedicated to Shiva.

Sri-Gavi Gandadhareshwara Temple
Basavanagudi, Bangalore, India

Located directly beneath the massive statue of Nandi of the Bull Temple, and a three tier structure built underground, this temple is also carved entirely out of granite monolith. Dedicated to god Shiva, the temple experiences a great phenomenon on the 14th or 15th January every year; a beam of light passes through the horns of the bull Nandi located on ground level, and illuminates the idol of god Shiva inside the cave underground. A black stone statue of Hanuman is also seen here.

The Fort
Opposite City Market, Bangalore, India

Extened by Tipu Sultan in the late 18th century to fend off the enemy troops during the Anglo-Mysore War, this architectural wonder was originally built by Bangalore’s famous architect Kempe Gowda in 1537. The Islamic-style arches on the exterior walls are later additions to the original mud fort. Exquisite carvings of religious deities and the Ganapathy temple located inside are simply beautiful.

Musical Fountains
Bangalore, India

In the daily darkness of the night, the visitor to these fountains can view the beauty of man-made fountains dancing to music. The daytime views are not as awe-striking as the night time beauty of the fountains.

Ulsoor Lakes
Ulsoor Gate, Fort, Bangalore, India

The lake is one and half square kilometres in area, with tiny scattered islands acting host to the groups of tourists wishing to rest a little while touring the lake. Boating and shopping opportunities are endless here and the Ganesha festivals held during August and September are sights not to be missed. A watch tower, built by Kempe Gowda, stands vigil nearby. The swimming pool near the lake is open to the public, with separate time periods of use for men and women.

Hotels in Bangalore, India