How to reach

Mysuru is 140 kilometres from Bengaluru — three hours by road, under two by the Vande Bharat. Once here, the festival runs free shuttles from twelve parking hubs, and the city centre closes to private cars on procession day.

• Rail

  By train

  ~2 h from Bengaluru

  Mysuru Junction is the main station, with daily services from Bengaluru, Chennai, Mangaluru, Hassan and beyond. The Vande Bharat and Shatabdi are the fastest from Bengaluru. Book early for festival dates.

• Road

  By bus or car

  ~3 h from Bengaluru

  KSRTC runs a bus every five minutes from Bengaluru, A/C and non-A/C, into the Central Bus Stand. By car, take the Bengaluru–Mysuru Expressway (NH-275); expect queues at the city entry on procession day.

• Air

  By air

  MYQ 12 km · BLR 170 km

  Mysuru Airport (MYQ) has limited daily flights. Kempegowda International, Bengaluru, has the connections; KSRTC Flybus coaches run direct from the terminal to Mysuru.

Getting around

• Free

  Festival shuttles

  Every 10 min

  From every parking hub to the Palace, Bannimantap, the Exhibition and Kuppanna Park, 9 AM to 11 PM through the festival. Free with any ticket; ₹20 otherwise.

• Metered

  Auto-rickshaws

  Pre-paid stands at the station and bus stand

  Usually on the meter; pre-paid counters at the railway station and Central Bus Stand set the fare. Ola and Uber operate across the city.

• Heritage

  Tongas

  Stand at the Palace

  Horse-drawn tongas — one of the last vestiges of the old city — wait at the Palace and the Zoo. Agree the fare before you board.

• City bus

  KSRTC city services

  Central Bus Stand

  A fleet of about a thousand buses covers every part of the city and the surrounding villages. Route 201 circles the ring road.

Road closures

On 21 October the following close to private vehicles from 11 AM. Live diversions are posted here and on the Dasara app from 1 October.

• Sayyaji Rao Road — K R Circle to Bannimantap, the full procession route

• Albert Victor Road and the Palace ring roads

• Ashoka Road and Dhanwantri Road around Devaraja Market

• B N Road between the Central Bus Stand and K R Circle

Emergency vehicles, festival shuttles and residents with passes are exempt. Two-wheelers are stopped at the same points.

Where to stay

More than four hundred government-verified hotels, homestays and resorts, plus the Dasara camps for budget travellers. Palace-area rooms sell out first — book by early September.

• Luxury

  Luxury & heritage

  Palace area, Lalitha Mahal

  ₹8,000+

  The palace hotels and the five-star properties — Lalitha Mahal, the Lokaranjan Mahal, the Radisson and the Grand Mercure among them.

• Mid-range

  Intermediate hotels

  City centre

  ₹2,500 – 8,000

  Three-star and boutique hotels within a kilometre of the Palace — the largest category, and the first to fill.

• Budget

  Budget hotels

  Near the station and bus stand

  Under ₹2,500

  Clean, inspected lodges and budget hotels around the railway station, the Central Bus Stand and Kuvempunagar.

• M-HOME

  Homestays

  Registered and inspected annually

  From ₹1,200 a night

  Book through the official listing only

  The Department of Tourism’s M-HOME scheme registers and inspects private homestays across the city. Expect a family kitchen, a garden, and a host who will tell you which hotel on Sayyaji Rao Road still makes the dosa the old way.

• Budget

  The Dasara camps

  Three sites · from ₹500 a night

  Beds, lockers, hot water, 24×7 security

  On the free shuttle network

  For the festival the District Administration runs tented camps with beds, lockers, hot water and security at three grounds within the ring road, served by the free shuttles. The affordable way to be in the city for the last three days.

• Beyond the city

  Resorts around Mysuru

  Kabini and Bandipur — wildlife lodges

  KRS — backwater resorts

  Kodagu — estate stays, 2 hours

  Within an hour of the city are the Kabini and Bandipur forest lodges, the KRS backwater resorts and the coffee-estate stays of Kodagu. Good for a base if you have a car and are combining the festival with the countryside.

The 2026 listing of verified properties is published on this page in August. Book only through the official listing or the property directly; the Department does not use agents.