Belgaum is the largest district in Karnataka, also known as Sugar bowl. Although it is not counted among the tourist places, but take it from us. It is the place of peace where you will just fall in love with its nature and weather. It is surrounded by heavenly forests at southern side and historical places at north eastern sides. Coming for food, if you are a foodie then you just won’t forget this place. Kunda is the most popular sweet in Belgaum. It has many good eateries ranging from street food to dinning restaurants with perfect taste.
Now, let us explore Belgaum as a Belgaumite..
For better understanding we have divided this city into north and south
| North | South | |
| Fort | Kapileshwar Temple | |
| Lake | St. Mary’s Church | |
| Ramdev Food Court | Military Mahadev | |
| Suvarna Vidhana Soudha | Rajhans Gadh | |
| Airport |
NORTH
FORT
Fort is located in the main city of belgaum, this fort was built in 1204 A.D by an officer named Bichi Raja from Ratta dynasty but now it is under government surveillance for military purpose. It has a rich history and religious monuments and has been captured in battle many times. This fort has an area of 910m in length and 730m in width, the fort has hindu, jain and muslim architectural influences with temple and mosques indicating cultural fusion.
- Jain Temple.
- Durga Devi Temple.
- Mosque
- Jain Temples
Both these temples were built in the chalukya architectural style the main hall of the Kamal Basati is very impressive, with lotus carving projecting to the ceiling. The lotus pendant is covered by large pyramidal roof, the tower of the temple depicts lotus (Kamal) with 72 petals so it is named as Kamal Basati.
Chikki Basati is ruined, once considered as remarkable piece of junk architecture, it has a frontage that displays feestoned rows of dancing figurines, musicians and trimmed flowers.
- Durga Devi Temple
There are 2 Hindu oracles at the fort entrance. One devoted to Lord Ganesha and another to Goddess Durga. It is considered as the Goddess of fort and warfare.
- Mosque
Safa Masjid is an ancient mosque in Karnataka. It is located within the premieses of belgaum fort, which comes under the infantry battalion. It was constructed in the year 1519 by Asad Khan Lari. This masjid is known for its architecture, the entire structure is a combination of the Indo-Saracenic & Deccan style of architecture. In this masjid the prayers(Namaz) are allowed to offer only on Eid. It is restricted place and photography is prohibited, visitors are allowed only with special permission.
LAKE
Kotekere lake is one of the best picnic spots in Belgaum city. It is situated in front of the Belgaum fort, hence it is also known as Fort Lake.
In the dusky evening the lake looks more attractive and charismatic with sun rays whispering the calm water. The lake has pedal boats arranged for tourists, even there are some food stalls that sell street food to the visitors. There is a mini amusement park meant for kids on the inner side of the Fort lake, and the gates of the lake stays open for visitors every day from 6 AM to 8 PM.
In the dusky evening the lake looks more attractive and charismatic with sun rays whispering the calm water. The lake has pedal boats arranged for tourists, even there are some food stalls that sell street food to the visitors. There is a mini amusement park meant for kids on the inner side of the Fort lake, and the gates of the lake stays open for visitors every day from 6 AM to 8 PM.
Tiranga the national flag of India was inaugurated on 12th march 2018 in Belgaum, Karnataka, it is located inside the Kotekere lake (Fort Lake). This is the tallest and largest Indian flag in the world with a height of 110m (365 feet) and weight of 500 kg. The size of the flag is 120X80 ft.
India is a country of various cultures, this flag resembles the cultural unity of all, the flag can be seen almost from everywhere in the Belgaum city, the view of the flag waving in the sky makes us feel proud whenever we see it. This flag is flown at all times as it is a monumental flag. The flag pole has a red light at the top to indicate its height at night for the air crafts. This flag is surrounded by a small park for the visitors, it is managed by committee comprising citizens, district administration, revenue, police and cantonment board officials.
RAMDEV FOOD COURT
It is a place for food lovers. This place is known as Ramdev because of the old famous hotel Ramdev. It is one of the most famous food court in belgaum, this place is famous because of chaat center “Aditya Arcade” where you will find all different types of chaats. it has also many tea points for chai lovers. The atmosphere of this place comes alive in the evening with people of all generation hanging around.
SUVARNA VIDHANA SOUDHA
The Suvarna Vidhana Soudha is the legislature building of the State of Karnataka in the Belgaum district. The Suvarna Vidhana Soudha has been so named to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Karnataka’s formation day. The building is a four floored structure with a total built up area of 60,398 sq.m. and consists of an Assembly hall that seats 300, a Council hall for 100 members, a 450-seat Central Hall, 38 ministeral chambers and 14 meeting halls.
It also has conference halls, a banquet hall, secretariats for both the houses of the legislature , meeting halls and office accommodations. The entire complex is located on 127 acres of land that was acquired from farmers in the area. The facade of the building has the motto ‘”Work is Worship” (Kayakave Kailasa) given by 12th century poet and social reformer Basavanna inscribed on it. The Suvarna Vidhana Soudha was constructed as a part of Karnataka’s reiteration of its control over Belgaum in its inter state rivalry with Maharashtra for control of the district.
AIRPORT
This airport is also known as Sambra Airport because it is located in Sambra village 10kms east from Belgaum city. Below are the list of Airlines and Destinations.
| AIRLINES | DESTINATION |
| Alliance Air | Bangalore, Pune |
| Indigo | Bangalore, Hyderabad |
| SpiceJet | Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai |
| Star Air | Ahmedabad, Indore, Bangalore, Mumbai |
| TrueJet | Hyderabad, Kadapa, Mysore, Tirupati |
SOUTH
KAPILESHWAR TEMPLE
Kapileshwar temple is an ancient Hindu temple situated in the support area of Belgaum city. It is also known as Dakshin Kashi because of the presence of self-manifested Shivalinga. The first offering to the shivalinga was made by the sage Kapila and thus this temple bears the name Kapileshwar. The temple interiors are decorated with the description from the text of the hindu Purana’s and other Holy books.
The self -manifested shivalinga is worshiped twice a day with Maha Abhishek at 6.30 a.m. and Dhup Aarti at 7.30 p.m. Although it is visited on daily basis, but there are large number of devotees on all Monday’s and Mahashivaratri. Mahashivaratri is celebrated very grandly in this temple with mahaprasad for around 20,000 people and the shivalinga is worshiped with Trikal Abhishek. It also has a recently built Sabha Graha for the religious meetings, Bhajans, programs and other religious functions. The walls of Sabha Graha are decorated with religious 3D paintings describing the stories of Hindu religion.
ST. MARY’S CHURCH
St. Mary church is one of the oldest historical church located in camp belgaum which was built on April 15, 1869. It is constructed with gokak pink stones along with alnavar teak and Dandelt mortar. The church looks so beautiful with its carved arches, elaborate pillars and gabled canopy roof. the interior of the church is also very grand as exteriors with collage towers. The 20 feet tall collage portrays the life of the Lord Jesus from his birth to resurrection, separated into 12 magnificent frames.
The front view of the church is made up of a beautiful arch structure with a tall stone cross fixed over the top which appears to be the belfry. The courtyard has an adequate space and is decorated with trees and colorful plants. The church is well located between the junction of two roads which gives an amazing front view for the visitors at the entrance of the road. Footpaths are provided on either side of the roads with well maintained benches and lawns beside footpaths for public to relax and enjoy the outdoors.
MILITARY MAHADEV TEMPLE
The military mahadev temple was inaugurated on jan 18 1954 and this temple was opened for prayers on in the year jan 22 1955. It is situated in the south of belgaum.
The main attractions of this Temple are well maintained park for kids, Mini Zoo which Houses Deer’s and Emus, and the recently built Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Statue which is surrounded by fort models which has been captured and built by Marathas, now looking into the worship places inside the premises, it has two nandi idols in front of a shivaling and beautiful Krishna temple surrounded by a small garden.
RAJHANS GADH
Rajhans Gadh is also known as Yellur Gadh as it is located in the Yellur village which is around 15 kms from Belgaum city. The fort was ruled by Marathas, Peshwas, Bahamins and Hoysalas etc. This fort is perched at the top of the hill which offers a stunning view of the surrounding area. It is supposed to be the highest peak in Belgaum district. The hill is surrounded by farms and trees. During the monsoon, it gives a pleasing view from the top with greenery all around.
In the morning, the fort looks more alluring with the cluster of clouds hovering over the fort and dense fog with mist in the air. It makes you feel like living in the clouds. The fort is reachable by vehicle and there are more visitors on weekends. If you’re planning to visit this place make sure to reach there early in the morning to enjoy the view. The fort is open for visitors from 5 a.m to 6 p.m.