Skip to content
Mysore
Skip ListKarnataka

Skip Mysore— Here's Why (and Where to Go Instead)

The city of palaces — Chamundi Hills, silk saris, sandalwood, and India's grandest Dasara festival

!Why travellers come back disappointed

Overcrowded Mysore Palace area vs peaceful Hoysala temples

easy770m elevation

When It's Still Worth Visiting

Mysore scores 8+ out of 10 in these months — if you must go, this is when:

JanuaryFebruaryMarchJuneJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberNovemberDecember
Jan10.0
Feb10.0
Mar8.0
Apr6.0
May6.0
Jun8.0
Jul8.0
Aug8.0
Sep10.0
Oct10.0
Nov10.0
Dec10.0

Better Alternatives to Mysore

Belur
Go here instead

Belur

UNESCO Hoysala temple — Chennakesava's soapstone carvings are the most intricate in India

Mysore Palace silk shops charge 3-5x markup on machine-made silk passed off as handloom. Belur and Halebidu offer the same Hoysala heritage without the tour bus crowds and silk scam shops.

Mysore Palace sees 30,000+ visitors/day in season. Belur sees 500.Mysore is touristy and commercial. Belur is contemplative and spiritual.easy
Explore Belur

ALSO ON NAKSHIQ

Eight more rooms in the magazine.

Guides

Visa, scams, food, packing.

Everything the guidebook won't tell you — written for India in 2026.

Blog

Field notes from the road.

Long-form reads on regions, festivals, and the offbeat circuit.

Road trips

Curated multi-day routes.

Driving itineraries with day-by-day stops, distance, and difficulty.

Collections

Themed reading lists.

Wettest places. Sacred lakes. Solo-female-safe. Curated cuts.

NakshIQ 100

The 100 best destination-months.

India's highest-scoring places, ranked across all 12 months.

The Window

Our weekly newsletter, archived.

One honest spread, every Sunday. The full back catalogue.

Skip list

What we'd skip — and what we'd do instead.

Overhyped places with honest alternatives.

First trip

Planning your first time in India.

Safety, scams, what to wear, food survival, solo female travel.