Gokarna — a small Indian village with a lot of atmosphere

The first stop on our trip from South Goa to Hampi was Gokarna in the neighboring state of Karnataka. We left Palolem in the morning on a rented scooter, and 2.5 hours later we were already in Gokarna — a small tourist village and a Hindu pilgrimage site.

Gokarna sights

Gokarna is a small village with literally two main roads. As for sights, here is what there actually is: the ascetic atmosphere of the town itself, the Cobra temple with the oldest Shiva lingam, a sacred dirty swampy pond where people perform ablutions, and a few beaches nearby. The infrastructure here is minimal — one cafe, a couple of grocery stalls (you will have to hunt for fruit), and internet only at internet cafes, and not always even there. Alcohol is sold in only one place and costs 3 times as much as in Goa.

As for beaches — right next to Gokarna there is only one beach, Gokarna beach, which is not clean, pretty, or cozy (crowds of Indian pilgrim-tourists are always hanging out there). To get to more or less decent beaches — Om beach, Half Moon beach, Paradise beach — you have to drive about 15 minutes, and you can only drive as far as Om beach; from there you get to the others either on foot or by boat for 150 rupees per person. The walk to Paradise beach took us about 40 minutes one way.

Food prices here are normal, average for India. We found a place to stay on the main street — a hotel room for 350 rupees — a decent place with a balcony, a fan, a shower, and a toilet, no internet. Speaking of the internet — Wi-Fi is hard to find here. There are internet cafes, but they are often closed. We never found a single working Wi-Fi here in all 2 days. So stock up on a SIM card with mobile internet.

We did not particularly like Gokarna — there is nothing to see here, and the beaches are a notch below the ones in Goa. Prices are generally higher, and there is less choice. Lots of tourists (mostly local ones) — not very comfortable. We spent 2 days in Gokarna and early in the morning moved on to Hampi, stopping on the way in Murudeshwar and at Jog Falls.