A data-first look at how North Karnataka travels — heritage-monument footfall, state tourist arrivals, Hubballi Airport traffic and drive distances from Hubli-Dharwad — compiled from official government sources (Archaeological Survey of India, Karnataka Department of Tourism, Airports Authority of India) and updated for 2024. Every figure is cited at the bottom of this page.
Hampi drew 1,008,721 visitors in FY 2023-24 — the most-visited ticketed monument in North Karnataka (ASI).
Together, North Karnataka’s seven ASI ticketed monuments recorded about 3.42 million visitors in FY 2023-24.
Karnataka logged over 284 million domestic visits in 2023, up from ~183 million in 2022 (Dept of Tourism).
Hubballi Airport (HBX) handled 322,701 passengers in FY 2022-23 — the state’s 3rd busiest — recovering from a COVID low of 119,072.
Roughly 90% of Hampi’s footfall is domestic; Karnataka drew 409,333 foreign visitors in 2023.
All seven monuments plus Goa and the coast sit within about 200 km of Hubli-Dharwad — a natural base for touring North Karnataka.
Annual visitor footfall to Centrally Protected Ticketed Monuments, FY 2023-24. Source: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Ministry of Culture. Combined, these seven monuments drew about 3.42 million visitors in the year. Hampi and Pattadakal are UNESCO World Heritage Sites; Badami–Aihole are on the UNESCO tentative list.
State-level arrivals count visits, not unique visitors. Source: Karnataka Department of Tourism / CEIC; reported by Deccan Herald. 2023 was the highest travel year for the state in the preceding seven years.
Hubballi Airport (HBX) sits on Gokul Road, Hubballi. Source: Airports Authority of India; Wikipedia. Passenger numbers have grown strongly post-pandemic — up 37% year-on-year in May 2025.
Approximate road distances and typical drive times from Hubballi. Vijayapura (Gol Gumbaz) is about 200 km north. See each route page for current cab fares.
One of India’s tallest plunge waterfalls at about 253 m (830 ft), on the Sharavathi river — four cascades: Raja, Rani, Rocket and Roarer. Fullest in the monsoon (Aug–Dec).
A temple-and-beach town on the Arabian Sea (Om, Kudle, Half Moon beaches). Official destination-level footfall isn’t published, but coastal Karnataka is among the state’s fastest-growing tourism belts.
Home to the world’s second-tallest Shiva statue (≈123 ft) on a headland over the sea — a major day-trip and pilgrimage draw on NH-66.
Kali-river white-water rafting and wildlife, ~75 km from Hubli — a short-break favourite that official monument stats don’t capture.
Marikamba temple, the Yana karst rocks and the Shalmala riverbed carvings — a temple-and-nature circuit in the Uttara Kannada ghats.
Footfall data exists mainly for ticketed ASI monuments; beaches, waterfalls and temples aren’t centrally counted — so the heritage numbers above understate total regional travel.
Every figure above is drawn from an official or reputable public source and reflects the latest year available at publication (2024). Monument footfall = annual visitor counts to ASI ticketed monuments; state figures count visits, not unique people. Distances are approximate road distances from Hubballi.