Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur is where most of India's morning cup of coffee comes from, and spending time here makes that feel like a completely reasonable thing to be proud of. The hills are covered in coffee and spice plantations, the air smells different, and the drives between places are often better than the destinations themselves. It's close enough to Bengaluru for a weekend but rewards anyone who stays longer. There are proper treks, waterfalls that most people walk past on the way to somewhere else, and homestays inside working plantations where you wake up to coffee being processed a few metres from your window.