Cities in Telangana: Hyderabad, Warangal and the District Towns
Photo: Ravi Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons
The old city of Hyderabad from the first-floor gallery of the Charminar, late on a winter afternoon.
Telangana has one great city, and around it a ring of district towns, each an easy drive from a fort, a reservoir or a Kakatiya temple.
Hyderabad and Secunderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and, by a long way, the largest city. The 2011 Census counted about 7.7 million people in its urban area. The old city, south of the Musi river, grew around the Charminar after the Qutb Shahi kings moved down from Golconda in the late sixteenth century. Secunderabad, north of the Hussain Sagar lake, began as a British cantonment. To the west, HITEC City and Gachibowli are the glass towers of the IT industry.
For a visitor, the old city and Golconda are the reasons to come; the west is where people stay on business. The metro has three lines, about 69 km, but it stops at the MGBS bus station on the edge of the old city and does not reach the airport at Shamshabad. Plans to extend it were still waiting for central approval in September 2026. For an evening in the lanes, read Hyderabad's old city after dark.
Warangal and the Kakatiya country
Warangal, about 145 km north-east of Hyderabad, is the second city and the one most worth a night. The Kakatiya kings ruled from here between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. It is three towns grown together. Hanamkonda has the Thousand Pillar Temple, built in 1163. Kazipet is the railway junction. Warangal proper has the ruined Kakatiya fort and its carved stone gateway, the arch that now appears on the state emblem.
Warangal is also the base for the Ramappa temple at Palampet and for Laknavaram Lake, both in Mulugu district; a car for a long day covers the two. The road from Hyderabad takes about three hours. The old airport at Mamnoor is being rebuilt, with a target of June 2028, so for now fly to Hyderabad.
The district towns of the north
Karimnagar, about 165 km north of Hyderabad, is the home of silver filigree, called vendi teega pani in Telugu, "work with silver wire". It has had a GI tag, which protects the name of a regional craft, since 2007. Elgandal Fort, on the Manair river, is about 10 km away. Nizamabad, about 175 km north-west of the capital, has a hill fort with the Raghunatha temple inside. About 20 km towards Hyderabad, the fourteenth-century Dichpally Ramalayam is finely carved in black and white basalt.
Further north, Adilabad is forest country rather than a city stop: Kuntala and Pochera waterfalls and Gond villages, best just after the monsoon. Ramagundam, on the Godavari, is a town of coal mines and a large power station with little for a visitor.
Khammam, Nalgonda and Mahabubnagar
Khammam, about 195 km east of Hyderabad, has a fort on a granite hill in the middle of the town, held by several dynasties. Most travellers pass through on the road to the Godavari temple town of Bhadrachalam.
Nalgonda is the town for Nagarjuna Sagar, about 70 km away, where a great masonry dam holds back the Krishna. Motorboats take about 45 minutes to cross the reservoir to Nagarjunakonda, an island museum of Buddhist remains. Mahabubnagar, to the south-west, is known for Pillalamarri, a banyan tree said to be about 700 years old, its branches rooted across a whole garden.
Three routes out of Hyderabad
Most trips beyond the capital follow one of three roads. North-east to Warangal, about 145 km and three hours, with a night in Hanamkonda and a long day out to Ramappa and Laknavaram. North to Karimnagar, about 165 km, then west to Nizamabad, about 175 km from Hyderabad, for the forts, the filigree workshops and Dichpally on the way back. South-east to Nagarjuna Sagar, about 165 km, for the dam and the island museum.
The south-east trip works as a single day. Telangana Tourism runs a weekend coach that leaves Hyderabad at about 7.30 am and returns at about 9 pm, with the boat to Nagarjunakonda in the afternoon. The Telangana guide covers festivals, food and the rest of the state.
Cities to know
- Hyderabad (Hyderabad and neighbouring districts): the capital, 7.68 million people in its urban area in the 2011 Census.
- Warangal (Hanumakonda and Warangal): the Kakatiya capital, 753,438 in its urban area in the 2011 Census.
- Karimnagar (Karimnagar): silver filigree and the fort at Elgandal.
- Nizamabad (Nizamabad): a hill fort and the carved temple at Dichpally.
- Khammam (Khammam): a fort in the town centre and the road to Bhadrachalam.
- Nalgonda (Nalgonda): the way to Nagarjuna Sagar and its island museum.
- Mahabubnagar (Mahabubnagar): the old banyan at Pillalamarri.
- Adilabad (Adilabad): waterfalls and forest in the far north.
- Ramagundam (Peddapalli): coal and power on the Godavari.
Leave Hyderabad by any highway, and within three hours there is a Kakatiya stone or a reservoir to stop for.
Plan your visit
| Best season | October to February, when days are dry and mild. April to June is very hot. The monsoon, June to September, fills the reservoirs and the northern waterfalls. |
|---|---|
| How to reach | Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad, Hyderabad, is the gateway; Warangal's Mamnoor airport is being rebuilt. Trains reach Secunderabad, Nampally and Kacheguda in the city, and Kazipet and Warangal. |
| Getting around | In Hyderabad, the metro, app cabs and auto-rickshaws. State TGSRTC buses link the district towns. A car with driver suits Ramappa, Laknavaram and Nagarjuna Sagar. |
| Where to stay | Hyderabad: Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills, Secunderabad or HITEC City. Hanamkonda for Warangal. Karimnagar and Nizamabad town centres for the north. |
| How long to spend | Three days for Hyderabad, two more for Warangal and Ramappa, and a day each for Nagarjuna Sagar or the northern towns. |
Questions people ask
Which is the second city of Telangana?
Warangal. Its urban area had 753,438 people in the 2011 Census, far behind Hyderabad.
Is there an official list of Telangana's most developed cities?
No. There is no official ranking of 'developed' cities. Population figures from the 2011 Census are the only firm measure; the 2027 Census is under way.
Can I see Warangal and Ramappa in a day from Hyderabad?
It is possible but very long: about three hours each way to Warangal, and Ramappa lies further north-east in Mulugu district. A night in Hanamkonda makes it an easy two days.
Does Warangal have an airport?
Not yet. In September 2026 the Airports Authority of India tendered the new terminal at Mamnoor, with a June 2028 target. Until then, fly to Hyderabad and take the train or road.
Read next
Written by Muthu, editor of Aura of India. Sources: Telangana Tourism: Warangal, Telangana Tourism: Karimnagar silver filigree, Telangana Tourism: Dichpally Ramalayam, Nalgonda district, Government of Telangana: Nagarjuna Sagar, Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited: Phase II, The Hindu: Mamnoor airport land acquisition completed (September 2026). Last verified: 15 October 2026.
Your turn: Did you stay a night in Warangal, or see it as a day trip from Hyderabad?
Developed in the sence , politically,or economically
ReplyDeleteWHERE IS MANCHERIAL
DeleteMiryalaguda is more developed city while compared to the 20 district headquarters
ReplyDeletewhere is miryalguda
DeleteMiryalguda is a class 2 town so, its not that much developed
DeleteThe list looks good. But, it doesn't really mention any sectors that grew significantly other than Hyderabad. For example , Pillalamarri is been a tourist attraction since 30-35 years. In Warangal, Warangal Fort & thousand pillar temple is also know as a big tourist attraction since my child hood. How are these considered significant growth factors?
ReplyDelete