Chikmagalur is a district of the Indian state Karnataka. This place is full of mountains and occupies an area of 7,201 sq. km. The enchanting Chandradrona Parvatha or Bababudan Hills provides a picturesque backdrop. The highest peak in Chikmagalur reaches an altitude of 1829 meter above the sea level. This district had the first ever-coffee plantation in India. This picturesque range of mountains flaunts some beautiful waterfalls. There are also a number of pilgrim spots. Some of the tourist attraction places in Chikmagalur are given here:

Belavadi
This place is situated about 29 km from Chikmagalur city. The famous temple Trikuta is situated here. The temple has three sanctorum one each for Lord Veeranarayana, Lord Venugopala and Lord Yoganarasimha. It is believed that Belavadi was earlier known as Ekachakranagara in the Mahabharata days. This Trikuta temple of Chikmagalur city was built following the Hoysala architecture. Ornate carvings and grand sculptures adorn this temple structure. The Hatuda Ganapathi temple can be seen near the Trikuta temple. It is dedicated to Lord Ganesha, the principal deity of all Hindu endeavours.

Sringeri
This sacred place is situated on the banks of the holy river `Tungabhadra`. It is famous for the `Mutt`, one of the four, founded by `Jagathguru Sri Adishankara`, a Hindu religious leader. This Mutt is known as the `Sringeri Saradha Peetam`. There is also an ancient temple dedicated to goddess Saradha or Saraswati.

There is also another ancient temple with the presiding deity Lord Chenna Kesava Perumal, one of the variations of Lord Vishnu. The temple structure has remained incomplete even after 80 long years of work. A beautiful Jain monument `Paraswanatha Basti` can also be seen here.

The Vidyasankara Temple of the 14th century is another tourist place here. There are 12 pillars in this temple called the `Rasikambas` or Zodiac Pillars. These are ingeniously positioned that the Sun`s rays fall on the specific pillar during each solar month.

Amriteswara Temple
This temple is situated in Amritapura, about 247 km from Bangalore. It was built in the 12th century by Amrita Dandanayaka. The grand architectural style of the Hoysalas reflects in the entire temple structure. The ground plan of the temple is star shaped. Wonderful images of Goddess Saraswati, the goddess of Arts and Learning, in a sitting posture can be seen here.

Kalahasthi Waterfalls
This beautiful waterfall is situated in the picturesque sylvan region of Kemmanangudi. It is situated about 48 km from Chikmagalur. This beautiful hill resort on the Chandradrona Parvatha or Bababudan Hills is filled with a variety of flora and fauna. There is another fall called Hebbe falls, situated about 8 km from this falls. The waters here fall elegantly in two stages making a thunderous dive of about 250 feet in each stage.

Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary
It is situated about 75 km from Chikmagalur city. This sanctuary has a picturesque landscape shared by the adjoining Shimoga district. A wide variety of fascinating flora and fauna can be seen here. The huge elephants, captivating deers, wild bears, the big cats like the panthers and tigers greet the visitors here. A wide spectrum of reptiles can also be seen here. A large number of exciting birds, which belong to various species in classification, are found here.

Shimoga
Shimoga is a city of Chikmagalur district of Karnataka state. It is the head quarters of the district known by the same name. The district spreads covers an area of 8,465 sq. km. and the population as per the 2001 Census is 14, 52,259. The city is 274 km from the state capital Bangalore. It is situated on the banks of the sacred river Tungabhadra. During the days of Keladi Nayakas, Shimoga was very popular.

Shimoga has very interesting landscape interspersed with historic monuments. There is a temple at Badravathi in Shimoga. The presiding deity of this temple is the Lord Lakshminarayana. It was constructed following the Hoysala architecture. There are also large numbers of industries in the Shimoga city. This city is well known for its ivory and sandalwood industries. These articles of the city attract lots of tourists. The visitors can enter the factories filled with the exotic sandalwood fragrance and those suffused with the coveted ivory.

Badravathi
It is about 256 km from Bangalore. This is a popular industrial town, which was formerly known as `Benkipura`. An ancient temple dedicated to Lord Lakshminarayana, a variation of Lord Vishnu makes this place worth visit. The Hoysalas built this temple with rich architectural workmanship in the 13th century. The beautiful Bhadra river flows along the north border of the city. A number of industries such as the iron and steel industry, the cement and the paper factories are located along the banks of this river.

Sagar
It is situated about 340 km from Mysore. This city has become popular due to the sandalwood and ivory industries here, which produce fascinating articles. The visitors are ushered through the various departments of these precious ivory and fragrant sandalwood factories. Purchases can also be made here.

Ikkeri
It is situated near Sagar. There is a 16th century Aghoreswara temple situated here. Another temple dedicated to Goddess Parvathi is also found here. The presiding deity of the Aghoreswara temple is a variation of Lord Shiva and that of the latter is his divine spouse. The Rameswara and the Veerabhadra temples can be seen here.

Jog Falls
This charming waterfall is situated at an altitude about 1500 ft above sea level. It is situated amidst gorgeous mountains covered by thick green forests with an enchanting sylvan setting. Jog Falls is situated about 88 km from Shimoga and 378 km from Bangalore. Good accommodation is also available here for the visitors.