Mysore or presently called as Mysuru was once the glorious capital of Wodeyar dynasty for over six centuries. Since the ancient times, the city has been the center of art and cultural scene of Karnataka and is well-known for its silk sarees, unique style of painting named Mysore painting and one of our favorite desserts, Mysore Pak. While the city prides itself on it’s 7 beautiful and magnificent palaces, it comes as no surprise to us that it is also called the “City of Palaces” in India. While a lot of people connect with the grand celebration during the Dussehra festival, the city has much more to offer to even when you visit on a regular day.
So let’s check out what drives tourists from all over the world to Mysuru:
1. Mysore Palace
The crowning glory of the Wodeyar Empire, that stands in the heart of the city and is one of the most opulent palaces of the country, Royal Palace of Mysore, also known as the Amba Vilas Palace is a place one cannot ever miss on their visit to the city. We are completely in awe of its beauty and would love to visit again and again to bask in its opulence and the royal paraphernalia. Visit the palace in the early morning to avoid tourists and take your own time to admire the paintings and the opulent royal halls and rooms. Visit to the palace on a Sunday after the sunset is another treat as it glows in the night with millions of lights.
Related post: Mysore Palace: The Royal abode of the Wodeyars
2. St. Philomena Church
The St. Philomena Church stands as one of the tallest landmarks of Mysore. Built between the years 1931 and 1941 the church was designed in Neo-Gothic style, drawing inspiration from the Cologne cathedral of Germany and St. Patrick’s church of New York. The cathedral has a spectacularly stained glass window illustrating various stories from Bible and do not miss to visit the underground chapel which houses the relics of St. Philomena.
3. Chamundeshwari Temple
Situated atop the Chamundi hills, the Chamundeshwari temple was built over 1000 years ago and is famous for the significance of the deity to the Wodeyars during the event of Dussehra celebration. The golden Gopura (entrance tower) of this ancient temple and the huge statue of Mahishasura have attracted thousands of visitors for years. Also, the temple is revered as an important pilgrim center to all the devotees of Goddess Chamundi visiting this place.
4. Devaraja Market
To get an up-close feel of the charm of the old Mysore city, visit the famous Devaraja Market. This is one of the oldest markets present in the state, dating back to the time of Tipu Sultan’s Reign and is a prominent bazaar for shopping local products like spices, flowers, and sandalwood products.
5. Brindavan garden
Just an hour drive from Mysore city lays this beautiful garden designed besides the famous Krishna Raja Sagar Dam across River Kaveri, dedicated to the king Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV. The Brindavan garden was constructed in the year 1932 and still works its magic over its visitors with its wide variety of flora and fauna. Do not miss to watch as the famous musical fountains as they come alive every evening from 7 to 8 pm wooing kids as well as adults for an hour.
6. Chamundi hills
The Chamundi hill is not only famous for its Chamundeshwari temple mentioned above but is also known the breath-taking view of the entire city it offers from the top. Watch the sunrise in the early hours of the morning or the sunset over the City of Palaces from this hill by grabbing a perfect vantage point. Also, do visit the magnificent monolithic statue of Nandi craved beautifully on black stone.
7. Relish on a local meal
No visit to a city is complete to us until we savor on the local delicacies. We visited the famous restaurant, Dasa Prakash, to enjoy a scrumptious evening meal and we could not bargain for a better way to end the day in this charming city. For a very reasonable price of Rs. 90 one can dig into the local South Indian Thaali and eat to their heart’s content.
8. Jaganmohan Palace
Yet another magnificent contribution of the Wodeyars to the city is the Jaganmohan Palace, which is currently open to the public as the Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery. Said to have the largest collections of painting in South India, the palace displays works of some of the renowned artists like Raja Ravi Varma, Rabindranath Tagore and Nikolai Roerich on display. The famous painting, The Lady with the Lamp, which has been admired by many and is a personal favorite of ours, is on display here.
Hope you guys enjoyed our post, do leave us a comment on your thoughts about Mysore and also do mention the places you feel should have been included in the list above.
I’ve heard a lot of the beautiful sites of Mysore, and now I have a photographic proof 🙂 Thanks for the interesting post, girls.
Thank you Antonina for your kind words. You must visit Mysore someday to fully enjoy these beautiful sights 🙂
WOW !!!!!!!! nice captures, just mind blowing. loved this post.
Thank you Jyotirmoy!!
I havent visited mysore n i stay in bangalore
need to visit soon!
Yes you must Kamar 🙂
GREAT ! You convey the impression as if you have an implausible knowledge on it and its your gratefulness for giving out and imparting your knowledge and blog with others.
Great, Beautiful pics.
Thank you Rupam 🙂
that is one amazing architecture of the church. Thanks for sharing this post and the photos.
Thank you Carla for dropping by :). The church is really stunning upclose!!
Wow, the architecture of the Chamundeshwari temple is so unique! It really is incredible – it must have been breathtaking to see it in person.
Yes it is simply stunning!!
Lovely photographs that really bring the city of Mysore to life! I have often wondered what it actually looked like and now know, so thank you. The food looks delicious too.
Thank you very much Marie 🙂
Mysore wasn’t a place I even considered putting on my list. But after reading your post and looking at the pictures, I’m smitten. I’m intrigued by the Chamundeshwari Temple.
Thats great Marteen!! Do plan a visit to Mysore if you are visiting India 🙂
Beautiful pictures. I’ll admit that India hasn’t been a place I’ve done much research on yet. Is Mysore less touristy than other areas? And what are you eating in that picture?! I looove Indian food 🙂
Thanks Katie. Mysore certainly less crowded than the regular tourist destinations (mostly compared to North India).
And that is vegetarian thaali, which is a full course meal consisting of local delicacies.
I feel like I could spend weeks here just examining the artistry and the architecture of places like Mysore Palace, Chamundeshwari Temple and St. Philomena Church. It all looks so magical, and I can’t imagine the work that went into creating them.
All three are a masterpiece of its own. We sure you will thoroughly enjoy exploring these 🙂
I love Haldankar’s painting of the lady holding a lamp . I remember I just stood there and stared at her and the light in the painting, for a really long time. It’s beautiful. And that was ages ago. You just rekindled that memory. I think I should take the family to Jaganmohan Palace just to see that painting.
I <3 <3 <3 Mysore and everything about this city.
Thanks for dropping by Dee 🙂 We totally relate with you on being captivated by the Lady with a lamp painting.
India’s never been high on my ‘must visit’ list but wow, Mysore looks like an amazing city. The Chamundeshwari Temple looks crazy! It looks to be in pretty good shape for something that’s 1000 years old.
Mysore is pretty amazing, and yes the temple is very well maintained!!
I always enjoy seeing all of the different beautiful architecture in Asia, but I was totally surprised to see that beautiful cathedral and I can totally see the similarities to St. Patrick’s Cathedral! That food looks totally amazing and I will be sure to add this beautiful Indian City to my list! Cheers!
Yes you must, we are sure you will love the city!!
I’ve never seen posts about European architecture so this post was really informative. St. Philomena Church kind of reminded of Notre Dame in Paris, France.
Thanks for visiting Danielle. The church is inspired from the European architecture so there is resemblance to many of the famous cathedral 🙂
Mysore’s lovely. It’s the kind of place we like to chill in during the cooler winters…
Wow… thanks for sharing this amazing post. I got a nice collection of amazing tourists drives for Mysore city.
Your welcome Sonali. We hope you enjoy to fullest in this beautiful city 🙂
Pleasant catches, simply mind blowing..loved this post…I’ve heard a ton about the Mysore..thanks for offer..
Thanxs for sharing with all of us the Incredible post on ur blog . Its really illusive.
BRAVO FOR REALLY IMPRESSIVE SITE