Day Trip To Bhimbetka

Last Updated on January 22, 2024 by Roslin Dwivedi

Bhimbetka is a Mystery, history and evidence of human habitation 100,000 years ago. The rock paintings and shelters talk about how humans of the Stone Age survived and lived their daily lives depicted on these million-year-old rocks. These rocks were not only a shelter for human beings but also sheltered basal animals before humans did. Their genus is called Dickinsonia. 550 million years old fossils of Dickinsonia were found by the touring scientists a few years ago. Bhimbetka became UNESCO World heritage in 2003 due to its combined quantity of rock paintings that resembles the life that existed. 

I had not known this place until our parents moved to Bhopal a few years back. On one of our vacations, we visited this place. On our Day trip to Bhimbetka blog, I am sharing some facts and things about Bhimbetka. I hope you will like it. 

Where is Bhimbetka:

In easy words, it’s around 50 km south of Bhopal. But they are geographically a part of Ratapani wildlife sanctuary. Bhimbetka consists of 5 craggy sandstone hills in the Vindhya range. 

How Bhimbetka got its name:

Locals believe Bhim, the second brother among five Pandavas in India’s mythology, Mahabharata stayed in these rock shelters during their exile. Because Bhim used to sit on one of these rocks and interact with locals here, they named it Bhim Bethika, which became Bhimbetka over time.

How to reach Bhimbetka:

From anywhere in the world, you can fly to India’s metro city’s airport and fly or come via train to Bhopal capital of Madhya Pradesh. Bhimbetka is 50 km south of Bhopal, 1 hour away by car.

Who discovered Bhimbetka:

In 1957, Dr V.S. Wakankar was on a train when he spotted tall hills in the Vindhya Range, which looked similar to the rocks he studied in France. He later visited this place and found evidence of early man’s habitation in these rocks.

Why Bhimbetka is famous:

Due to their massive sandstone structure, these hills have a history of human beings from the Lower Palaeolithic to medieval times, around 1 lakh years old.

Stone Age man lived on these rocks for a long, and they made this place their home. The kind of life they had while living here can be seen in their art painted.

The early humans used minerals and animal blood to make those colours and painted their social-cultural life on the ceilings and walls of the shelter.

What you will see in Bhimbetka:

1. You will see attractive massive rock shelters.
2. 10,000 years old paintings depicting early men’s life.
3. You will walk for around 1400 meters on this site. Watching 15 rock shelters that are open for tourists out of 243 rock shelters in Bhimbetka.

Interesting Fact About Rock shelters in Ratapani wildlife sanctuary area:

There are more hills like Bhimbetka, where more rock shelters are found. These hills are :

1. Bineka
2. Bhonrawali
3. Bhimbetka
4. Lakha Juar (East) and
5. Lakha Juar (West)
6. Next is Muni Baba Ki Pahari – located in the Buffer zone, where more groups of rock shelters are present.

In total, combining these hills, there is 700 rock shelter. Only 400 rock shelters are there in the core area in the 5 hills(Bineka, Bhonrawali, Bhimbetka, Lakha Juar east and west). And alone, Bhimbetka has 243 rock shelters, where 133 have rock paintings on them.

Extended exciting facts are: 

• With the rock paintings, the human bones are also found in the living area of the rock shelter. 
• Along with the bones, graves also had some tools used during the time humans lived there.
• Cupules were also some of the art or black magic thing found in the caves.
• As mentioned above, rock shelter number 3, called Auditorium cave, has the 550 million years old fossils of the Dickinsonia genus, an animal found at that time. 
• Through the cave painting, one can understand the life of the primitive men also the kind of animals they encountered at the time painted on the rocks.
• Since the Bhimbetka rocks are the part of Ratapani wildlife sanctuary, you might find these animals around Tiger, panther, bear, wild boar, hyaena, wolf, fox, swamp, deer, chital, chinkara, Neelam, langur, jackal, porcupine, hare and mongoose etc. 
• Reptiles found here are python, cobra, viper etc. other than these reptiles and animals, the area is rich in bird species and flys.
• Ps: we saw snacks skin close to shelter 15, so I suggest being alert while you take a tour. Not scaring you, just letting you know.

Is this a family excursion?

Yes. You can visit this place with your family and kids. Be aware that over here, you will have to walk only to explore. Plus, there is no restaurants or drinks corner, so you should bring your water bottles and snacks. Just don’t litter. Thanks. There’s a restaurant before you reach the site called Highway retreat Bhimbetka. Also, this place can get tiring of walking for small kids and the elderly.

Tickets: 

Around 50 INR to 100 INR Per person.

Best time to visit:

After checking many people’s videos, I suggest you visit this place in its dry season, probably in the summer or start of summer. During the rainy season, the rocks may get slippery, and the bushes around will become green and lush, which could be some reason for encountering reptiles in this area. During winter, the days are small, and it can get colder when you walk between these vast rocks. 

Bhimbetka Rock Shelters Travel Tips

1. Wear sunscreen, sunglasses and a proper pair of sports shoes to explore Bhimbetka.
2. Bring enough water and snacks for the trip since there are no restaurants on the premises.
3. Bring a baby carrier, milk or food if you are travelling with a baby. Let the kids wear hats and sunscreen. Adults can bring umbrellas to keep from the sun. 
4. You don’t have to book a guide to visit this place as most of the information is written pretty clearly on the rock boards next to every shelter.

Reality vs anything:

1. Many blogs or articles suggest that Bhimbetka is a hiking site. In reality, it’s not a hiking site, but you will do a lot of walking on it. You can not climb the rocks over here by the law.
2. Some of the paintings are getting faded over time. And you will have to figure out the images.

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