Go before 9am or after 5pm to avoid the worst of the day-tripper traffic on the switchback road. Private vehicles are barred from the hill road on major temple days such as Ashada Fridays and Dasara, when free KSRTC shuttles run up from the Lalitha Mahal grounds
Chamundi Hill rises about 1,060 metres above sea level roughly 13 km east of the city and has been a seat of worship since the Hoysala period. The main lookout, close to the Nandi statue near the 900th step of the old pilgrim stairway, has served for centuries as the vantage point from which Mysore's Wodeyar rulers and pilgrims alike surveyed the plains and palace below. It remains one of the few points in the region offering a panoramic view of both the city and the Krishnaraja Sagar countryside.