I visited Keshava Temple in January 2012, during a 15 months round the world trip with our 3 children. We spent 4 nights in Mysore and from there it was an easy trip to Keshava Temple. I got there because of a picture I have seen years ago on wikipedia. I thought it was amazing and I am very happy that it is now selected as a WHS. At the time I wrote in our blog:

"My temple! A picture seen somewhere on the internet a few years ago became a destination in itself.
Kesava temple was built in the 12th century and is a prime example of Hoysala architecture. What is that? Hoysala was another empire and civilization, between the 10th and 14th century, before all the other ones that we learned about. It had three main centers, and Somnathapur (or Somanathapura) was one of them. Just 45 minutes from Mysore, it was a quick, easy ride. A little temple, the one from my picture, is awaiting it's visitors on a laid back, quiet Sunday morning. We spent two entire hours going in and around it. It is different from everything we've seen so far. We had time to experiment with pictures, take turns with the camera, read in wikipedia about the specifics of this type of architecture. There are layers over layers of sculptures, starting with elephants at the bottom, then horses, then people. There are scenes from the famous Mahabharata, Ramayana and Bhagavat Gita, and the life and times of the Hoysala kings. Similarly, churches and temples all over the world have this educational side to them. Before the printed books, people could come to the temple and "read" the "scripture" in sculpture or painting.
I don't know how to interpret the children's reaction, "is this the only temple for today?" - they loved the easy schedule and being able to take their time."