Travel Gokarna

Gokarna is a coastal area in Karnataka which is on the Arabian Sea. Gokarna is famous for Beaches and Temples as this is the pilgrimage destination for Hindus. There are multiple beaches and Temples close to the city like the Main beach (Gokarna beach), Om beach, Kudle beach, Mahabaleshwara Temple and many more...




Pre-requisite:
If you are travelling by bus/train then book your return ticket, also book the stay well in advance.
Get Sunglasses, Sunscreen, Beachwear, Caps, Cameras as per your convinience.

Day 1:
There are lot of Volvo buses available from Bangalore to Gokarna, so i prefer to take a bus which would be an overnight journey. As soon as you reach Gokarna bus station, there are multiple two wheeler rentals available right next to the bus station. You can hire the two wheeler and head to our rooms. I prefer to book a stay near "Om Beach" (The beach is called as "Om Beach" as the shape of the beach is like "Om" from the ariel view)

There is a stay available on "Om Beach" called as "Shanthidama Cafe" which is a located on the cliff, the rooms are compact however its very clean and very well maintained. The cost of accommodation is not expensive (1500 INR per day approx) and you will have a very good time. Please note that you cannot reach this place by bike/car, you have to park your vehicles near the entrance of Om Beach and then walk for 5-10 mins (Parking will be accommodated in Namaste cafe).



You can get into your rooms and get freshen up, have a great breakfast and begin your fun time. Take your bikes out and head towards the first destination which is "Kudle Beach". Kudle is below the cliff and this place offers lot of water activities along with the boat ride for near by beaches. This is one of the best beaches to have some fun activities in water.



I suggest you to opt for a boat trip which will take you to Half moon beach, Small hell beach, Paradise beach and back to Kudle beach.

1. Half Moon Beach: The beach is in the shape of half moon hence the name half moon beach. This beach is separated from Om beach by a cliff. You can reach this beach by hiking or by a boat. The beach is away from the crowd and this is a very tiny beach to spend some peaceful time with nature
2. Small Hell Beach: You can reach this beach by hiking or by a boat. Even this is a very tiny beach with dark rocks around. You can do camping here and enjoy the golden sand beach  
3. Paradise Beach: This beach was considered as a hippie location and there were lot of foreigners who used to visit this beach and stay here for months together. One fine day the Government officials restricted all the commercial activities in this beach and demolished all the shacks as per locals. Few locals say that this was done as the beach area belonged to the forest, few locals say that the foreigners restricted Indians to enter the beach however i do not know the exact reason. Even today you can see the remains of the shacks. This is one of the tiny white sand beaches in Gokarna surrounded by rocks and cliffs, if you love to camp, this is one of the beaches to camp.

The alternative plan is to trek from Om beach towards half moon beach, small hell beach and Paradise beach. There will be night treks organised by few, you can opt that as well if you are interested.

Once you get back to Kudle, you can enjoy a beautiful sunset and enjoy your evenings and then return to your rooms.

Day2:
Start you day with a two wheeler ride towards the other side of Gokarna i.e. towards Nirvana beach which is a white sand beach and its very long.
So travel towards Tadadi ferry point in your two wheeler which is around 7 kilometers, from Tadadi to Aghanashini ferry point you get into a ferry along with two wheeler and reach the other side of the water and travel towards Kagal post office and then reach Nirvana beach.

Nirvana Beach:
As there are no cafe/hotels around the beach, it is advised to carry some stuff to eat and drink. Also you should be careful while swimming as there are no life guards around. This is a beautiful white sand beach with clean waters and well maintained as most of the travelers do not visit this place. If you need to visit a place where you find no tourists or minimal tourists then you can visit this beach. This beach runs for kilometers straight which makes it even more attractive.



Once done enjoying then return Belekan beach the same way towards the ferry and reach Aghanashani and from there take a ferry and reach Tadadi. From Tadadi ferry point you can ride towards

Belekan Beach: 
Here you find few compact local restaurants which serve some amazing sea food near the corner (Try to have some delicious sea food) and also you find few fishermen's fishing around (If you are interested about fishing then you can spend sometime with them). Once done with sea food you can travel back to Gokarna main beach and enjoy the evening and sunset. There are lot of eateries available next to the beach, you can finish off your dinner and return to your rooms and relax.



Day 3:
Wake up with the sound of waves and get freshen up and travel towards to city to visit some holy places like Hanuman Janma Bhoomi, Shiva cave, Mahabaleshwara temple, Jatayu Theertha, Koti Theertha and have breakfast in one of the compact restaurants and head to om beach to spend the entire day in Om beach



Om beach: 
This is one of the best beaches of Karnataka, Om beach is named as the shape of the beach is in the form of Om which is a sacred symbol. The beach is backed with lot of greenery, huts, hostels and rocks. The beach is very clean and well maintained. This beach attracts lots of tourists from all over the world. You can even spot lots of foreigners staying here for months together. You can watch a beautiful sunset and head back to your rooms and pack up to return.



You find lot of buses returning to Bangalore at night, so you can board that and say a very good bye to Gokarnaaaaa!

I hope you guys like my blog. Please do comment if you need to know some more information or  details about Gokarna. Request you to share this blog with your friends and family to plan their trip easily.