Best time
October to February is the pleasant season, and Dasara in September or October is the city at its biggest, with the palace illuminated every evening and the Jamboo Savari procession. March to May is hot by day but the palace and the market are morning outings anyway; the monsoon is light and keeps the gardens green.
- October to February, 16 to 29°C: The pleasant season, and Dasara in September or October is the city at its grandest and busiest.
- March to May, 20 to 34°C: Hot by afternoon; the palace and the market are morning outings.
- June to September, 19 to 28°C: A light monsoon that keeps Brindavan gardens green; short showers rather than washouts.
What to pack
Cotton clothes and a hat: Mysuru is warm most of the year. Something covering shoulders and knees for the temples, comfortable shoes for the palace, which is walked barefoot inside, and a light layer for December evenings.
Getting there
Mysuru is 145 km from Bangalore, three hours on the ten-lane expressway, which is why it works as a day trip and why the group departures leave early on Saturday. The Shatabdi and Vande Bharat trains take two hours.
Mysuru is about 750 km from Hyderabad, an overnight journey of 12 to 13 hours by road, so the group trips travel on Friday night. By train, most services from Hyderabad run to Mysuru Junction through Bengaluru, and the Bengaluru to Mysuru leg alone takes two hours on the Shatabdi or the Vande Bharat. The fastest way is a flight to Bengaluru and a three-hour drive on the ten-lane expressway.
Chennai to Mysuru is about 480 km, eight hours by road, or the overnight train to Mysuru Junction. A flight to Bengaluru and a three-hour drive is the quickest option.