Trekking Permits in Karnataka: Complete Guide 2026

To trek on any Forest Department route in Karnataka, you now need to book a permit online, in advance, through the official Aranya Vihaara portal — aranyavihaara.karnataka.gov.in. And as of 2026, there's a big change: a certified nature guide is mandatory on every approved route, with one guide for every ten trekkers with daily caps set per trail (around 300 on the bigger Western Ghats trails). No permit, no guide, no trek.

Here's exactly how it works, what it costs, and the permit details for every major trail — written by people who book these permits week in, week out.

Do you actually need a permit to trek in Karnataka?

Yes — for any trek on Forest Department land, which is nearly all the good ones. Kudremukh, Kurinjal, Gangadikal, Kodachadri, Tadiandamol, Netravati, Ettina Bhuja, Makalidurga — all of these run through reserve forest, wildlife sanctuary, or national park, and all of them require an advance booking on Aranya Vihaara before you set foot on the trail.

This isn't bureaucratic theatre. Daily caps keep fragile shola forest and grassland from being trampled flat, and the booking system is what finally fixed the chaos these trails were sliding into. If you trek with an operator like us, the permit is handled for you — but it still pays to understand the system, because it shapes everything from which day you can go to how early you need to plan.

What changed in 2026: the new trekking SOP

In April 2026, the Karnataka Forest Department rolled out a new Standard Operating Procedure that tightened the rules considerably. The headline changes:

• A certified nature guide is now mandatory on all approved routes. One guide is assigned for every ten trekkers — and even a solo trekker gets a guide. Trekking without one is no longer permitted.
  

• A maximum of 300 trekkers per day on any route.
  

• GPS and app tracking. Guides carry GPS-enabled walkie-talkies, and a route-tracking app is installed on trekkers' phones so anyone who strays can be located.
  

• Stricter paperwork for some trekkers. Minors need written consent from a parent or guardian; senior citizens may need a physical fitness certificate.
  

• Banned items, enforced. Single-use plastics and carry bags, sharp metal objects, weapons, loudspeakers and campfires are out. You carry your waste back; it's disposed of only at base camp.
  

The SOP came after two serious incidents — a trekker who went missing for three days at Tadiandamol in Kodagu, and a teenager who died after going missing near Chikkamagaluru. Worth knowing the context, because it tells you the enforcement is real, not on paper.

Wanderophile Tip: The guide-per-ten rule isn't brand new — it was part of Aranya Vihaara from its 2024 launch on several trails. What 2026 changed is making it unconditional and statewide, plus the GPS layer. If you've trekked here in the last couple of years, the difference you'll notice is that there are now no exceptions.

How to book a permit on Aranya Vihaara, step by step

1. Go to aranyavihaara.karnataka.gov.in and create a login. The site works in English and Kannada. First-timers register with an email and mobile number.
   

2. Keep trekker details handy for everyone in your group — full name, age, gender, mobile number, and a government photo ID ( Voter ID, Ration Card, Driving Licence, PAN card or Passport) with its number. It's strange that Aadhaar is not an option here.
   

3. Search availability. Logged in, go to "Search Trek Availability," pick the district the trek falls under (this trips people up — use the table below), choose the trek from the dropdown, select your date, and check.
   

4. Pick your slot. Slots are usually early-morning entry windows. Add trekkers one by one, accept the terms.
   

5. Pay by UPI, net banking, or card. You'll authenticate with an OTP before payment goes through.
   

6. Download your permit from "My Bookings → Upcoming Treks." Carry a copy — printed or on your phone — plus the same original ID you booked with. Both get checked at the gate.
   

Wanderophile Tip — book at midnight, or trek on a weekday.

For the popular Western Ghats trails — Netravati, Kudremukh, Gangadikal, Kurinjal — weekend tickets sell out within minutes of going live. Slots open at 12:00 AM, exactly 15 days before the trek date, so if your heart is set on a Saturday or Sunday, you're effectively setting an alarm for midnight and booking the moment the window opens. Netravati is the extreme case: it sells out fast even on weekdays!

Here's the honest advice, though. Treks aren't a bucket list to tick off. They're a way to spend real time in nature — to hit some silence, slow down, and actually recharge. You get very little of that shuffling along a ridge in a weekend crowd of three hundred.

So if you can, take the leave and do the famous peaks on a weekday — that day off is worth more than you think, and the trail feels like a different mountain without the queue. Save your weekends for the quieter Western Ghats trails like Narasimha Parvatha or Vaalikunja, where slots are easy and the forest is yours, or a day hike near your city. And there are still plenty of those that need no permit at all.

Permit rules at a glance

• Book ahead: at least 1 day in advance, and up to 15 days ahead.
  

• Daily cap: around 300 trekkers a day on most regulated trails, set by each trail's assessed carrying capacity.
  

• Per booking: one login typically covers 3 tickets.
  

• Season: most forest treks open roughly June to December. There's a blanket fire-season closure from March to May on many trails — don't plan a summer Western Ghats forest trek around a permit that won't exist.
  

• Fees: broadly around ₹400- ₹575 per person on popular trails in the western ghats and ₹250 on day hikes around Bengaluru. Exact fees vary by trek — see the table.

District-wise list of all treks on Aranya Vihaara

The portal makes you pick the district before it shows you the trek, and matching trek to district is genuinely the most confusing part of the whole process. Here's the full list, with the permit details for each:

Western Ghats Treks in Karnataka- Permit Cost, Daily Cap, & Current Status

District	Trek	Permit Cost	Daily cap	Slots	Current Status (June, 2026)
Chikmagaluru	Ettina Bhuja Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌
Chikmagaluru	Gangadikal Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹375, 12 & Above- ₹475	300	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅
Chikmagaluru	Kudremukh Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹475, 12 & Above- ₹575	300	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅
Chikmagaluru	Kurinjal Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹375, 12 & Above- ₹475	300	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅
Chikmagaluru	Narasimha Parvatha Trek- Kigga	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹400, 12 & Above- ₹500	300	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June
Chikmagaluru	Vaalikunja Trek- S.K.Border	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹400, 12 & Above- ₹500	300	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June
Dakshina Kannada	Bandaje Falls Trek via Volambra	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌
Dakshina Kannada	Netravati Trek	TBA	TBA	TBA	Open ✅
Kodagu	Tadiandamol Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌
Shivamogga	Kodachadri Trek via Hidlumane	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹350, 12 & Above- ₹400	300	6:00 AM to 11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June
Shivamogga	Kodachadri Trek via Valur	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹350, 12 & Above- ₹400	300	6:00 AM to 11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June
Shivamogga	Narasimha Parvatha Trek (Malandur)	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹400, 12 & Above- ₹500	300	6:00 AM to 11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June
Udupi	Vaalikunja Trek (Kervashe, Karkala)	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹400, 12 & Above- ₹500	300	6:00 AM to 11:00 AM	Open ✅ from 16th June

Treks near Bangalore - Permit Cost, Daily Cap, & Current Status

District	Trek	Permit Cost	Daily Cap	Slots	Current Status (June, 2026)
Bengaluru Rural	Hulukudi Betta Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹100, 18 & Above- ₹200	250	6:00 AM to11:00 AM	Open ✅
Bengaluru Rural	Makalidurga Trek	Weekdays: 5-18 Years- ₹125, 18 & Above- ₹300 Weekends: 5-18 Years- ₹200, 18 & Above- ₹450	300	6:00 AM to 10:00 AM	Open ✅
Chikkaballapura	Kaiwara Betta Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌
Kolar	Antaragange Trek	Weekdays: 5 Years & Above- ₹250Weekends: 5 Years & Above- ₹400	250	6:00 AM to 11:00 AM	Open ✅
Ramanagara	Bidirukatte Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌
Ramanagara	Savandurga Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	TBA	TBA	Closed ❌

Other Treks in Karnataka - Permit Cost, Daily Cap, & Current Status

District	Trek	Permit Cost	Daily Cap	Slots	Current Status (June, 2026)
Chamarajanagara	Nagamalai Trek	Unavailable (June, 2026)	Unavailable (June, 2026)	Unavailable (June, 2026)	Closed ❌
Kalaburgi	Chandrampalli Nature Trail- Long Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹0, 12-18 Years- ₹100, 18 & Above- ₹200	100	6.00 AM to 8.00 AM	Open ✅
Kalaburgi	Chandrampalli Nature Trail- Short Trek	Weekdays & Weekends: 5-12 Years- ₹0, 12-18 Years- ₹50, 18 & Above- ₹100	60 (6:00AM to 8:00AM) 40 (2:00PM to 4:00 PM)	Slot 1-6:00AM to 8:00AM Slot 2- 2:00PM to 4:00 PM	Open ✅

Cancellation and refund policy

Plans change. The refund tiers generally work like this:

• Cancel 7 or more days before the trek date → full refund (taxes excluded).

• Cancel between 7 and 2 days before → 50% refund.

• Cancel within 2 days → no refund.
  

Refunds are processed back to your original payment method, usually within about a week. Confirm the current tiers on the portal at the time you book, since these can be revised.

What happens if you trek without a permit?

Don't. Beyond the daily caps and the guide rule, unpermitted trekking on forest land is treated as trespass under the Karnataka Forest Act — which carries up to six months' imprisonment, a fine, or both. This isn't theoretical: groups have been detained and booked at Antara Gange, Skandagiri, Savandurga and elsewhere, and in one case in the Kabbinale reserve forest a group was charged after a trekker drowned. Forest checking squads do random checks specifically to catch entry without a booking. A few hundred rupees for a permit is a lot cheaper than an FIR.

A short history: how Karnataka trekking went from free to fully booked

If you trekked here a decade ago, none of this existed — and the contrast is worth understanding.

For most of the 2000s and early 2010s, trekking on Karnataka's reserve and revenue forest was effectively informal. You drove to the base, registered your name in a paper book at the forest checkpoint, had your bag checked, paid a small fee if there was one, and walked. Trails inside national parks and wildlife sanctuaries — Kumara Parvatha sits inside Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, for instance — always carried a modest gate fee, but there were no daily caps, no advance bookings, no IDs to upload.

That began changing around 2017, when the Karnataka Eco-Tourism Development Board and the Forest Department notified a list of official eco-trails and declared that trekking off that list was illegal. Booking slowly moved online, but in a messy, trail-by-trail way spread across different divisional ecotourism websites — the clunky old system many of us remember fighting with.

The breaking point came in January 2024, when thousands of trekkers swarmed Kumara Parvatha over the Republic Day weekend. Forest staff were checking around 1,500 people a day, roughly five minutes per person, for banned plastics. The state imposed a temporary trekking ban, then used the pause to build a single unified portal.

That portal, Aranya Vihaara, launched in October 2024, bringing every forest trek under one roof with proper daily caps and online payment. The 2026 SOP added the mandatory guides and GPS tracking. In under a decade, Karnataka trekking went from "turn up and walk" to one of the most regulated trekking systems in the country — and, crowding and plastic aside, the trails are visibly better for it.

Permit notes for popular treks

A few specifics worth flagging, since the rules play out differently per trail:

• Kudremukh, Kurinjal, Netravati, Gangadikal and the rest of the Kudremukh range: these sit inside Kudremukh National Park, and all of these treks are popular and slots can be tighter than the headline numbers suggest. Book these treks at least 20 days in advance when you're going with us — that lead time lets us collect everyone's details and lock in the permits the moment the booking window opens at midnight, which is what it takes to land weekend slots on these trails. Check our upcoming treks from Bangalore here. Booking directly on the portal yourself, you're working to the standard 15-day window.

  
  

• Kumara Parvatha: high demand, sells out fast on weekends; the trail also closes in fire season. (More on the route on our Kumara Parvatha trek page.)
  

• Kodachadri: booked by route — Hidlumane vs Valur — so make sure you select the right one on the portal. (Details on our Kodachadri trek page.)
  

• Tadiandamol: the highest peak in Coorg, and the site of the 2025 incident that prompted the new guide rule, so expect the SOP to be enforced firmly here. (See our Tadiandamol trek page.)
  

FAQs

Do you need a permit to trek in Karnataka? Yes. Any trek on Forest Department land — which is almost all of Karnataka's well-known trails — requires an advance permit booked online through Aranya Vihaara.

How do I book a Karnataka trek permit? Register on aranyavihaara.karnataka.gov.in, search availability by district and trek, select a date, enter each trekker's details and government ID, and pay online. Carry the downloaded permit and the same ID to the trek.

Is a guide mandatory for Karnataka treks now? Yes. Under the 2026 SOP, a certified nature guide is mandatory on all approved routes — one guide per ten trekkers, with a guide provided even for a single trekker.

How much does a Karnataka trek permit cost? Roughly around ₹400-₹575 per person on popular trails in the western ghats and around ₹250 on trails around Bangalore. Exact fees vary by trek.

How far in advance can I book a permit? Between 1 and 15 days before your trek date. Popular weekend slots fill quickly, so book as early as you can.

Can I trek in Karnataka without a permit? No. Unpermitted trekking on forest land is treated as trespass under the Karnataka Forest Act and can mean a fine or imprisonment. Checking squads run random checks.

When are Karnataka treks open? Most forest treks run roughly June to December. Many trails close from March to May during fire season. Some of them like Kumara Parvatha and Tadiandamol are closed even during peak monsoon because of the heavy rainfall those regions receive.