Kailasa Temple at Ellora Caves: What to See on Your First Visit

At Ellora’s Cave 16, a temple tower rises inside a courtyard cut into the hillside. Look from the tower to the rock walls around it and you can see what makes Kailasa remarkable. The builders carved an entire temple complex out of the basalt, leaving space to walk around the shrine and see the architecture from several sides.

See the reel that inspired this guide. Watch @ka05_hoonigan’s original Kailasa Temple reel on Instagram →

Featured photo of Kailasa Temple. Photo by Ms Sarah Welch, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized for the web.

What to look for in Cave 16

Kailasa is dedicated to Shiva. Take a moment at the entrance to see how the courtyard, pillared hall and main shrine fit together. Then look for the relief of Ravana shaking Mount Kailasa, the mythical home of Shiva. That scene connects the temple’s name to a story you can read in the stone itself.

Cave 16 is the centrepiece of a much larger site. Ellora’s 34 caves include Buddhist monasteries and prayer halls, Hindu temples and Jain shrines. Seeing one from each tradition gives you a better sense of how artists used the same hillside in different ways. UNESCO’s Ellora Caves listing.

A half-day route through Ellora

1. Start at Cave 16, Kailasa Temple. Give yourself time to walk the courtyard and look closely at the carved panels.
2. Continue to Cave 10, the Buddhist Visvakarma Cave. Look up at the ribbed ceiling and compare the long prayer hall with Kailasa’s open courtyard.
3. Finish at Caves 32–34 in the Jain group. If you have extra time, add Cave 21, Ramesvara, another Hindu cave recommended by the Archaeological Survey of India.

The Archaeological Survey of India suggests three to four hours for a representative visit. The caves stretch along roughly two kilometres of rock face, so leave time to move between the groups. ASI’s Ellora visitor information.

Getting there and checking tickets

Ellora is near Verul, about 30 km from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad). ASI lists the caves as open from sunrise to sunset and closed on Tuesdays. Check the official entry fees and opening information before travelling, especially if you are planning around a holiday. District travel information · ASI hours and fees.

If you are booking a driver or guide from the city, ask how much time you will have at Ellora and whether the quote covers waiting, parking and entry. Use our travel booking checklist to compare what’s included.