Pop: 19,000 Area Code: 08357

This town used to be called Vatapi and was the capital of the early Chalukya rulers in the 6th and 8th centuries. The Agasthya-tirtha tank, an artificial lake east of the village, was built in the fifth century. The rock-cut temples are famous. Badami is a convenient base from which to visit Aihole and Pattadakal.

Information
There are no organized tours, but you can get information at the tourist offices at the Hotel Mayura Chalukya in Badami or the Tourist Home in Aihole. They can also arrange a trained guide.
There is no place to change money in the area, so be sure you have enough.

You can hire a car for Rs 500 a day at the Hotel Mayura Chalukya, or at Mookambika Lodge to go to Pattadakal and Aihole.

The GPO is just north of the bus stand. Postal Code: 587201.

There are monkeys around the sites in Badami, and they can be aggressive if they see food.
The Cave Temples of Badami is a good book to get for detailed information about the caves. You can get this at the first cave temple.
The railway station is 5km from town. To get to town a tonga is Rs 25, an auto-rickshaw Rs 40, and a taxi Rs 60.

Cave Temples and South Fort
There are four elaborately carved cave temples and one natural Buddhist temple. You have to walk up about 200 steps to get to them, because they are partway up a cliff. To get here from the bus stand, turn right on Station Rd. When you reach the statue of Dr Ambedkar, you turn left. Admission Rs 2.

Cave 1, late 6th century, is dedicated to Lord Siva and has an excellent sculpture of Nataraja (dancing Siva) to the right of the entrance. Inside on the left is a panel of Harihara (half-Vishnu, half-Siva) and their consorts Lakshmi and Parvati. On the right is Ardhanariswara (Siva as half-man, half-woman). On the altar is a Siva-linga. This cave is about 15m (50 ft) up the hill.

Cave 2, late 6th century, is dedicated to Lord Vishnu. On the left is a sculpture of Varaha (boar incarnation of Vishnu), and on the right is Vamana (dwarf incarnation). On the ceiling is a carving of Lord Vishnu riding his bird carrier, Garuda.
Cave 3, 578 AD, has sculptures of Vishnu, Narasimha, Harihara, Trivikrama, and others. Some of the sculptures are about 3m (10 ft) high. It is the largest cave.

Cave 4 is a Jain cave and has a statue of seated Parswanath. There are carvings of the tirthankaras both standing and sitting.

Between Cave 2 and Cave 3 is a Buddhist temple located in a natural cave. It overlooks Agasthya Lake.

There is a stairway between Cave 2 and Cave 3 leading to the top of the hill and the South Fort. From there you can get a good view of Badami. East of the fort is a panel of Vishnu lying on the serpent Anantadeva (Adi Sesha). From here you can proceed east and descend to the lake.

North Fort and Temples
There is an Archaeological Museum on the north side of Agasthya Lake with a good collection of sculptures from Badami, Aihole, Pattadakal, and other sites. Open daily except Fri 10 am to 5 pm.

Behind the museum there is a long stairway going up to the North Fort where there is another set of temples. There is a cannon at the south end of the fort, placed there by Tipu Sultan. You can get a good view of Badami from here.

The Upper Shivalaya Temple is an early Chalukyan temple. There are scenes from Krishna’s pastimes on the base of this temple.

Other Places
The Malegitti Sivalaya Temple (late 7th century) is worth seeing. There is a pillared hallway and statues of Vishnu and Siva on the outer walls.

The interesting Bhutanath Temples are near the eastern bank of the ancient Agasthya-tirtha Tank (also called Bhutanath Lake). Behind the Bhutanath group of temples is a cavern with a sculpture of Lord Vishnu sleeping on Ananta and attended by Lakshmi.

Within the town is the Jambulinga Temple (699 AD), originally dedicated to Siva, Vishnu, and Brahma. It is near the rickshaw stand, near the west side of Agasthya Tank. Nearby, the Yellamma Temple (11th century) is the best late Chalukya temple in the town.

Mahakuta
In Mahakuta, 5km from Badami, there are two dozen Chalukyan shrines dedicated to Lord Siva. These temples, dating from the late 7th century, have both northern and southern influences in their design. Located around the tank are the Mahakuteswara and Mallikarjuna Temples, which are especially interesting. There is a large, stone-wheeled festival chariot near the Sangameswara Temple. The Naganatha Temple (2km away) is also worth a visit.

It is a pleasant walk to Mahakuta from Badami. The path begins near the Museum. You walk past some ruins and then walk across a flat area. There is a marker that reads “RP.” From there, go down a paved stairway to the temple complex.

Where to Stay and Eat
The clean but basic PWD Inspection Bungalow is a good choice, if you can get a room. Mookimbaka Lodge (65067), across from the bus stand, has clean rooms with bath and hot water in the morning for Rs 300/250 and Rs 650 for a deluxe A/C room with TV. 24-hr checkout.
Shri Laxmi Vilas (65077) has basic double rooms for about Rs 140.
Hotel Satkar (65417) is clean and has hot water in the morning. The basic rooms are Rs 200. 24-hour checkout.
Hotel Mayura Chalukya (65046), College Rd, is one of the best places to stay in the area, but it is in need of repair. It is about half a km from the center of town. It has hot water, a quiet garden, and fairly clean rooms for Rs 250/350. The restaurant here is decent.
The best place in town is the new, well-managed, three-star Badami Court Hotel (65230; fax 65207), Station Rd, 2km from town. It has comfortable mid-range rooms with bathtubs, hot water, and a TV for Rs 650/800 and A/C rooms for Rs 1200/1600. It has a good restaurant.
The Laxmi Vilas has good vegetarian meals. The Geeta Darshini has inexpensive food. Murali Café serves vegetarian thalis at lunch.

Travel

Air The closest airport is at Belgaum (5 hr, 200km west).

Train  Badami is on the Solapur-Hubli metre-gauge line. The only trains stopping here are slow, 2nd class only, passenger trains. There are six trains daily from Badami to Bijapur. Three of the trains terminate at Bijapur; the other three continue on to Solapur. To go north on a long-distance trip, it is best to take a train to Solapur, which is on a broad-gauge line, and from there, trains depart to Vijayawada, Hyderabad, and Mumbai.
If you are going south, take a passenger train to the railway junctions of Gadag, Guntakal, or Hubli. Hubli is on the broad-gauge line. There are five trains going south daily. There is a direct passenger train daily to Hospet and Hampi (6 hr) via Gadag. It is not on the station timetable, so ask about this train.

Bus  There are buses to and from Hospet (5 hr, three daily), Bangalore (12 hr, four daily), Mysore, Bagalkot, Gadag (2 hr, seven daily). Solapur (6 hr, four daily), Belgaum, Bijapur (4 hr, five daily), Hubli (3 hr, five daily), as well as frequent buses to Aihole and Pattadakal. To get to Hospet you can take a bus to either Gadag or Ilkal, and then take one of the frequent buses to Hospet from there. Badami Travels, near the bus stand, operates daily private buses to Bangalore.

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