Bet Dwarka: The Island Home of Lord Krishna
Bet Dwarka, also spelled Beyt Dwarka and known as Shankhodhar, is an island in the Gulf of Kutch about 30 km north of Dwarka, off the coast of Okha. Believed to be where Lord Krishna lived with his family, it is home to the Keshavraiji temple, and since February 2024 it can be reached by road across the Sudarshan Setu bridge as well as by boat from Okha.
If Dwarka was Krishna's kingdom, Bet Dwarka is said to be his home, the island where he lived and where he welcomed his childhood friend Sudama. I was born in Dwarka and have taken travellers across to Bet Dwarka for years and the journey changed for good in 2024. This guide covers where the island is, its temple and legends and how to reach it now. To do Dwarka and Bet Dwarka together with everything arranged, our Somnath Dwarka Tour Package from Experience My India includes the island.
Where is Bet Dwarka located?
Bet Dwarka is an inhabited island at the mouth of the Gulf of Kutch, about 3 km off Okha town and roughly 30 km north of Dwarka city, in the Devbhoomi Dwarka district of Gujarat. At about 36 sq km it is the second-largest island off the Gujarat coast after Diu. The word bet means island in Gujarati and by tradition it is also linked to the bhet or meeting, of Krishna and Sudama. You can locate Bet Dwarka on Google Maps to see how it sits off the mainland.
Why is Bet Dwarka important?
In devotional tradition, Bet Dwarka is the residence of Lord Krishna, distinct from the city of Dwarka, which was his royal seat. The island is most loved for the story of Sudama: Krishna's poor childhood friend came here with a humble gift of rice and Krishna received him with great warmth and quietly blessed him with abundance. That is why rice is still the key offering at the island's temple today. These accounts are matters of faith and epic tradition rather than settled history, but they are the heart of why pilgrims cross the water.
How to reach Bet Dwarka from Dwarka
This is where things have changed. On 25 February 2024, the Sudarshan Setu was inaugurated, a 2.32 km cable-stayed bridge, the longest of its kind in India, connecting Okha on the mainland to Bet Dwarka island. Its footpath carries verses from the Bhagavad Gita and its name comes from Krishna's Sudarshan Chakra. So you now drive about 30 km from Dwarka to Okha, cross the bridge by road onto the island, park in the paid parking and continue on foot or by auto to the temple. Many older guides still say Bet Dwarka is reachable only by boat; that is no longer the case. The old Okha jetty boats still run for short joyrides and dolphin spotting, but they are no longer needed to get across. For a smooth day trip, Experience My India arranges a car and driver from Dwarka and Nageshwar Jyotirlinga sits on the same road, about 17 km from Dwarka, so it is easy to combine.
Bet Dwarka temple and darshan
The island's main shrine is the Sri Keshavraiji temple, often called the Bet Dwarkadhish temple. It is believed to have been established by Vallabhacharya around 500 years ago, standing over Krishna's believed residence and is looked after in the Pushtimarg (Vallabhacharya) tradition. The idol closely resembles the one at the main Dwarkadhish temple and rice remains the signature offering, echoing the Sudama legend.
Bet Dwarka's temple does not publish official timings online, so treat these as a guide rather than a guarantee: darshan is commonly reported as roughly 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM in the morning and 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM in the evening, with a long midday closure. Timings shift on festival days such as Janmashtami, so confirm on the day. For the main city temple's schedule, see the Dwarkadhish temple timings and read our Dwarka city guide for the wider circuit.
Things to see on Bet Dwarka
Beyond the main temple, the island rewards an unhurried few hours:
Hanuman Dandi Temple, where Lord Hanuman is worshipped alongside his son Makardhwaja, said to be the only temple of its kind, with a quiet beach nearby
Abhaya Mata and other small shrines scattered across the island
Beaches and the sea, with dolphin spotting on short boat rides and calm coastal views of the Arabian Sea
A shared sacred landscape: alongside the Krishna temples, the island also has a Gurudwara and two dargahs, open to all
A comfortable visit, including the crossing and the main temples, usually takes about three to four hours.
Best time to visit Bet Dwarka
October to March is the pleasant season, with mild coastal weather for the crossing and the temples. Summers are hot and humid and the monsoon sea can be rough. Janmashtami is the most devotional and crowded time on the island.
Plan your Bet Dwarka visit with Experience My India
Tell us your dates and we will fit Bet Dwarka, Nageshwar and the main temple into one smooth day. You could add it to a one-day Dwarka tour or message us on WhatsApp at +91 73006 20809 or call +91 73006 20809. For everything else about the area, see our full Dwarka travel guide.
