Halebidu Travel Guide
Halebidu the ancient Hoysala capital houses the ornate Hoysaleswara and Kedareswara temples, and is one of the well visited tourist attractions of Karnataka. Halebidu is located at a distance of 149 km from Mysore and 31 km from Hassan. The Karnataka State Tourism Bureau offers a rather hectic tour package (from Mysore) covering Sravanabelagola, Halebidu and Belur in one day.

The great city of Dwarasamudra flourished as a Capital of the Hoysala Empire during the 12th & 13th centuries. During the reign of Veeraballala II, the grandson of Vishnuvardhana, it reached the greatness of its zenith. Veeraballala II extended his empire from sea to sea between the Cauvery & Krishna rivers

Town Area Size: 2.248 sq kms
Altitude: 3150 ft / 960 meters
Climate:Summer: 20-35°C.
Hottest Month: April Winter: 14-22°C.
Coolest Month: December Rainfall: 86 cms (June-October)
Ideal Time To Visit: October to February

Halebidu (former Dwarasamudra) in Hassan district is in Belur taluk and 27 kms away from Hassan and was the capital of Hoysala after Belur. It has one of the finest Hoysala temples. The twin Shiva Temple with a common platform and two garbhagrihas, one beside the other have a common broad navaranga. One of them houses Vishnuvardhana Hoysaleshwara Linga and the other Shanthaleshwara Linga. Infront of the Hoysaleshwara is the Nandimantapa and behind that is a shrine of Surya with a two-metre-tall image. The temple doorways are highly ornate and impressive. Outer walls have rows of intricate figures narrating episodes from epics like Ramayana, Bharatha and Bhagavata. The place has a Parshwanatha basadi with highly polished pillars in which on- lookers queer images are reflected. There is a Museum of the A.S.I. The Kedareshwara temple is another monument built by Ketaladevi, Ballala II's Queen. Chatchatnahalli (nearby) has a trikuta temple built by Chatta Dandanayaka in 1220.

Getting here:
Halebidu is well connected by road and rail to Bangalore, Mysore and Mangalore. Regular buses ply from Hassan.