Belum Caves
India's second-longest cave system, 1.5 km of it lit and walkable
Best time to visit Belum Caves
- Jan, peak season
- Feb, peak season
- Mar, shoulder season
- Apr, best avoided
- May, best avoided
- Jun, best avoided
- Jul, off-season
- Aug, off-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 September to October, quieter, and the weather is less of a sure thing
- Skip: April to June
Belum Caves season by season
Winter December to February Prime time
Nov-Feb is the sane window; the tunnels still sit near 30 C inside, so carry water and skip the deepest galleries.
Summer March to May Shoulder
Apr-Jun the surface hits 46 C and the cave air turns close despite the blowers, an hour most people cut short.
Monsoon June to September Shoulder
Jun-Sep the Rayalaseema plain greens briefly, but the caves are the same warm air whatever the sky does.
Autumn October to November Prime time
Oct-Nov is comfortable above ground and the site is quiet on weekdays, with Gandikota an easy add-on.
What Belum Caves is actually like
A ticketed cave with school groups by day and nothing after dark; you sleep in Tadipatri or Nandyal, not here
Getting to Belum Caves
Tadipatri railhead 30 km, buses to Belum village; caves open 10:00-17:00, nearest beds are in Tadipatri
Practical ways in: trainroad
Trip facts
- How long to stay
- 1 day
- Budget
- Shoestring
- How busy
- Steady at its peak
- Solo travel
- Fine solo
- Altitude
- 285 m
- State
- Andhra Pradesh
- Coordinates
- 15.1022, 78.1117
Common questions
When is the best time to visit Belum Caves?
November to February is peak season in Belum Caves. March and September to October is shoulder season: thinner crowds, a bit more risk in the weather. Avoid April to June. Oct-Nov is comfortable above ground and the site is quiet on weekdays, with Gandikota an easy add-on.
How many days do you need in Belum Caves?
1 day is the usual stay. A ticketed cave with school groups by day and nothing after dark; you sleep in Tadipatri or Nandyal, not here.
How do you get to Belum Caves?
Tadipatri railhead 30 km, buses to Belum village; caves open 10:00-17:00, nearest beds are in Tadipatri. Practical ways in: train and road.
Is Belum Caves expensive, and does it get crowded?
Shoestring by Indian travel standards, and it runs steady at the busiest time of year. Fine solo.
Nearby, and where to go next
-
Yaganti
Andhra Pradesh
Cave shrines and a spring-fed tank in a sandstone hollow
40 km from Belum Caves, roughly under an hour by road
-
Gandikota
Andhra Pradesh
'Grand Canyon of India' - a fort above the Pennar gorge
50 km from Belum Caves, roughly under an hour by road
-
Ahobilam
Andhra Pradesh
Nine Narasimha shrines scattered up a Nallamala gorge
80 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 2 h by road
-
Orvakal Rock Garden
Andhra Pradesh
Wind-carved pink quartz canyons around a green pool near Kurnool
90 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 2 h by road
-
Srisailam
Andhra Pradesh
Jyotirlinga above the Krishna gorge inside Nallamala forest
180 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 3 h by road
-
Lepakshi
Andhra Pradesh
Vijayanagara murals, a hanging pillar and a giant stone Nandi
200 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 4 h by road
-
Horsley Hills
Andhra Pradesh
Rayalaseema's pocket hill station, 1250 m of gum trees and cool air
250 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 6 h by road
-
Hampi
Karnataka
Vijayanagara ruins amid giant granite boulders
240 km from Belum Caves, roughly about 5 h by road
More places to visit in Andhra Pradesh
- Ahobilam Andhra Pradesh
- Araku Valley Andhra Pradesh
- Bheemili (Bheemunipatnam) Andhra Pradesh
- Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary Andhra Pradesh
- Dindi (Konaseema Backwaters) Andhra Pradesh
- Gandikota Andhra Pradesh
- Horsley Hills Andhra Pradesh
- Kondaveedu Fort Andhra Pradesh
- Lambasingi Andhra Pradesh
- Lepakshi Andhra Pradesh
- Manginapudi Beach (Machilipatnam) Andhra Pradesh
- Maredumilli Andhra Pradesh
- Nagarjuna Sagar (Nagarjunakonda) Andhra Pradesh
- Nelapattu Bird Sanctuary Andhra Pradesh
- Orvakal Rock Garden Andhra Pradesh
- Papikondalu (Godavari Gorge) Andhra Pradesh
- Srisailam Andhra Pradesh
- Suryalanka Beach (Bapatla) Andhra Pradesh
- Talakona Falls Andhra Pradesh
- Tirupati Andhra Pradesh
- Ubbalamadugu Falls (Tada) Andhra Pradesh
- Vanjangi (Paderu) Andhra Pradesh
- Visakhapatnam (Vizag) Andhra Pradesh
- Vizianagaram Andhra Pradesh
- Yaganti Andhra Pradesh