North Karnataka holds three of India's most important heritage sites within a couple of hours' drive of each other, and yet most travellers only ever see one of them. This Hampi Badami Tour Package, designed for travellers starting out from Pune, links Badami's astonishing rock-cut cave temples, the UNESCO-listed temple cluster at Pattadakal, the experimental early temples of Aihole, and finally the sprawling ruins of Hampi into one unhurried four-day circuit essentially tracing the architectural evolution of South Indian temple building from its earliest experiments to its grandest expression.

The journey from Pune typically begins with an overnight train or an early flight into Hubli, from where the road trip through the red-soil countryside of North Karnataka begins. Badami's caves, carved directly into a sandstone cliff overlooking the Agastya lake, are unlike anything most first-time visitors expect from cave temples the carving here is delicate and the views from the cliff edge alone are worth the detour. Pattadakal and Aihole, a short drive away, are quieter still, and walking through them with a guide who can point out where each architectural style was first attempted makes the whole circuit click into place before you ever set foot in Hampi.

By the time you reach Hampi on the second evening, the scale of the Vijayanagara empire feels less like a surprise and more like an inevitable conclusion to everything you have just seen. A full day is dedicated to Hampi's major sites Virupaksha Temple, the Vittala complex, the Lotus Mahal along with a coracle ride on the Tungabhadra. Accommodation is arranged in comfortable properties in both Badami and Hampi, with private vehicle transfers throughout and a guide who genuinely enjoys this stretch of history. Best done between October and March.