India GOTemples in Hampi
Hampi has one great temple still in worship, Virupaksha at the head of the bazaar, and dozens of magnificent ones where worship stopped centuries ago. Start with Virupaksha early in the morning, keep the Vittala Temple and its stone chariot for the late afternoon, and in between find a temple you can have to yourself: Achyutaraya, Pattabhirama or Hazara Rama.
A living temple among ruins
Vijayanagara filled the valley with temples between the 14th and 16th centuries, and most fell silent after the city was sacked in 1565. Most of their idols are gone, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) keeps them as monuments.
The exception is the Virupaksha Temple, dedicated to Shiva and his consort Pampadevi. Parts of it predate the empire, worship has gone on since about the seventh century through the rise of Vijayanagara and its sacking, and its nine-storey gopuram (gateway tower) still stands over everything else in Hampi. A few smaller places are also in worship: the Badavi Linga in the Sacred Centre, the Hanuman temple on Anjanadri and the Nava Brindavana island shrines.
Temples worth your time
From the busiest to the emptiest. The list of places with map pins is below.
Virupaksha Temple
The working temple: devotees come daily, services run on schedule whether visitors come or not, and in the mornings Lakshmi the temple elephant gives blessings with her trunk. The ceiling of the Ranga Mantapa hall is painted with scenes from the epics and Puranas. Come early or in the evening and allow 30–60 minutes.
Vittala Temple
Dedicated to Vishnu and the peak of Vijayanagara architecture: several halls, courtyards and pavilions, the resonant "musical" pillars and the stone chariot from the fifty-rupee note. The chariot is not cut from one stone, as is often claimed, but assembled from granite blocks. Tapping the pillars is now prohibited. Allow 45–90 minutes; the last kilometre from the ticket office is on foot or by electric cart.
Hazara Rama Temple
Rama's temple in the Royal Centre, its walls inside and out covered in reliefs of the Ramayana that can be followed episode by episode. Usually quieter than Virupaksha and Vittala; 30–40 minutes.
Achyutaraya Temple
Consecrated in 1534 for Tiruvengalanatha, a form of Vishnu, and one of the last great temple projects of the empire: two nested courtyards, ruined gopurams and a pillared marriage hall. It hides in a valley between Matanga and Gandhamadana hills, reached along the old Courtesan Street or by the steps behind the Monolithic Bull at the end of the bazaar. Free, and most visitors never get there.
Pattabhirama Temple
One of the largest complexes in Hampi, built around 1540 for Rama: an enclosure of roughly 163 by 93 metres with colonnaded walkways along the walls, a kilometre from the Archaeological Museum in Kamalapura. Free and almost always empty.
Smaller temples in the centre
The Krishna Temple, an ordinary city temple of the golden age; the cool, damp Underground Shiva Temple; the 6.7 m Lakshmi Narasimha monolith of 1528 with the Badavi Linga beside it, a linga standing in water and still worshipped; and the 4.5 m Kadalekalu Ganesha on Hemakuta Hill.
Across the river
The Hanuman temple on Anjanadri, held to be Hanuman's birthplace (sites in Andhra Pradesh make the same claim), up several hundred steps (about 462 by the district's count, over 550 by Karnataka Tourism's). The Nava Brindavana island shrines of nine Madhva saints, by coracle from the Anegundi bank before noon. And Pampa Sarovar, the lotus tank where Shabari is said to have waited for Rama.
Dress code and manners
Most of the temples are monuments, but the rules of a working temple apply at Virupaksha, the Badavi Linga, Anjanadri and Nava Brindavana. Details: temple dress code in Hampi.
- Cover up — Shoulders and knees covered at Virupaksha; modest dress on Nava Brindavana.
- Shoes off — Leave them at the entrance of Virupaksha; carrying them inside is disrespectful. At Kadalekalu Ganesha and the Pampa Sarovar shrines they come off too.
- Do not feed the monkeys — Temple macaques have been fed for generations and now take food by force; feeding them makes it worse for the next visitor.
Timings and tickets
The ASI monuments are open from sunrise to sunset. The ticketed one among the temples is Vittala, on the ASI composite ticket: about ₹40 for citizens of India and of SAARC and BIMSTEC countries, about ₹600 for other foreign nationals, children under 15 free. The same ticket is reported to be valid on the same day at the Zenana Enclosure, Lotus Mahal and Elephant Stables, so keep it and ask at the gate. Achyutaraya, Pattabhirama, the Lakshmi Narasimha, the Badavi Linga and Kadalekalu Ganesha are free.
Virupaksha is outside the ASI circuit. There are no officially published hours: the morning puja begins at dawn, the temple closes for a break in the middle of the day like most South Indian temples, and opens again for the evening puja. A sensible order: Virupaksha at dawn, Vittala in the late afternoon when the stone turns gold; transport between them on the getting around page.
FAQ
What are the famous temples in Hampi?
Virupaksha, the one still in worship; Vittala with its stone chariot and musical pillars; Hazara Rama with its Ramayana reliefs; and the large, quiet Achyutaraya and Pattabhirama temples.
What are the Hampi temple timings?
The ASI monuments, Vittala included, are open from sunrise to sunset. Virupaksha opens at dawn for the morning puja, closes for a midday break and reopens for the evening puja; it publishes no official hours.
Is there an entry fee for the temples?
Only Vittala is ticketed: about ₹40 for citizens of India, SAARC and BIMSTEC countries, about ₹600 for other foreign nationals, free under 15. Virupaksha and most of the other temples are free.
Is there two Virupaksha temples?
Yes, in Karnataka there is a second famous one: the Virupaksha Temple at Pattadakal, an 8th-century Chalukya temple in another World Heritage site. The Hampi temple is a different, still active one.
Is there a jyotirlinga in Hampi?
No. None of the twelve jyotirlingas is in Hampi; Virupaksha is a major Shiva temple but not one of them.
Sources (5)
Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.
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