'''Chikballapur''' is about 57 km north of Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore), the silicon plateau of India. The north-south National Highway NH-7 goes through the town, functions as the Main Street of the town, and is locally known as Bengaluru-Bellary Road or BB Road.
According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town was approximately 55,000. In 2007 January, it was estimated that the population of the '''Greater Chikballapur Area''' ('''GCA''') was approximately 100,000. The town provides all central place functions to be expected of a town of that size in a developing country.
There is a passenger rail connection between Bengaluru and Chikballapur. The frequency of trains less. The train takes longer and runs at the scheduled times whereas buses are available at virtually all hours of the day and most of the evenings and nights.
If you are travelling as a group, take the train, not as a mode of transportation, but as a platform for picniking and partying in general. Samosas and pakodas (fritters) never taste as good as when there is the rolling Indian countryside in front of you.
Walking is the best mode of transportation for those who like it. The air is clean. Take a beige umbrella, not the black one. Have a nice cotton Tilley-style hat with a wide brim. Walking around on the streets and paths of the Greater Chickballapur Area (GCA) is not the same as parading in the lobby of Helmsley Place in Midtown Manhattan.
Auto-Rickshaws are available. No metered one exists yet. Patiently negotiate the price before you get in. Local people are very helpful and may negotiate a good price for both parties.
Drivers in buses run by private operators are very solicitous. The bus driver will drop you off wherever you want. No special consideration necessary. The bus drivers in State run buses will tell you to take a hike.
Taxis are available. You have to negotiate the price before you board the vehicle. Please seek the assistance of a local in negotiating the price. A daily rate is also available in addition to the round trip rate.
The popular '''Nandi Hill Tourist Destination''' is about 22 km south of downtown Chickballapur off State Highway 74 and the link road. It is about 15 km to the foot of the hill and the winding road with exciting hairpin bends to the top is about 7 km. There is an excellent botonical garden on the plateau at the top with a perimeter pathway that offers spectacular views of the surrounding country. The two State of Karnataka Guest Houses and Hotel Mayura provide good lodging facilities including Western style bathrooms. The restaurant in Hotel Mayura offers a good menu while the other "hole-in-the-wall" restaurant offers some food. There is a modest "Guest House" where Mahatma Gandhi stayed that has become something of a pilgrimage centre and provides concrete evidence of Gandhi's simple life. Some may enjoy the ambience of the Yoganandishwara Temple. The wireless Police Control Room is there for emergencies. Buses run regularly betweeen Bangalore, the silicon plateau of India, and the top of Nandi Hill. At less regular intervals, with the patience of Job, one can take a bus from Chikballapur to the top of Nandi Hill.
The '''Ranganatha Swamy''' temple, or Rangasthala as it is locally known, about five km west of downtown Chikballapur, off the State Highway to Gauribidanur is well worth a visit. The stone statue of Vishnu is simply splendid. The black stone sculpture carved in the Vijaynagar style is best viewed when there are no other visitors to the temple. The temple priest is more than willing to accommodate a special viewing for a small consideration offered to the diety. Please respect the religious sensibilities, but go there for sheer artistic splendour.
The '''Heritage Primary School''' in Kandavara, about two km south of downtown Chikballapur on State Highway 74, may be of interest to history buffs. Bharata Ratna Mokshagundam Vishweshwaraiah did his primary schooling in the U-shaped 1845 building. The Dwaraknath Reddy Ramanarpanam Trust (DRRT), under the leadership of Anita Reddy, rehabilitated the building in 2006. An effort has been made to create a modest interpretive center in one of the classrooms. A native son of Kandavara, Mr. Narayana Swamy Katari, who retired as the Chief Secretary of the State of Karnataka in 1967, went to the same primary school.
Trekking, mountaineeering, and rock climbing are the best things to do in Chickballapur.
There are five hills, locally known as '''Pancha Giris''' (literally five hills), about 15 km south of Chikballapur, including the tourist destination known as '''Nandi Hill'''. The five hills are known locally as '''Nandi Giri''', '''Chandra Giri''', '''Indra Giri''', '''Brahma Giri''', and '''Hema Giri'''. Also, there is a sixth hill known locally as '''Kalavaara Hill''' or '''Skanda Giri'''.
The '''Nandi Hill''', along the face known as Tippu's Drop, is good for vertical scaling as long as no one expects it to be comparable to the '''El Capitan''' in the Yosemite Mountains in California.
The '''Kalavaara Hill''' is very good for camping overnight at the top. On a good day, you will literally be above the clouds and see the clouds roll by. Knowledgeable people hike up the hill on a moonlit night and tell others that all those who can must do so.
The two hills, locally known as '''Pandava Hill''' and '''Kaurava Hill''', named after the legendary fraternal enemies of Mahabharatic fame, about 11 km north of downtown Chikballapur, are also very good for mountaineering.
For those who want to attempt rock climbing, please take everything with you, including the kitchen sink, because you will be alone with your companions. The redeeming value of "taking it with you" is that you can take it back with you as well.
Local people are very friendly and helpful. If there are women in the climbing team, they may even offer you a hot drink that they call coffee.
Greater Chikballapur Area is not known for unique folk art or any other touristy item worthy of mention. Although Chikballapur is known for silviculture, it is difficult to find silk scarves or anything like it for gift-giving.
For those tourists who suffer from withdrawal symptoms if they do not buy something every day of their travel, the best option is to ask locals for a craft store.
It is best to stick to vegetarian food when you are in the Greater Chikballapur Area (GCA). There is one non-vegetarian restaurant Shreyas Restaurant on NH 7 that is worthy of recommendation.
The two best restaurants in Chikballapur are the ones that are part of the two hotels on National Highway 7. The hotels are called '''Shanthi Sagar''' and '''Brindavan'''. Both have outdoor seating. Both serve only vegetarian food. The food on offer is very good and the service is excellent, in both places.
Fresh fruit, if you know how to select, can be a treat. The precautinary rule applies: wash/rinse even fruits with skins, with the boiled water from your bottle. On a warm day, in the shade of a leafy tree, the fruits can be absolutely refreshing, especially accompanied by a cool fruit juice box. For those who are picky about cool fruits, there is no substitute for cooling the warm fruit in the picnic cooler.
The best drink in the Greater Chikballapur Area (GCA) is fresh tender coconut that is available in several places sold by vendors who carry them around on their bicycles. Sometimes, the tender coconut pulp inside can be delicious but the taste depends upon the season and when the coconut was harvested.
It is best to avoid bottled water altogether, for a varety of reasons. If you are nice, someone will bring tap water to a rolling boil for 90 seconds, cool it, and serve it you. You can then fill your water bottle with the boiled water for the day. Please bear in mind that '''hot water''' is '''not''' the same as '''boiled water'''. Some people seem to prefer hot water and all it is is just water heated to a warm temperature. Many a Westerner has befriended a bathroom for three days, confusing the two.
Alcoholic beverages can be bought in Chikballapur at the appropriate stores. You may be bettter off buying the beverages in Bengaluru and transporting them with you.
The warm beer in Chikballapur has given a new meaning to the English warm beer. The medicine-like English beer is usually at 21 degrees Celcius whereas warm beer in Chikballapur can be at 30 degrees plus Celcius. Please cool it in your picnic cooler basket with ice cubes before tasting.
Many in Chikballapur have a different concept of chilled white wine and room temperature red wine. Please manage your temperature preference with the help of a good picnic cooler. The same rule applies for all soft drinks that are readily available in Chikballapur.
Please do not use the ice cubes bought in a store in your liquor. It is quite a nuisance to boil water, cool it, freeze it into cubes, and then take it with you in a separate plastic bag. Sometimes accepting nuisances now can save you a lot of grief later. People who disregard this recommendation will come to regret their special affinity for bathrooms. Humour aside, Hepatitis ought to be a consideration before going excessively native.
There are two Hotels on the west side of National Highway 7, almost adjacent to each other, about 2 km south of downtown Chikballapur. They are called: '''Brindavan''','''Soumya''' and '''Shanti Sagar'''.
Both Hotels are good establishments but neither has Western-style bathrooms. Requests to both managers to install at least three rooms with Western-style toilets has so far gone unheard. It is a puzzle why Hotels that aspire to serve Western clients on their way to Puttaparthy, Sai Baba's principal headquarters, do not want to install Western-style bathrooms.
Each hotel has a restaurant where the food served is very good and the service is excellent.
The mode of transport you used to get in is the best mode to get out. Buses are the best option to get in and out.