Bangalore, India’s Silicon Valley, has much more to offer than being



the IT hub of the country. A glorious past and scenic beauty make

Bangalore one of the much sought after holiday destinations too. Truly

known as the “Garden City", Bangalore is a picturesque land what with

its temperate climate, vibrant culture, beautiful gardens and eating

joints that provide the perfect ambience for a great holiday. Some of

the places that you can visit in Bangalore include the beautiful

Vidhana Soudha (Sunday evenings is the perfect time to see it, all

illuminated); the lovely Cubbon Park which runs through the heart of

the city; the Government Museum on Kasturba Gandhi Road which houses a

great collection of miniature paintings, sculptures and exquisite

jewellery that dates back a few hundred years. The Bangalore Palace

which was built in 1880 spreads over an area of 13,700 sq. m; this

magnificent structure is another of Bangalore’s great landmarks.

Old Bangalore remains quite untouched by the developments that the rest

of the city has witnessed. It has retained its old world charm and

houses several monuments that speak volumes of the city’s glorious

past. Here there are some beautiful structures that are amazing works

of architecture. While here do visit the Palace of Tipu Sultan that was

the summer retreat of the Great Hero; The Venkataramanaswamy temple

built by the Wodeyars; Lal Bagh  the scenic Botanical garden which

is spread over 240 acres and houses several varieties of flora; the

Gavi Gangadhareshvara temple that ranks amongst one of the oldest

temples in Bangalore.

Around Bangalore also there are several beautiful locations that can be

a great Bangalore weekend getaway. Away from the hustle and bustle of the

fast city life of Bangalore is the BRT Wildlife sanctuary popularly

known as BR Hills which is only 235 kms from Bangalore. Spread over 525

sq km BRT wildlife sanctuary houses a variety of fauna and here one can

see animals right from elephants, sloth bears, bisons and a number of

varieties of birds. It can be accessed from Bangalore by road or rail.

A scenic 5 hour drive from Bangalore or a 3 hour rail journey would

take you to the picturesque location. Some of the activities you would

truly enjoy here is the jeep safari, the elephant ride right into the

jungle and trekking in BR Hills for the true nature lovers who are

ready to rough it out. While here you can visit the Biligiri Rangaswamy

temple and the Doda Sampige Mara (which is a place of worship that has

a huge Champaka tree and at its foot is placed more then 100 Shiva

lingams).

The Bandipur National Park is another beautiful place that can be

enjoyed as a wildlife resort near Bangalore. Located at a distance

of 220 kms from Bangalore, the Bandipur wildlife sanctuary is

5 hours by road from here. Located in southern Karnataka, Bandipur

is the creation of the Maharaja of Mysore in the year 1931 and was

later taken over by the Government as a Tiger Resrve.

The national park is a treasure house of a variety of flora and fauna.

You can enjoy the natural beauty of the park either on foot being a

part of the trekking groups or take a ride on the jeep safaris and

look out for the animals. The elephant ride is another great way

to venture deeper into the forest and see animals in

their natural habitat. A good place to stay at both places would be

Jungle Lodges and Resorts

You can have Bangalore as your base and visit many of the spectacular

weekend getaways like Nagarhole National Park, Mudumalai, Yercaud,

Wayanad, Tirupati to name a few. These places are just a few hours away

from Bangalore and you can quickly be transported into a very different

peaceful and beautiful world.