Dates are flexible. This day-by-day plan is provisional until you choose exact travel dates.
Start early from Mumbai, allowing roughly 5–6 hours door to door: airport transfer and check-in, security, the flight to Kempegowda International Airport, baggage collection, and the ride into the city. For five people with luggage, pre-book a larger airport taxi or two app cabs; the airport is about 60–90 minutes from central Bengaluru, depending heavily on traffic. Once you arrive, head straight to Bengaluru Palace in Palace Grounds. Give yourselves around 1½ hours for the Tudor-style interiors and grounds. Check the official opening hours, ticket price, and any audio-guide or photography rules before leaving Mumbai, as entry arrangements can change.
Continue to MTR on Lalbagh Road for lunch—go hungry for masala dosa, rava idli, and the famous filter coffee. Expect approximately ₹250–₹500 per person; queues are common around lunch, so a slightly early arrival is worthwhile. From there, walk or take a short auto-rickshaw ride to Lalbagh Botanical Garden, allowing about two hours to explore the glasshouse, older avenues, and shaded heritage trees. The garden is large, so enter at the most convenient gate and use an auto rather than walking the full approach in the afternoon heat. Keep some flexibility here: Bengaluru’s traffic makes the palace-to-lunch-to-Lalbagh sequence slower than the map suggests.
Finish at Vidhana Soudha, where a 30-minute exterior visit is enough to appreciate the monumental façade; access inside is generally restricted, so treat this as a photo stop rather than an interior tour. Then take a short cab or auto ride to Church Street for an easy evening of independent bookstores, cafés, and people-watching. Two hours is ideal—browse Blossom Book House, settle into a café, and wander toward Brigade Road if the group still has energy. Traffic and parking are frustrating here, especially in the evening, so have the driver drop you near the Church Street entrance and arrange the return cab from a nearby main road.
Leave Bengaluru around 5:00 AM for Nandi Hills, allowing roughly 2 hours each way depending on traffic and the approach-road queue. The hilltop entry gate and parking can become busy around sunrise, so a pre-booked cab or tempo traveller is worthwhile for five friends; expect approximately ₹3,500–₹6,000 total for a round trip, depending on vehicle and pickup location. Carry a light jacket, water, and cash for small expenses. Spend about 1–1½ hours at the viewpoints and around the hilltop—sunrise is weather-dependent, but the cooler air and broad valley views make the early start worthwhile.
Return toward the city and stop at CTR (Shri Sagar) in Malleshwaram for benne masala dosa. Allow 45–60 minutes, and expect around ₹150–₹300 per person; queues are common, so keep the order simple and move on once everyone has eaten. From there, take a cab or auto to ISKCON Temple Bengaluru in Rajajinagar, usually 20–30 minutes outside peak traffic. Allow about 1½ hours for the hilltop temple complex and cultural displays. Dress modestly, leave footwear and large bags as required, and check the temple’s same-day visitor timings before setting out, as entry arrangements can vary.
Continue by cab to Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath on Kumarakrupa Road, generally a 20–30-minute ride from ISKCON Temple Bengaluru. Give the galleries about an hour, but check the current exhibition schedule before going because displays rotate and individual gallery timings can differ; admission is often free or nominal. Afterward, rest at your accommodation rather than trying to fill the gap, then head to Toit in Indiranagar for dinner and craft beer. The ride can take 30–45 minutes in evening traffic, and a table for five is best reserved in advance. Plan around ₹1,000–₹1,800 per person, and use a cab or ride-hailing service for the return—especially if drinking.
Keep this final day light and central. Start at Cubbon Park around 7:30–8:00 AM for a relaxed 1½-hour walk through the shaded avenues, passing Seshadri Iyer Memorial Hall and the park’s older stone monuments. Some internal roads have vehicle restrictions on weekend mornings, but access and timings can vary, so arrive early and use a cab drop near Kasturba Road or Queen’s Road. From the park, walk or take a short auto-rickshaw ride to the Visvesvaraya Industrial & Technological Museum; allow 1½–2 hours for the interactive galleries. It generally opens around 9:30 AM, with adult entry usually in the ₹100–₹150 range, but confirm the current ticketing and any queue before leaving.
Take a cab down to MTR on Lalbagh Road—roughly 15–25 minutes depending on traffic—for a final Karnataka-style lunch. Order the rava idli, masala dosa, or a South Indian meals plate, budgeting approximately ₹250–₹500 per person. Service is efficient, but a short wait is possible around lunchtime. Afterward, continue by cab to KR Market in Kalasipalya, usually another 15–25 minutes. Spend about an hour among the flower and produce stalls; the colors and early trading activity are the highlight, though it is crowded, wet in places, and not ideal for wheeled luggage. Keep phones and wallets secure, and avoid carrying open bags. If your flight is later in the evening, leave the market with plenty of buffer rather than trying to add another stop.
For the Bengaluru–Mumbai return flight, arrange a pre-booked airport taxi or larger vehicle for five people and luggage. From central Bengaluru, allow 60–90 minutes to Kempegowda International Airport, and begin the transfer roughly 4½–5 hours before the time you want to be at the terminal; weekend traffic on the airport road can be unpredictable. Confirm the airline’s terminal, baggage rules, and check-in cutoff in advance. At the airport, allow time for the drive, bag drop, security, and a possible queue—especially if checking luggage—before your flight onward to Mumbai.
No packing list attached yet.