Udupi is a beautiful coastal town in Karnataka, India. It has a perfect blend of religious fervour, beautiful laid back beaches and backwaters to explore. On our own coastal Karnataka road trip, we spent one day in Udupi. To be honest, you should spare a minimum of 3-4 days for Udupi to be able to explore it thoroughly. Unlike the beaches of Goa buzzing with activities and night party scenes, Udupi has a very laid back vibe, pristine beaches and beautiful temples. More on the lines of the beautiful Gokarna or even Varkala that we visited on our Kerala road trip.
But, like us, if you have just one day to explore Udupi, then this is going to be your perfect guide. Let me list down here the places to visit in Udupi in one day for you. Also, you can visit them in the order mentioned.
Table of Contents
Udupi Sri Krishna Temple and Math
The most revered Krishna Temple of South India – the Udupi Sri Krishna Temple and Math is a must visit when in Udupi. It is a temple dedicated to “Balkrishna” – the child form of Krishna. And in it’s complex, along with the temple, there are 8 other maths. The temple complex also has a parking, visitors guesthouse and locker rooms for luggage. People come here from far and wide. Since, there is always a lot of rush of visitors in this temple. So, it is best to keep Sri Krishna Temple and Math at top of your list of places to visit in Udupi in one day. You can visit here as early as 6:00am in the morning.
The idol of Sri Krishna in this temple is very unique. And also faces west. There are very interesting legends about how this idol came into being, how it was discovered in Udupi years later. And how it started facing west. And there is a prasadam lunch and dinner also organised to feed all devotees daily in the temple premises. Read my complete guide to Sri Krishna Temple and Math and discover the details of these interesting stories.
Malpe Beach & Port
Almost 5 km from Sri Krishna Temple lies Malpe Beach – the most happening beach of Udupi. The Malpe Beach is a perfect sun-kissed beach that has a lot to offer to it’s visitors. Including water sports, banana boat ride, zorbing, cruises in the sea and simply soaking in the sun. There is also a small park, an amphitheater and a sea walk adjacent to the beach. There are cultural performances done at the amphitheater in the evening. And a row of shops and small restaurants selling local snacks as well as sea food. You can easily spend a day at Malpe Beach Udupi. But, if you have only one day exploring Udupi, then you need to get selective. And choose the activities on Malpe beach that best suite you.
Adjacent to the Malpe beach is the Udupi Port. Which is a major fishing port of South India. Particularly known for exporting fish. If you can bear the smell of fish (which I couldn’t 🙂 ) then you can catch a glimpse of the buzzing activities at the Udupi Port at Malpe alongside the Malpe Beach.
Read: Things to do at Malpe Beach Udupi
St. Mary’s Island Udupi
Another must visit place that we have next on our list of places to visit in Udupi in one day is St. Mary’s Island. A small island located almost 30km from the coast of Malpe Beach in Udupi, St. Mary’s Island is best known for it’s pristine beaches. And is particularly famous for it’s basaltic rock formation – something very similar to what you see on the beaches of Iceland !! Also, the marine life around the island is very rich. You can do scuba diving on St. Mary’s Island. And also take glass bottom boat ride to observe the marine life forms.
To reach St. Mary’s Island Udupi, you can take a boat trip from Malpe Beach. There is a ferry point right on the Malpe Beach from where boats comply from morning till 5:00pm in the evening. However, the boating to St. Mary’s Island remains closed in peak monsoons season from June to September. So, do bear it in mind while planning your trip to Udupi.
Delta Point Udupi
Delta Point is a tip of land in Udupi where a river meets the sea. As a result, it is surrounded by water on all three sides. With the sea on one side and the backwaters on the other side, surrounded by thick coconut grooves, the Delta Point is a feast to the eyes. So, we recommend to add it next to our list of places to see in Udupi in one day. The best way to reach the Delta point and the adjacent beach called Delta Beach will be to hire a taxi or autorickshaw or else drive on your own. There are several such backwater places in Udupi where rivers meet the sea, alongside thick green plantations. Which present wonderful natural scenerie for nature lovers.
Kapu Beach Udupi
Next on our list of places to see in Udupi in one day is Kapu Beach Udupi. Kapu Beach is a beautiful blue water beach on the outskirts of the town of Udupi. With a lighthouse on the rocks at one end. We spent the evening on this beach on our own trip to Udupi. And it was an evening well spent. The views around from the lighthouse rocks are very beautiful. Then there is a beautiful clean backwater stream right behind the lighthouse. And there are shops lining the entry to the beach providing mouth watering snacks, water, sea food as well as alcoholic drinks. Activity wise, I couldn’t spot any water sports or beach shacks on the Kapu Beach.
In my opinion, while Malpe Beach is the hub of activities. Kapu Beach on the other end makes for a serene and uncrowded beach to take those long strolls along the beachside or simply sit and relax. Things that we personally like to do the most on our trips to beaches. Kids can play in the sand. And you can walk upto the waves or even go in the sea on fine days when the waves are gentle enough. When visiting in the monsoon season, however, the sea might be rough. And as such, entry into the water may not be allowed.
Read : An evening well spent at Kapu Beach Udupi
Other places to visit in Udupi
The above places will be sufficient to cover in a day in Udupi. But, if you have more time at hand, there are so many other places to visit in Udupi. Some of these include –
- Ancient and beautiful temples like Pajaka (Birthplace of Madhavacharya), Chandramouleshwara Temple, Mookambika Temple, Anantheswara Temple, Anantha Padmanabha Temple
- Amazing waterfalls like Jomlu Teertha, Kudlu Falls and Kollur Falls
- Coin Museum
- Anejhari butterfly camp
- Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary
- Kemmanu Hanging Bridge (very near to Delta beach and Delta Point)
- Beaches like Padukere Beach,
- St. Lawrence Church
- Manipal – a more “posh” locality of Udupi district better known for it’s universities and educational institutes. It is located at a little elevation compared to the old town. And as such, has some beautiful views of the valley of western ghats. And also some luxury hotels.
There are a lot of places to visit around Udupi as well. In case you are staying in Udupi for a few days you can explore these places as well –
- Suratkal Beach (~30 mins drive)
- Marvante Beach (~30 mins drive)
- Murudeshwara Temple and beach (~1.5 hrs drive)
- Netrani Island – adjacent to Murudeshwara
- Jog Falls (~3.5 hrs drive via Murudeshwara)
- Gokarna (~3 hrs drive)
- Mangalore (~1 hrs drive)
Apart from this, you can also save sometime to go shopping in Udupi. Local spices, earthenware and handicrafts are the specialities of Udupi. Local jewellery and Kanjiwaram Silk Sarees are also very popular.
Where to eat in Udupi
Udupi is very popular for it’s South Indian delicacies. Some of it’s very famous cuisines include :
- dose, particularly the perfect masala dosas
- idli
- Kosambari which is a kind of dal salad
- Koddelu (a popular sambhar)
- Avalakki Upkaari (red chilli poha)
- Mangalore buns
- Ghasi (a thick coconut gravy dish)
- Pelakai appa (jackfruit dumplings , fried)
- Jackfruit Halwa
There are many old time restaurants in Udupi like the Woodlands and Mitra Samaj where people flock in large numbers to try the local delicacies. You will be spoilt by food options and restaurants options on your trip to Udupi. You can either try the prasadam that is distributed in Sri Krishna Temple Udupi. Or, eat in one of the Mitra Samaj Restaurants just outside of it. Or, head to the Woodlands. But do be prepared to face crowd at these places. We had our lunch at the Gokul Krishna Veg Restaurant, near Sri Krishna Temple. And it was very delicious. The service was also par excellence.
Where to stay in Udupi
Udupi has stay options for all kind of travellers and all budget ranges. There is free guesthouses in Sri Krishna Temple premises for the devotees who come directly to the temple for darshan. Then there are lots of homestays and budget range hotels in Udupi which are located at beautiful locations including river banks and backwater edges. And then there are beach side resorts. For a more lavish experience you can head to Manipal which is just 5km from the old town of Udupi. And here, there are many 5 star hotels where you can stay. Some of the stay options that I personally considered were –
Meridian Bay Resort and Spa
Tents in between ocean and river
Click here to browse through the complete list of places to stay in Udupi.
However, we ourselves couldn’t stay in Udupi because we made our plans at the very last moment. Thus, none of the above preferred accommodations were available. Nevertheless, we found a very comfortable stay in Mangalore. And did a day trip to Udupi from there, exploring the best places to visit in Udupi in one day. But, we would really love to stay near one of the beaches in Udupi at some point in the future.
How to reach Udupi
Udupi is well connected via road and rail to most of the other important towns of Karnataka. A drive from Bangalore to Udupi takes around 9 hours. And the roads are mostly good. If taking a flight, Mangalore is the nearest airport, at a driving distance of just over an hour from Udupi. And then there are these scenic vistadom trains that one can take to Udupi. Which have coaches with 360 views of the surroundings. And these trains pass through some really scenic patches on their way to Udupi.
Once in Udupi, you can easily hire local taxi through your hotel or even search for tour agencies online and contact them. You can also take organised day trips to nearby places like Mangalore, Murudeshwara etc. And, you can always hire a local auto rickshaw for commuting within the town of Udupi.
When is the best time to visit Udupi
Winter months from October till February are considered the best time to visit Udupi. Although the temperature is still high and it feels like the summers only. But the sea is calmer in winter months. Which means you can enjoy all the water activities, swim, snorkel, dive, and take boat cruises to nearby islands like St. Mary’s Island. However, it is also the peak season, so the crowd is more. You should avoid the peak summer months from March – May while visiting Udupi as the temperature gets uncomfortably high during these months. But once monsoons arrive, the temperatures dip. If you want to enjoy a few places, are not so keen at water sports and ok to take up a little unpredictability of the weather then monsoons is the best season for you.
We visited Udupi in August mid. We checked the weather forecast before proceeding to coastal Karnataka. It was mostly showing cloudy but there were no predictions of heavy rains. So, it looked safe to travel all in all. However, we did miss visiting St. Mary’s Island and doing water activities. However, all the other sites were open. We took walks on the beaches, sat on the base of lighthouses and enjoyed the scenic views around, tried mouth watering cuisines, visited the temples and did little shopping. All in all, we were satisfied with our trip.
Other resources from our coastal Karnataka Trip
We visited Udupi as a part of our coastal Karnataka Trip. We first landed into Bekal in Kerala. And then from there, next day we started our coastal Karnataka trip covering Mangalore, Udupi, Murudeshwara and Marvante. We didn’t go to Gokarna because we have been there earlier. Here are the resources from our complete trip to this region which will be helpful if you want to explore this part of Karnataka –
Our complete Coastal Karnataka trip details with trip itinerary
Bangalore to Bekal Road Trip
A virtual tour exploring Bekal FortÂ
Places to see and things to do in Bekal
Udupi Sri Krishna Temple and Math
Kapu Beach Udupi
Malpe beach Udupi
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