Barsur
Eleventh century Naga temples in a Bastar village of ponds
Best time to visit Barsur
- Jan, peak season
- Feb, peak season
- Mar, shoulder season
- Apr, off-season
- May, best avoided
- Jun, off-season
- Jul, off-season
- Aug, shoulder season
- Sep, shoulder season
- Oct, shoulder season
- Nov, peak season
- Dec, peak season
peak shoulder off-season avoid
- Go: November to February
- Shoulder: March and August to October, quieter, and the weather is less of a sure thing
- Skip: May
Barsur season by season
Winter December to February Prime time
Dec to Feb mornings sit near 12C, good for walking between the Mama Bhanja and Battisa temples and the two big tanks with nobody about.
Summer March to May Shoulder
March is dry and bearable; April climbs hard and May holds 43C over open stone with no shade at the ruins, which is why it is blocked.
Monsoon June to September Shoulder
The Indravati fills and the paddy around the temple tanks turns green; Aug and Sep are fine, though June and July storms cut the Geedam road.
Autumn October to November Prime time
Oct and Nov give the best light of the year here, warm days, dry lanes, and Chitrakote still running full 34 km up the river.
What Barsur is actually like
A quiet village of tanks and loose stone; sleep at Geedam or Dantewada, since Barsur has a rest house and tea shops and no more
Getting to Barsur
Geedam is the junction, 24 km short of Barsur on the Indravati road; Dantewada railhead sits on the Kirandul line
Practical ways in: trainroad
Trip facts
- How long to stay
- 2 days
- Budget
- Shoestring
- How busy
- Quiet at its peak
- Solo travel
- Doable solo with some planning
- Altitude
- 377 m
- State
- Chhattisgarh
- Coordinates
- 19.1362, 81.3862
Common questions
When is the best time to visit Barsur?
November to February is peak season in Barsur. March and August to October is shoulder season: thinner crowds, a bit more risk in the weather. Avoid May. Oct and Nov give the best light of the year here, warm days, dry lanes, and Chitrakote still running full 34 km up the river.
How many days do you need in Barsur?
2 days is the usual stay. A quiet village of tanks and loose stone; sleep at Geedam or Dantewada, since Barsur has a rest house and tea shops and no more.
How do you get to Barsur?
Geedam is the junction, 24 km short of Barsur on the Indravati road; Dantewada railhead sits on the Kirandul line. Practical ways in: train and road.
Is Barsur expensive, and does it get crowded?
Shoestring by Indian travel standards, and it runs quiet at the busiest time of year. Doable solo with some planning.
Nearby, and where to go next
-
Chitrakote Falls (Bastar)
Chhattisgarh
India's widest waterfall in the heart of tribal Bastar
40 km from Barsur, roughly under an hour by road
-
Tirathgarh Falls (Kanger Valley)
Chhattisgarh
Terraced falls and limestone caves inside Kanger Valley park
70 km from Barsur, roughly about 1 h by road
-
Jagdalpur (Bastar)
Chhattisgarh
Bastar's tribal capital, weekly haats and bell-metal workshops
90 km from Barsur, roughly about 2 h by road
-
Gupteswar Caves (Koraput)
Odisha
Limestone cave shrine above the Sabari river in old sal forest
120 km from Barsur, roughly about 2 h by road
-
Bogatha Falls
Telangana
Broad tiered curtain falls deep in Godavari tribal country
160 km from Barsur, roughly about 3 h by road
-
Duduma Falls (Machkund)
Odisha
Machkund river hurls itself 175 m off the Eastern Ghats plateau
170 km from Barsur, roughly about 3 h by road
-
Koraput
Odisha
Eastern Ghats coffee town of tribal markets and mist
190 km from Barsur, roughly about 4 h by road
-
Kaleshwaram
Telangana
Godavari and Pranahita meet at a temple with two lingas on one base
210 km from Barsur, roughly about 4 h by road
More places to visit in Chhattisgarh
- Achanakmar Tiger Reserve (Maikal Hills) Chhattisgarh
- Barnawapara Sanctuary Chhattisgarh
- Bhoramdeo (Kawardha) Chhattisgarh
- Chitrakote Falls (Bastar) Chhattisgarh
- Gangrel Dam (Ravishankar Sagar) Chhattisgarh
- Jagdalpur (Bastar) Chhattisgarh
- Jogimara Caves (Ramgarh Hill) Chhattisgarh
- Mainpat Chhattisgarh
- Rajim Chhattisgarh
- Ratanpur (Mahamaya) Chhattisgarh
- Sirpur Chhattisgarh
- Tatapani (Balrampur) Chhattisgarh
- Tirathgarh Falls (Kanger Valley) Chhattisgarh