Mysore for the Weekend: Temples, Palaces & Where to Actually Stay

Planning a Mysore weekend during Dasara? Here’s a guide to the city’s temples, palace, and where to stay, including EWA’s Mysore Farmstay with a Pool.

Mysore is one of the few Indian cities where a weekend trip can genuinely deliver a palace, a temple on a hilltop, a bustling market, and a quiet countryside stay all within a 20-minute drive of each other. And if your visit happens to line up with Dasara, you’re looking at one of South India’s biggest festival celebrations layered on top of all of it. Here’s how to plan the weekend properly, and where to base yourself.

Why Mysore During Dasara Is Worth Planning Around

Mysore Dasara (Nadahabba) is a 10-day festival that turns the city into its most spectacular version of itself. The Mysore Palace is lit up with close to 100,000 bulbs every evening throughout the festival, a sight that alone justifies timing your trip around it. The celebrations culminate in the Jamboo Savari, a grand procession where an idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari is carried through the city on a decorated elephant, followed the next day by the Torchlight Parade (Panjina Kavayatthu) at the Bannimantap grounds.

If you’re travelling specifically for the festival, book your stay well in advance. Dasara pulls visitors from across Karnataka and beyond, and accommodation near the city fills up fast in the two weeks around the main procession.

The Temples and Palace You Shouldn’t Skip

Mysore Palace is the obvious starting point, and worth visiting twice if you can: once during the day to appreciate the Indo-Saracenic architecture and interiors, and again at night during Dasara when the illumination is switched on (Sundays and festival days, typically 7–7:40 PM).

Chamundeshwari Temple, perched atop Chamundi Hill, is the spiritual centre of the entire Dasara festival. The goddess Chamundeshwari is Mysore’s presiding deity, and the festival itself is named for her victory over the demon Mahishasura. The temple offers sweeping views over the city and is significantly less crowded early in the morning.

Nandi statue and the Mahishasura statue, both on Chamundi Hill, are worth the short additional walk if you’re already at the temple. The giant Mahishasura statue overlooking the city is one of Mysore’s more striking, lesser-photographed landmarks.

For a quieter temple experience away from the festival crowds, Trinesvaraswamy Temple and the temples around the Devaraja Market area offer a more local, less touristy alternative.

Beyond the City: Markets and a Slower Pace

Devaraja Market, one of the oldest markets in South India, is worth an hour even if you’re not buying anything; the flower, spice, and sandalwood stalls give a sense of Mysore’s daily rhythm that the palace and temples don’t. If your weekend allows a third day, the countryside just outside Mysore coffee and farm country toward Bandipur and the Western Ghats foothills is where the city’s pace properly slows down.

Where to Stay: City Base vs. Countryside Retreat

Most visitors default to a hotel near the palace for easy access to the Dasara evenings, and that’s a reasonable choice if your entire trip is festival-focused. But if you’re staying two or more nights, splitting your base between the city and the countryside changes the trip considerably.

EWA has two properties worth considering for this trip, depending on group size and how far you want to be from the city.

Mysore Farmstay with a Pool is built for exactly that “second half of the trip” experience: two cottages with 2+1 bathrooms, comfortably sleeping up to 16 guests, set around a private pool framed by palm trees rather than city traffic. It works well for a group or extended family coming in for Dasara together: you get the festival evenings in the city, then return to a farmstay that feels genuinely removed from the crowds, with a pool and open grounds for the group to actually unwind rather than fight for hotel-room space.

EWA Hasiroo Villa, further out toward the Western Ghats foothills, is the better pick if your Mysore weekend is really the start of a longer hill-country trip. It’s a 3-bedroom villa with 3 attached baths and 1 common bath, sleeping up to 10 guests a manageable size for a family or a small group of friends who want misty, green surroundings rather than a resort-style setup. It suits travellers pairing Dasara with a quieter, slower add-on leg after the festival crowds thin out.

For a solo traveller or a smaller group prioritising quiet over festival proximity, either of these bases means starting your Chamundi Hill temple visit early, before the day’s Dasara crowds build up, and being back at a private pool or green hillside well before the evening illumination rush begins again.

Planning Your Weekend

A workable structure: arrive Friday evening, spend Saturday morning at Chamundeshwari Temple before the crowds, afternoon at Devaraja Market and the palace grounds, and Saturday night at the illuminated palace. Sunday morning, if you’re staying at a farmstay, is best spent simply using the property pool, breakfast outdoors, no itinerary before heading back.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is Mysore Dasara celebrated?
Dasara falls during the Hindu month of Ashwin, typically in September or October, and runs for 10 days, culminating in the Jamboo Savari procession on Vijayadashami.

Is Chamundeshwari Temple open during Dasara?
Yes, and it’s actually the spiritual centre of the festival expect longer queues during the festival period, so an early morning visit is recommended.

How many days do I need for a Mysore weekend trip?
Two full days cover the palace, Chamundi Hill, and Devaraja Market comfortably. A third day allows time for a countryside stay and a slower pace.

Is it better to stay in the city or outside Mysore during Dasara?
Staying in the city is more convenient for the evening palace illumination, but a farmstay just outside the city offers a quieter base, especially useful for groups or families wanting a pool and open space to relax between festival outings.

Does the Mysore Farmstay with a Pool suit larger groups?
Yes, with two cottages, 2+1 bathrooms, and capacity for up to 16 guests, it’s well suited to families or groups travelling together for the festival.