Kukke Subramanya Temple – Accomodation and Travel

I see that there are quite a few hits to my blog on Kukke Subramanya Temple. Of course, most people get to the page wanting to know how to reach Kukke and where to stay. Which means my writeup is a completely useless article for them. So, here I go in my attempt to be of some use to the devotees of Kukke Subramanya.

Accomodation: There are quite a few guest houses at Kukke. Ashlesha, Karthikeya, Kumarakrupa and Skandakrupa are few of them. Courtesy this site, the phone number for booking rooms is 281224 or 281400. The STD code for Kukke is 08257. There is another lodge called as the Sriniketana lodge which is also pretty reasonable. I do not have the number but the folks from the other lodges should be able to provide the same.

Travel: The road through Shiradi ghats and through Charmadi ghats (through Mysore-Madikeri-Puttur) are both horrible. And I can’t see them being repaired any time soon. Traveling on one’s own vehicle could be a nightmare. The best option, according to, is to take a KSRTC Rajahamsa bus from Bangalore overnight. Its really convenient. Plus you can book two way tickets online.

In case you are not able to book accomodation and have to reach Kukke (with family), the better thing to do would be to land up in Dharmasthala and take an accomodation there. There are multiple guest houses available there and chances of obtaining one are brighter. Dharmasthala to Kukke is about 60KMs and you can cover it in less than 2 hours plus there are lots of public transport buses available.

P.S: I am now even more convinced about what I wrote a few days ago over here. Two weeks ago, Nitin and I landed up in Kukke. Nitin wanted to go there and I was his guide 🙂 Hoovina jothe naaru swarga serithu!

Route: 

From Bangalore :- Bangalore – Nelamangala – Kunigal – Chennarayapatna – Hassan – Sakleshpura – Gundya Junction – (left turn on NH48) – Subramanya. Approximate distance is 280kms. Road quality is (a) excellent till Sakleshpura, (b) bad then onwards.

From Mysore :- Mysore – Hunsur – Periyapatna – Kushalnagara – Madikeri – Sampaje – Puttur – Subramanya. Approximate distance is 220kms. Road quality is average.

Update:  As of March/April 2008, the Shiradi Ghats section between Sakleshapura and Gundya (near Kukke) has significantly improved. Work is progressing at a rapid rate. Out of the 45kms, almost 30kms is very good. You will have to travel a little slow in the remaining 15kms. I managed it in a Honda City which has one of the lowest ground clearances. So you can imagine!

Update: See some photos of the road and Shiradi ghats as of July 2008

Update (January 2009):

Found this excellent website with complete and useful information on the temple. Click here.

My visit to Kukke Subramanya

Kukke Subramanya Temple has always fascinated me. There is an element of mysticism and energy about the place and temple I cannot describe. To borrow the words of my uncle – “There is a Agochara Shakti (invisible energy) in the place, temple and the deity”.

I remember an aunt of mine telling me recently that only those whom Lord Subramanya grants his grace can visit the place and have his darshan. If he doesn’t want it, you cannot see him even if you get to the temple. I believe this to be hundred percent true. It was five years ago and we were starting off from Bangalore in our car to Mangalore for the annual festival at Nellitheertha. My mother suggested that we visit Kukke on the way and then proceed. For some strange reason, Guru and I put it down very rudely. We took a break at Sakleshpura at around 11AM and headed towards Mangalore through Shiradi Ghats. Midway, a red car stopped us and informed us of a major pileup just ahead. “Its going to take more than 24 hours for the jam to clear. Two tankers have collided. Get back” he said.

Back we came to Sakleshpura and checked with multiple people. All of them told us the same thing – “You have to go through Kukke to reach Uppinangadi and then Mangalore”. (we now know that they were wrong. There are other routes to get to Mangalore from Sakleshpura). We reached Kukke but the temple was closed. We did get to eat food at the temple but did not get Lord Subramanya’s darshan.

Towards the end of December last year, my colleague Gautham casually suggested that I visit Kukke once and pray to Subramanya. I immediately decided to do so. Just a couple of days later when I was planning my Nellitheertha trip, Ananthu told me about his planned trip to South Kanara and Nellitheertha. I quickly realized that Kukke was in his radar. It was finalized immediately that I would hop into his car once the Jaatre was done and visit Kukke. We visited Dharmasthala before Kukke and landed at the temple on a Saturday morning. Believe it or not – I got to have darshan of the Lord 4 times in 4 hours, in spite of the huge rush.

It was certainly a very very satisfying experience for me, something I will cherish for a long time.

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