Evolve Back Hampi - a beautiful hotel in India

Hampi is a wonderful UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India. An old Hindu city, one of the most important of its time and once a bustling hub of traders from across Europe and Asia. It is the Pompeii of India and if you have a chance to visit then absolutely do, it’s an amazing site. And there’s no better place to stay than Evolve Back Hampi which is a destination in itself. It really is the perfect partner for a trip out to the archaeological sites but with plenty of time for luxury and relaxation thrown in too. We loved visiting on our family holiday to India.

Read our complete guide to Hampi, India here.

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About Evolve Back Hampi

Evolve Back are a series of luxury resorts across southern India. They have a real focus on responsible tourism with a very healthy dose of luxury thrown in.

When we visited the G20 had just been in town and all stayed at the hotel too.

It is around 2.5 miles to Hampi World Heritage Site so perfect for accessing all the history here.

This is a small resort with just 46 rooms but it packs a big punch. There are a large number of facilities here and it feels much bigger than it is.

Evolve Back Hampi is a palace like hotel with details that make you feel like royalty. With decorative archways and atmospheric rooms it really is like stepping back in time to the 14th century palace it is designed after.

Sleeps

We stayed in two of their suite on the first floor. These are a beautiful space with an absolutely stunning huge double bed.

Each room was large with a big chair at the window which was perfect for relaxing on. This space led to an outdoor terrace with a hot tub and seating area. Perfect for sitting out and listening to the wild peacocks call.

The bathroom was also really large with big roll top bath, rainforest shower and lots of space. We loved this room and found it very relaxing.

As we were travelling with children they also brought in extra beds for them which was great to have.

Food at Evolve Back Hampi

The food is an amazing spread at Evolve Back Hampi. Absolutely delicious dishes and there are so many opportunities to eat here you will never go hungry.

Breakfast

We loved breakfast with its huge array of fresh fruits and salads. There were lots of pastries including big chocolate covered croissants which the kids loved.

We loved the egg chef and my favourite, a masala dosa chef cooking up delicious Indian pancakes filled with mildly spiced potato.

There were juices, lots of hot products, seeds and nuts and so much more. It really was a wonderful start to the day.

Lunch

We had lunch each day in the hotel’s main restaurant. There was so much on offer here.

We had some great dishes including local curries and I enjoyed an amazing Thali one lunchtime.

If you wanted them there were plenty of western snacks too from pastas to fish and chips. All fabulous quality and really delicious.

Afternoon tea

Afternoon tea was served between 2pm and 5pm and was a lovely buffet style meal each day.

You could pick up sandwiches and biscuits, cakes and curries. It was a great treat mid afternoon.

Dinner

For dinner you could eat at the main restaurant, The Tuluva with the same menu and choices as lunchtime.

You could also eat at the hotel’s Bahmani restaurant which is their a’la carte restaurant with options for dinner only. We ate here on one of the evenings and loved the atmospheric setting.

The room was all open with a fresh breeze blowing through and the candles flickering. We felt we were back in the 14th century.

The food was so imaginative with great curries and a range of options. We really enjoyed the meal.

The spa

There is a spa at the hotel offering Ayurveda therapies. The list of available treatments isn’t long but there’s a good range.

I had one of their signature facials which was quite different from a usual facial. This was more of an invigorating therapy and I loved how rosy cheeked I was afterwards.

Mr G had one of the hotel’s full body massages which he also found interesting and a real experience.

The facilities at Evolve Back Hampi

Evolve Back Hampi really is about relaxation.

Every evening from 6.30pm you can see the musicians wander the hallways playing beautiful music.

From 7.30-8pm there is a storytelling session with drinks in the upstairs room. This is run each evening by a different person.

We loved finding out about the history of Hampi through these stories.

There is a main swimming pool here for over 16s only. This is a wonderful space that feels very tranquil.

There is also a family pool at the back of the property which is perfect for the kids to splash about for a while.

Tours to the World UNESCO Heritage Site of Hampi

One of the real benefits of the hotel is to take advantage of the tours the hotel offers to the archaeological site of Hampi.

We had a guide, Ramesh who talked to us about what we wanted to see and how much time we had.

We decided on two half days of tours. The hotel then picked us up in their very cool jeep and took us off to the sites.

Ramesh was so well informed. A resident of Hampi town he brought the history of this wonderful place alive. Telling us the stories of the Hindu gods and pointing out details that we would never have seen on our own.

This was one of the highlights of our trip to India. Such a fascinating place and somewhere I would definitely advise you use a guide to make it accessible and interesting.

One of our favourite times was walking through the local town with him. People stood in their doorways to greet us, it was amazing to connect with the local community in this small way.