Mangalore is a beautiful city located in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka. This is an important port city situated in the coastal region of the state. The city nestled between majestic Western Ghats in the east and blue waters of Arabian Sea in the west is known for its splendid natural beauty. Mangalore is also known by different names like ‘Mangalooru’, 'Mangalapuram', 'Kodial' etc. in various native languages of the region.
The city gets its name from the local Hindu Goddess, Mangaladevi. This historical city was ruled by may powerful dynasties in the past like the Kadambas, Vijayanagar dynasty, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas and the Hoysalas. The Portuguese, British and the Mysore rulers Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan also ruled over Mangalore. All these rulers have left their mark in the city which is still visible in the culture of the city. Today Mangalore is one of the leading ports in India and handles a major portion of India's coffee and cashew exports. Even though it is a bustling commercial centre this city has retained its old world charm.
With its beautiful beaches, magnificent temples and churches, terracotta tiled houses, wide spread coconut groves and narrow winding street, Mangalore today is a major tourist destination.
Best time to visit Mangalore is from November to February. Because the weather remains cool during these months.
Tourist Places to Visit in Mangalore
Kadri Manjunath Temple
Kadri Manjunath temple located at the foot of the Kadri Hill is a popular temple in Mangalore. The history of this temple can be traced back to 1068 AD. Temple enshrines the deity of Lokeshwara. This is the oldest Shiva Temple of Mangalore. The idol of the presiding deity is in the shape of Udbhava Linga. The temple also houses a 1.6m tall bronze statue of the main deity Lokeshwara with three faces and six arms. This idol is said to be the best bronze statue in India. To the northern side is the temple of Lord Ganesh and to the west of the main shrine is a shrine of Goddess Durga.
The temple complex contains seven water tanks. These tanks are surrounded by a beautiful garden. These ponds receive water from a natural spring that flows out of the Gomukha which is placed at the rear of the temple.
Lakshadeepotsava is a major festival here celebrated during the Karthika month. The other attractions here are a Jogimutt built by King Kundavarma Bupendra and some stone cave which are known as the caves of the Pandavas atop the Kadri hill.
Sri Mangaladevi Temple
Mangaladevi temple is dedicated to goddess Mangala Devi, from whom the city got its name. The legend has that Mangaladevi was a princess of Kerala, who came here accompanying Matsyendranatha who was the founder of the Nath Pantha. She breathed her last on this land. This temple was set up in 10th century in her honour by the Ballal family of Attavar. Managaladevi is worshiped as 'Shakti', the Goddess of fortune. Ladies perform Mangala Parvati Vrata to get a good husband. Many also believe this is very auspicious temple to conduct marriages. The navarathri festival is celebrated with great grandeur here. Ganaeshotsav is also celebrated in this temple in a grand way.
Kudroli Gokarnath Temple
This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva who is worshipped in the form of Gokarnath here. Kudroli Gokarnath Temple was constructed by Sri Narayana Guru who was a social reformer and a saint based in Kerala in the year 1912 AD along with his devotee H. Koragappa. This is the only temple in Karnataka built by Sri Narayana Guru. The temple was established for billava community because of the restrictions to the entry of the people belonging to this community to the temples. This magnificent temple has smaller shrines dedicated to Annapoorneswari, Subramanya, Mahaganapathi, Navagraha, Shaneeshwara, and Anandabhairava. The major festivals celebrated here are Navaratri and Shivratri. A Mangalore Dasara celebration has become very popular in recent years.
Shri Sharavu Mahaganapathi Temple
Shri Sharavu Mahaganapathy Temple is situated in the heart of the city. This temple is considered to be one of the oldest temples in Mangalore bearing more than 800 years of history. The Shrine of Lord Sharabeshwara is located on the western side of the temple and that of Mahaganapathy is on the south. This place is an important temple thronged by thousands of devotees. The temple is also hub for a range of cultural activities like dance, drama performances, Yakshangana etc. Rathothsava and Deepothsava are celebrated with much enthusiasm and grandeur in this temple.
Milagres Church
Milagres Church is dedicated to Our Lady of Miracles. This is one of the major attractions in Mangalore. This church was constructed by Bishop Thomas de Castro, a Theatine priest of Salcette in 1680. The church is known for its beautiful altar with a French painting of St Monica and St Augustine.
St. Aloysius College Chapel
St. Aloysius Chapel is situated on the Lighthouse Hill in the premises of St. Aloysius College. Built in the year 1899-1900, St. Aloysius College Chapel is an architectural marvel comparable with the Sistine chapel in Rome. St. Aloysius College Chapel is famous for its interior paintings. The walls and the ceilings of this structure are adorned with exquisite frescoes and extravagant paintings painted by a well-known Italian painter and a Jesuit Brother Antonio Moscheni.
Sultan Battery
Sultan Battery is situated in Boloor 4 km away from Mangalore City. This is a watchtower which was built in black stone by Tipu Sultan to watch the entry of warships into the Gurpur River. This exquisite tower with no maintenance, is in ruins today and the remaining portion of the Sultan Battery is called the Tippu's well.
Seemanthi Bai Government Museum (Bejai Museum)
Seemanthi Bai Government Museum is situated at Bejai about 4 kilometres from Nehru Maidan city Bus Stand in Mangalore. This only museum in Mangalore is named after Seemanthi Bai, the mother of an officer named V.R.Mirajkar who served as an army doctor during British Raj. The museum has great collection of ancient and foreign coins, paintings, metallic icons, statues, lamps and inscriptions made out of copper, teapots from Lahore and Kashmir, statues, idols etc.
Ullal
Ullal is situated nearly 12 kilometres from Mangalore. This sea town is known for the Somanatheshwara Temple, Queen Abbakka's Fort, St. Sebastian Church and Seyyad Madani Dargah. Ullal Jamma Masjid was constructed in memory of the Muslim saint Syed Muhamed Shareef Madani Melangadi who is said to have come to Ullal from Saudi Arabia about 400 years ago. The serene and calm Ullal beach also attracts many tourists.
Kadri Park
Kadri Park is located about 5 kilometres from the heart of the city. This beautiful and well maintained park comes under government’s horticulture department. It is the highest and the largest garden in Mangalore. The park also has a snake park, zoo and a toy train to entertain the children.
Popular Mangalore Beaches
Tannirbavi Beach
It is about 12 Kms away from Mangalore. This is one of the best beaches of Dakshina Kannada and is famous for the imposing view of sunset.
Surathkal Beach
This beach is located 15kms north of Mangalore. This clean and quiet beach is just a few minutes away from National Institute of Technology, Karnataka.
Someshwar Beach
Someshwar beach is located 9kms south of Mangalore. This beautiful sandy beach is renowned for a great rock named 'Rudra Shile'. To the north side of the beach is the Sri Someshwara Temple. This ancient temple is believed to have been constructed during the reign of Queen Abbakka Devi.
Panambur Beach
Panambur Beach is about 12kms from the city. This long beautiful beach is located adjacent to the New Mangalore Port, Kudremukh Iron Ore Factory and Mangalore Chemical and Fertilizers Factory. This is one of the most popular beaches in Mangalore and the main attraction of this beach is the kite festival celebrated during the last week of April.
Religious places around Mangalore
There are many places of religious importance around Mangalore.
Dharmastala, situated 75 km east of Mangalore is famous for the Manjunatha Temple and 14-m-high Bahubali statue.
Kollur situated 135 km from Mangalore is famous for the Sri Mookambika Devi Temple dedicated to Goddess Parvathi.
Kateel is about 29 kilometres away from Mangalore and is famous for Sri Durga Parameshwari.
Venur which is about 50km from Mangalore and is famous for its eight Jain bastis and the ruins of the Mahadeva temple. Another attraction here is an 11-m-high Bahubali statue dating back to 1604.
Mudabidri situated 35 km northeast of Mangalore is one of the major centres of Jainism in South India. This place has around 18 Jain basadis. The main attraction of Mudabidri is the 15th-century Tribhuvana Tilaka Chudamani basadi also known as Chandranatha Bastias famous for its 1000-pillar hall.
Karkala, located 50 km from Mangalore is famous for its many places of worship like the Jama Masjid at Salmaar, Attur Church of St. Lawrence, Anantha Padmanabha temple devoted to Lord Vishnu, Chaturmukha Basti and Neminath Basti at Hiriangadi. The major attraction in Karkala is the 42 feet tall statue of Bahubali carved out of a single granite rock.
How to Reach Mangalore
Mangalore International Airport which was earlier known as Bajpe Airport is situated about 20 kilometres form the Mangalore city. Mangalore has two major railway stations; Mangalore Central which is located in the heart of the city and Mangalore Junction situated at Kankanadi about 5 kilometers from the city.
Mangalore is well connected to all the major cities in Karnataka as well as neighbouring states by a good network of roads. Regular KSRTC (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation) and private buses ply from Mangalore to various destinations like Udupi, Manipal, Hubli-Dharwad, Kundapur, Karwar Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Mysore, Chennai etc.
Accommodation in Mangalore
There are a number of accommodation options available in the Mangalore city. Ranging from beach resorts to budget and luxurious hotels Mangalore offers many choices to the tourists.