Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Vijayanagara district of Karnataka, India, famous for housing the magnificent ruins and grand monuments of the medieval Vijayanagara Empire. It is the number one place I recommend people visit if they ever plan a trip to India. The area is simply incredible, and the history alone is a massive draw.
Some of the ruins and sacred sites are over 1,300 years old. Furthermore, the landscape looks completely unique compared to the rest of India; the terrain is littered with massive rocks and boulders that give the entire area a surreal, otherworldly feeling. There are also a few wonderful hills you can hike up to catch breathtaking sunset or sunrise views.
The sprawling temple and ruins complex of the medieval Vijayanagara Empire is awe-inspiring, and its sheer magnitude rivals Angkor Wat. While Angkor Wat is the single largest individual religious monument in the world, Hampi was an expansive, decentralized medieval metropolis. In its day, Hampi was the second-largest medieval city in the world at its peak around 1500 CE. Surpassed only by Beijing—the capital of the Ming Dynasty—it was the largest and most populous metropolitan area in India and the entire Western and South Asian world at the time.
This ancient city truly left its signature on the land. Because the climate is dry and arid, many of the excavated ruins found in and around Hampi remain incredibly well preserved.
Check out my video below, where I explore the sights of Hampi and dive into the ruins!