Gunja Narasimhaswamy Temple, T. Narasipura

A 1268 CE Hoysala temple on the Kaveri about 35 km east of Mysuru — a UNESCO World Heritage "Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas" site, famed for its star-shaped triple shrine and bands of intricate stone sculpture.

A historic temple town on a bend of the Kaveri where shifting river sand has buried and re-exposed ancient Ganga and Chola temples; the Panchalinga Darshana pilgrimage draws crowds every twelve years.

A grand white Italianate palace built in 1921 for the Maharaja of Mysore to host the Viceroy, on rising ground below Chamundi Hills; modelled in part on St Paul’s Cathedral in London and now a heritage hotel whose public areas and grounds can be seen.

The Srikanteshwara (Nanjundeshwara) Temple at Nanjangud, about 23 km south of Mysuru on the Kapila (Kabini) river, is one of the largest and most important Shaiva pilgrimage temples in Karnataka — the "Dakshina Kashi" — with a tall gopuram and the big Dodda Jatre chariot festival.

India’s first sand-sculpture museum, opened in 2014 at the foot of Chamundi Hill, where more than 100 tonnes of sand are shaped into themed tableaux — mythology, wildlife, cartoon characters and Mysore Dasara scenes.

A hill about 13 km from the city topped by the Chamundeshwari Temple and a giant Nandi carved from a single boulder, with panoramic views over Mysuru and a stepped pilgrim path of ~1,000 steps.

A music-themed wax museum near the Chamundi foothills displaying hundreds of musical instruments alongside wax figures of musicians from India and around the world.

A restored lake below Chamundi Hills with a large walk-through aviary, a butterfly park and a nature-park boardwalk, backed by the zoo — an easy birding and boating stop.

The Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, established in 1892, one of India’s oldest and best-run zoos, with spacious enclosures for elephants, big cats, gorillas and a wide range of birds.

The Amba Vilas Palace, seat of the Wodeyar maharajas, rebuilt in 1912 in an Indo-Saracenic style; famous for its Durbar Hall, stained glass and its Sunday and Dasara-evening illumination of nearly 100,000 bulbs.

A bustling colonial-era market of flower, fruit, spice and kumkum stalls in the old city, a photogenic slice of everyday Mysuru near the palace.

An 1861 Wodeyar palace now housing the Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery, with one of South India’s finest collections of paintings, including works by Raja Ravi Varma, and royal artefacts and instruments.