Location: Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain range.  It is southern part of the Konkan coastline, which is an escarpment rising up to the Western Ghats range of mountains, which separate it from the Deccan Plateau. Mangalore lies on the backwaters of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers.^[59] These rivers effectively encircle the city, with the Gurupura flowing around the north and the Netravti flowing around the south of the city. The rivers form an estuary at the south-western region of the city and subsequently flow into the Arabian sea.^[60] The city is often used as a staging point for traffic along the Malabar Coast. The coastline of the city is dotted with several beaches, such as Mukka, Panambur, Tannirbavi, Suratkal, and Someshwara. Coconut trees, palm trees, and Ashoka trees comprise the primary vegetation of the city.

It is located at 12°52′N 74°53′E / 12.87°N 74.88°E / 12.87; 74.88 in the Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka.^[52] It has an average elevation of 22 metres (72 ft) above mean sea level.^[53

Languages: Konkani, Tulu, Kannada

Climate:

Summer: March - May (23º C to 36º C)

Winter Season: December - February (20.0º C to 29º C)

Monsoon (Rainy Season): June - September.

Best Time Best Time to visit: The weather is hot and humid during summers and monsoons are heavy, so the best time to travel  is generally winter which is most pleasant climate.

The area that is now Mangalore has been mentioned in many ancient works of Hindu history. In the epic Ramayana, Lord Rama ruled over the region, while in the epic Mahabharata, Sahadeva, the youngest of the Pandavas, governed the area.^[10] Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata, also visited the area when he travelled from Gokarna to Adur, a village near Kasargod.^[19] Mangalore's historical importance is highlighted by the many references to the city by foreign travelers. Cosmas Indicopleustes, a Greek monk, referred to the port of Mangalore as Mangarouth.^[20] Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian, made references to a place called Nitrias,^[21] while Greek historian Ptolemy referred to a place called Nitra.^[22] Ptolemy's and Pliny the Elder's references were probably made to the Netravati River, which flows through Mangalore. Ptolemy also referred to the city as Maganoor in some of his works.^[23]

In the third century BCE, the town formed part of the Maurya Empire, ruled by the Buddhist emperor, Ashoka of Magadha. The region was known as Sathia (Shantika) during the Mauryan regime. From second century CE to sixth century CE, the Kadamba dynasty ruled over the region. From 567 to 1325, the town was ruled by the native Alupa rulers.^[24] The Alupas ruled over the region as feudatories of major regional dynasties like the Chalukyas of Badami, Rashtrakutas, Chalukyas of Kalyani, and Hoysalas.^[25] Mangalapura (Mangalore) was the capital of the Alupa dynasty until the 14th century.^[26] The city, then an important trading zone for Persian merchants, was visited by Adenese merchant Abraham Ben Yiju.^[27] The Moroccan traveler Ibn Battuta, who had visited the town in 1342, referred to it as Manjarun, and stated that the town was situated on a large estuary.^[28] By 1345, the Vijayanagara rulers brought the region under their control.^[25] Later, the Jain Kings and the Muslim Bangara Kings ruled the town as feudatories of the Vijayanagar Empire, and brought the town firmly under an efficient and centralised administration.^[24] In 1448, Abdul Razak, the Persian ambassador of Sultan Shah Rukh of Samarkand, visited Mangalore, and was amazed at a glorious temple he saw in the city, en route to Vijayanagara.^[29]

According to the Scottish physician Francis Buchanan who visited Mangalore in 1801, Mangalore was a rich and prosperous port with flourishing trading activity.^[30] Rice was the grand article of export, and was exported to Muscat, Bombay, Goa and Malabar. Supari or Betel-nut was exported to Bombay, Surat and Kutch. Pepper and Sandalwood were exported to Bombay. Turmeric was exported to Muscat, Kutch, Surat and Bombay, along with Cassia Cinnamon, Sugar, Iron, Saltpeter, Ginger, Choir and Timber.^[30]

Hyder Ali, the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, conquered Mangalore in 1763,^[38] consequently bringing the city under his administration until 1767. Mangalore was ruled by the British East India Company from 1767 to 1783,^[39] but was subsequently wrested from their control by Hyder Ali's son, Tippu Sultan in 1783.^[40] The Second Anglo–Mysore War ended with the Treaty of Mangalore, signed between Tippu Sultan and the British East India Company on March 11, 1784.^[41] After the defeat of Tippu at the Fourth Anglo–Mysore War, the city remained in control of the British, headquartering the Canara district under the Madras Presidency.^[14][42][43]

As a result of the States Reorganisation Act (1956), Mangalore (part of the Madras Presidency until this time) was incorporated into the dominion of the newly created Mysore State (now called Karnataka).^[5] Mangalore is a major city of Karnataka, providing the state with access to the Arabian Sea coastline. Mangalore experienced significant growth in the decades 1970–80, with the opening of New Mangalore Port on May 4, 1974 and commissioning of Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilizers Limited on March 15, 1976.^[49][50] The late 20th century saw Mangalore develop as a business, commercial and information technology (IT) centre, although the traditional red tile-roofed houses are still retained in the city.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalore#History

Getting There

By plane

Mangalore International Airport (IATA: IXE) (ICAO: VOML), at Bajpe, about 20 km from the city centre. Currently there are daily flights to Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Kochi ,Delhi,Kozhikode and Calicut in the domestic segment and weekly/bi-weekly flights to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat (Oman), Doha (Qatar), Kuwait and Bahrain in the international segment.

By train

Mangalore has two big railway stations.

Mangalore Central (IR station code : MAQ) is located at Hampankatta, in the heart of the city. It is a terminus and is used only by the trains which terminate at Mangalore.  Mangalore Junction (IR station code : MAJN) is situated in Kankanady, about 5 km from the city centre. Most long-distance trains and all trains not terminating at Mangalore stop at this station. You can check the http://www.irctc.co.in for schedules and rates.

By bus

There are two bus-stands in Mangalore for long-distance bus services. One is the state-run KSRTC bus-stand in Bejai, located towards the North of the city, but not far off from the city centre. The bus-services are run by the [www.ksrtc.in Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation]. They operate scheduled bus services to Mumbai, Bangalore, Mysore, Goa, Hubli-Dharwad and many other areas within and outside Karnataka. Services run by the Kerala State Transport and Tamil Nadu State Transport and Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation also call in Mangalore at this very bus-stand. The other one is behind the Town Hall. It is known as the 'State Bank' stand by the locals, because of its proximity to a branch of the State Bank of India. It is the last top for most of the private bus services to Mangalore (mostly Inter-District viz. Mangalore-Udupi and Inter-taluk buses). There is a third bus-stand (not exactly a bus-stand but an alighting point for passengers) in front of Milagres Church where most private tour and bus operators: Ideal Travels, Canara, Canara-Pinto, Vishal Travels, Anand Travels, VRL etc. have their offices. They operate buses of semi-deluxe, sleeper and Volvo types to various destinations viz. Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Thrissur, Hubli-Dharwad etc. Various other pick-up points and drop points are there in Mangalore city according to your convenience!

There are numerous bus services from Mangalore to all the nearby towns in Karnataka and Kerala. The long-distance bus services to major cities like Bangalore, Mumbai, Hubli-Dharwad and Goa run along the National Highways radiating to the North (towards Goa and Mumbai) NH-17, South (towards Kerala) and the East (towards Bangalore) NH-48.

By car

Mangalore is well connected to Goa, Mumbai, and Kerala via NH-17, to the state capital Bangalore via NH-48, and to Hyderabad via NH-13. Highways are only two-laned and very narrow, but make for extremely scenic drives as they all pass either through the Western Ghats or along the coastline. There is a lot of heavy traffic load on the highways owing to the increasing number of buses plying on these routes, as well as a lot of goods-transport trucks owing to the location of many plants and factories as well as New Mangalore Port on NH-17. So exercise caution while driving during periods of heavy traffic.

NH-48 from Sakleshpur to Mangalore, which had been completely unmotorable thanks to government apathy, is now repaired and somewhat motorable. Work is going on to convert NH-48 into a four-lane highway. Until they do this, one needs to go to Mangalore from Bangalore either through the potentially dangerous Charmadi Ghat road, or via the equally pathetic Mysore-Madikeri-Suliya route.

By bus

There are numerous private bus companies which run bus services within the city of Mangalore and its suburbs. They have names like Padmambika Bus Co. Ltd. emblazoned in large letters in English on the front windscreen of the bus and on its sides. These buses also connect to all the minor urban centres surrounding Mangalore. Most of them originate from the Central Bus Stand at Mangalore behind the Town Hall: the 'State Bank' bus-stand.

Even though the buses are operated by different private companies, the bus numbering scheme is unified and quite useful. The destinations and routes are, however, all written in Kannada. The best way to use these buses is to ask around and the people are most helpful. If you are armed with a city map, one can get the hang of things within a day or so. The minimum bus fare is Rs. 4.00 If you are a student then you can avail concession on bus fares,that is, you just have ot pay half the bus fare. In addition city bus service, there is limited stop (usually called express) bus service (the majority of these are run by various private bus companies) for inter-town/city travelling to neighbouring places. You may find these useful to visit places like Udupi, Manipal, Kaup, Karkala etc. Bus fare ranges between Rs. 14 to Rs. 35 for a distance up to 65 km.

By cab

White Ambassador Cabs/Indicas are available: usually used by passengers on long-haul routes. Shared cabs are also available for travel between the city and other talukas viz. Bantwal (BC Road), etc. Prepaid cabs are available from the airport to the city: this is generally at a flat rate of Rs. 350-400.

Car-Rent facilities are also available in Mangalore.

By Autorickshaws

They are available all throughout Mangalore City, the starting fare is Rs.13. Pre-paid autos were available from the City Railway Station and the KSRTC bus stand at Bejai, but not any more. Autos also ply to far-off destinations, the outskirts, for one-and-a-half times the actual fare; this is roughly around Rs.150, depending on the amount of money you have to spare, although one would prefer using buses to reach these areas as a cheaper mode of transport.

Source: http://wikitravel.org/en/Mangalore

Mangalorean cuisine is well known for their fresh coconut based seafood curries such as Kane masala (lady fish curry) and other seasonal vegetarian delicacies like "Kadgi Chako" (raw breadfuit curry) and "Keerla Sukhe" (tender bamboo curry). The usage of fruits such as jackfruits, breadfruit, raw banana, mangao, pineapple is unique to this area. Curries are eaten with rice. Rice is also the main staple used in pretty much all eats from breakfast pancakes, wafer thin rice rottis to idlis.

Here is a typical fish curry recipe from Mangalore. Source: http://geetabaliga.blogspot.com 

There are several places around Mangalore easily accessible by road.

source: http://www.ourkarnataka.com/states/SK/kar_tour_mlore.htm 

Moodabidri: It is a Jain Shrine pilgrimage called "Jain Kashi". Pilgrims from different places and countries come here to worship the Thirthankara in different basadis. It is 35 km from Mangalore. 5 centuries ago a Basadi called "Saavira Sthamba Basadi" was built here. It still appears very magnificent. Service / express busses takes approximately one hour from the service bus stand at Nehru maidan in Mangalore. Costs about Rs. 15-20 depending on the route taken by the bus. Around 35 kilometers from Mangalore to Moodabidri, taxis too will take you there. By taxi it cost about 300 - 350 Rs. for a round trip. Karkala on the other hand is about 50 kilometers from Mangalore and the charges by taxi are about 500-750. Read On

Karkala: It is 52 kms northeast. The 452 ft tall monolithic statue of Bahubali and the St. Lawrence Church are the main attractions here.

Udupi: 60 kms north, this town has the famous Krishna Temple with the Golden Chariot. It is here that the saint Madhwacharya lived and preached 700 years ago. The famous Masala Dosa has its origin here. Now, it is the district head quarters of the newly formed Udupi District.

Polali: About 34 Km from Mangalore an ancient Temple dedicated to the Goddess Rajarajeshwari is situated, with an image of 12ft height, worshiped with the idols of Badra Kali, Shanmuga with Ganapathi, on either side. Every year a car festival lasting for a month is held and it is called as polali chendu. During the period of polali chendu, a football tournament is held as an important event of the festival.

Mulki Temples: In the north direction of Mangalore on the N.H 17 highway road at a distance of 28 Km, on the riverbank of Shambavi is situated a famous temple of Shri Venkatramana. The temple belongs to 1277 A.D. In the temple the images of Venkatramana, Bindu Madhava, Vittala and Ugra Narasimha are worshiped. The history of the place indicates that Shri Vijayendra Yathi of Kashimutt installed the image of Ugra Narasimha belonging to Vijayanagar here in 1565. Mulki was earlier known as Mulikapur. In course of time Mulikapur changed to Mulki. Samantha kings who had donated "Inams" to this temple ruled this place. Now one can see the palace and the old ruins of the fort of Samantha Kings. The Bappanadu Durga Parameshwari Temple and twin temple of Somanath and Narayana are the other shrines of the Mulki. A buffalo race called "Arasu Kambala" also annually held here.

Dharmasthala: On the bank of the River Nethravathi at about 74 km from Mangalore and at a distance of 3 km from the bank, the Holy Place Dharmasthala is situated. With green vegetation and the hills environment with the river flow creates a calm serenity to the visitors. It is a pilgrimage to Hindus where the charity is the most predominant. The speciality of the temple is that the Lord Shiva is worshipped by Shivites called deity called "Manjunatha" and the priests are Madhwa Vaishnavas. A Jain family called the Heggade according manages the place. Food is served free here to the visitors. The management also extends the lodging facility to the visitors as service. Dr. D. Veerendra Heggade is the present Dharmadhikari, who is responsible for the installation of a Monolithic statue of Gommata sculptured at Karkala by Renjal Shenoy, a great sculpture, on a near by hill near to the temple. The name Dharmasthala was given by a Yathi Shri Vadiraja Swami of Udupi Sodemutt. A museum, Car Museum, Lalithodyana, an Aquarium park, yakshagana training center are the main attractions here.