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A Month in Glorious Gokarna

Updated: Nov 27, 2018


Our time spent in Gokarna is without doubt a highlight of our trip. We initially planned a two week stay by the sea, but ended up staying over a month.


Gokarna itself is a beautiful pilgrimage town that we fell in love with. Although the presence of foreign tourists must have changed the town, it still feels relatively untouched and undeveloped. Cows, artistic graffiti and temple houses are found everywhere in the town.






We found graffiti by our friend Alex who we met in Sri Lanka!

Women sit outside a temple house, accompanied by the ever present sacred cow!


Lunch with a Baba in 'Pai Restaurant'

Local women walk to the Lotus Temple (pictured in the background)







The backstreets came alive with the setting sun

Local women gut and sell fish at the market


Powdered paints of every colour imaginable for sale at the market

We particularly loved the town's treasured holy lake that acted as an amazing sun trap for the setting sun.


A local man on his way to the lake

Believe it or not these colours are barely edited!

Dogs sleep on the warm metal roofs

Reflections on the lake during the day

One day we were lucky enough to stumble upon the town's 'Shiva Cave.' Home to hundreds of bats and a Shiva shrine, we were also surprised to find a Baba in the cave who had been living there for nine months. It was a fantastic experience to learn about his life, and he even attempted to teach us some meditation!





About a twenty minute walk from the town is Kudle Beach; a picture perfect beach completely surrounded by hills and sea. Again, initially planning to stay on Kudle for a couple of days before moving to the nearby ‘Om Beach’, we ended up spending our entire time here as it was just perfect. Renting a private hut for 400 rupees (£4) a night at a place called Uma Garden, perched at the edge of the beach on the rocks, we really were living the traveller’s dream.


A busy day on the beach during an Indian festival

Another day when it was just us, the cows and the dogs!


Editing outside our home at Uma Garden...spot the cat!

James' usual hangout!




A walk to Om Beach

The picturesque Om Beach


Explorers by moonlight on Om Beach

Gokarna's long stretching 'Main Beach' was also worth the visit

A local man sells kulfi and cold water on Main Beach

On Kudle Beach we got into a really relaxing, rewarding routine. Yoga every morning at 7.00am, followed by a swim in the sea, jumping straight in from the rocks, followed by breakfast. In the day we would often read, edit photos, sunbathe, or explore Gokarna town and other nearby beaches, before making sure that we were in a good place to watch the inevitably brilliant sunset. The evenings were often spent eating at our favourite restaurant, aptly named Little Paradise Inn.


Little Paradise Inn

A combination of our environment, the regular early morning yoga, and the good food, meant, admittedly for the first time in India, we were both really very happy and very relaxed in Gokarna.





It wasn't always sunshine!


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