Gokarna is about 200km north of Mangalore (7 hr by bus) and 56km southwest of Karwar on the seashore. According to the Gokarna Purana, “By mere entrance into this Ksetra (holy place), one becomes liberated from hundreds of sins, including even brahma-hatya (the killing of a Brahmin).” Moreover, it is said that one becomes free from rebirth by just looking at the Atma-linga, by hearing the roar of the sea, or by taking birth in Koti-tirtha.

Many long-term foreign visitors come to Gokarna, as there are nice secluded beaches nearby. A half-hour walk south of Gokarna are four good, secluded beaches popular with long-term travelers. The most popular time to visit is between January and February. Many people come from Goa after New Years, especially for the full moon.

Money can be exchanged at the Om Hotel. 

Beaches
Four of the most beautiful beaches in India are located south of Gokarna, in the jungle. The first beach is called Kudle Beach, and it is about a twenty-minute walk from Gokarna. To get to Kudle, take the path that starts on the south side of the Ganapati Temple. The path goes uphill and then drops down to Kudle Beach, a beautiful, kilometre-long white sand beach surrounded by palm trees. At this beach there are simple huts and beachside eating places. You need to bring your own bedding. There is fresh water here.

The next beach is OM Beach, thirty-minutes further south. The beach got its name because it is shaped like the auspicious Om sign. There are some really basic huts and some chai shops to eat at. Many Indian pilgrims visit OM Beach on Sundays by bus and holidays to see the sites. Best to come here on the weekdays

There are two more beaches—Half-moon and Paradise—each a thirty-minute walk from one another. You can get bottled water and food on all the beaches near Gokarna including the Main beach, Kudle, Om, Half Moon and Paradise beaches.

Mahaballeswara Temple
This Siva temple is said to be next in sanctity only to the Vishwanath Siva Temple in Varanasi. It is often called the Kashi of the South. Hindus come here to perform the death rites for departed ancestors.

Tradition states that Lord Rudra (another name for Siva) was sent to Patalaloka by Brahma to undergo penance. He eventually returned through the ear of Mother Earth and blessed her with the name of Gokarna (go, “cow”; karna “ear”). Thus this place served Rudra as a womb. It is also known as Rudra Yoni and Adi Gokarna. As time passed, Rudra collected the essence (sakti) of all Brahma’s creations as well as his own essence and created a golden deer with four legs, three eyes, and three horns. Eventually, the three horns (representing the three guna-avataras) were placed at Pushkar (Brahma), Shaligram (Vishnu), and Gokarna (Siva). These places are known as Siddhi Ksetras.

Ravana desired to possess Siva’s powerful horn-linga, also known as Prana-linga or Atma-linga, so he performed penance and received the linga in a box at Mount Kailash. Ravana then returned south with the linga on the condition that wherever he placed it, it would become permanently rooted.
At the demigods’ request, Lord Vishnu contrived a means to trick Ravana through Ganesh, disguised as a brahmacari. Eventually the Atma-linga was placed at Gokarna, rooted all the way through to Sapta Patala, and became known as Mahaballeswara (maha—great and bal—strength).

A major festival is held here during the birthday of Siva (Siva-ratri) in February. During this festival, a deity of Lord Siva is placed on the huge temple Ratha (chariot) at the end of the bazaar near the Maha Ganapati Temple.

Other Places in the Area
The Shri Maha Ganapati Temple is dedicated to elephant-headed Ganesh.

Koti-tirtha Kund is said to have been created by Garuda. There is a Krishna Temple here which is said to be where the Lord went to perform penance after killing Banasura. There is also a temple dedicated to Sri Venkateswara (Balaji).
Ram-tirtha, is said to be where Rama, Sita, and Laksman visited after leaving Lanka. Lord Rama and his brother Bharata are said to have performed penance here. There is a beautiful temple on the hill overlooking the sea at this place.

Where to Stay and Eat

On the Beach
There are huts on Kudle Beach just big enough to sleep in and to store a backpack. You need your own sleeping bag or mat; they furnish a lock. There are fairly primitive toilets and fresh water for showering.

If you are going to sleep on the beach, you should leave your valuables in one of the hotels in Gokarna, such as Vaibhav Niwas or Nimmu House.

It is not a good idea to sleep alone on an isolated beach.

In the Town
OM Lodge (56445) has basic rooms with bath for Rs 175 and A/C rooms for Rs 400.
Rama Garden, about half a km north of town, has huts for Rs 65/75 and beds for Rs 35. It is usually full.
New Prasad Nilaya (56250, 57135), about half a km from the temple, is a modern place with basic clean rooms with bath for Rs 200.
Vaibhav Niwas has small rooms with common bath for Rs 50/90 and Rs 100/150 with bath. It has left-luggage facilities.
Kinara Hotel, has clean rooms with bath for Rs 200/250. Some rooms have a balconies.
Nimmu House (56730), near the temple, has clean rooms with common bath for Rs 50/75. You can sleep on the roof for Rs 20. It is a friendly, well-managed, family-run place. It has left-luggage facilities. It is most likely the best budget place.
Shastri’s (56220) has really basic rooms for Rs 50/75 and rooms with bath for Rs 140.
KSTDC’s Hotel Samudra (56236), on a hill overlooking the sea 2km from town, has clean rooms with bath for Rs 120 for a double and Rs 150 for a room with four beds.
Gokarna International (088386 56622), on the main road, has rooms with very hot water and a nice balcony for Rs 150/200 up to Rs 600 for an A/C deluxe room. It overlooks a palm tree grove. It is a good place. Checkout time up to 4 pm. Recommended.

Where to Eat
There are basic chai shops that make meals on Kudle and Om beaches.
Prema is a decent pure veg place with good ice cream, located across from the Main Siva temple.
Pai Hotel has good, cheap vegetarian meals and dosas.
Shri Raghvendra Restaurant has good vegetarian food.
Hotel Vinaya, on the main street, has vegetarian food.
Vishwa Niwas, has good breakfasts.
Kinara Hotel has a veg restaurant and ice cream.
Shri Shakti Cold Drinks, Car St., near the temple, makes fresh juice, homemade cheese, breads, and cakes.

Travel
The Konkan Railway passes close to Gokarna. Express trains stop at Karwar, Kumta (23km), and Ankola (25km). The passenger train stops at Gokarna Road (10km). A buses departs from Gokarna at 11 am to meet the train going to Margao at 11.30 am.

If you do not get a direct bus to Gokarna, catch a bus to either Ankola or Kumta and from there take one of the frequent tempos (shared auto-rickshaws).

There are direct buses to Karwar at 7 am, 8 am and 4 pm. To get to Karwar at other times, catch a bus or tempo to Ankola and another bus from there.

There is a direct bus to Goa (5 hr) at 8 am. You can also catch a bus to Karwar and then to Goa from there. If you are coming from Goa with a group, you could rent a jeep or van and split the cost. This is a comfortable way to travel.
There is a direct bus departing to Mangalore (252km) at 7 am anxe "Sringeri" d returning at 1.30 pm. To get to Mangalore, you can also catch a bus to Kumta, then a bus to Mangalore. There are four buses to Hubli in the morning and one in the afternoon and one bus to Hampi at 7 am. There is a bus from Bangalore at 9 pm and from Mysore at 6 am.

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