Travel to India

Flying to India

The major national airline in India is Air India (www.airindia.in). There are also several primarily domestic Indian airlines that have international destinations on their schedules such as IndiGo (www.goindigo.in) and SpiceJet, (www.spicejet.com). British Airways (www.ba.com) and Virgin Atlantic (www.virgin-atlantic.com) fly direct to India from the UK. Indirect flights are available with many airlines including Emirates (www.emirates.com) via Dubai from London Gatwick Airport. Prices are steady throughout the year but become more expensive in June and July.

Major airports are: Kolkata Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Chennai International Airport, Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, Gaya Airport, Kempegowda International Airport, Hyderabad Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Goa International Airport, Trivandrum International Airport, Sadar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport and New Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Airport Guides

Flight times

From London: to Delhi - 8 hours 10 minutes; Kolkata (Calcutta) - 12 hours 25 minutes (including stopover); Chennai (Madras) - 10 hours; Mumbai (Bombay) - 9 hours.

From New York: to Delhi is 14 hours 45 minutes; Kolkata (Calcutta) - 19 hours (including stopover); Chennai (Madras) - 18 hours 30 minutes (including stopover); Mumbai - 15 hours.

Departure tax

Included in the airfare.

Travelling to India by Rail

Indian Railways (www.indianrail.gov.in) runs the most international services.

Connections to Pakistan: From India, you can cross into Pakistan at the international Attari/Wagah border. The main and safest crossing point is the border town of Wagah, which is open to foreigners. There are bus and train services between India and Pakistan.

Connections to Nepal: The most practical and popular route to Nepal is by train to Raxaul (Bihar) and then by bus to Kathmandu. Alternatively trains run to Gorakhpur (or bus if coming from Varanasi), with onward travel by bus to Kathmandu, crossing the border at Sunauli; also, by train to Nautanwa (UP) and then by bus to Kathmandu/Pokhara, or Bhairahawa to Lumbini for Pokhara. It is also possible to make the crossing by bus from Darjeeling and Sikkim to Kathmandu across the southern lowlands.

Connections to Bhutan: The best way of reaching Bhutan by land is by bus/train to Siliguri, then bus to Phuentsholing.

Connections to Bangladesh: The most convenient route to Bangladesh is Kolkata (Calcutta) to Dhaka by bus. Another route is from Darjeeling via Siliguri, then train or bus from Jalpaiguri to Haldibari, or bus to Changrabandha.

It may be possible, with a valid passport and visa, to cross the border between India and Myanmar (Tamu/Moreh). However, the status of the crossing is prone to change, so it is important to check before attempted travel.

There is currently no land frontier open between India and China (PR), other than a crossing between India and Tibet for religious pilgrims.

Rail note

Be prepared for long queues at ticket windows in train stations. Services are almost always busy, especially overnight trains. Book in advance to avoid disappointment.

Driving to India

Getting to India by boat

Cruise ships

Indian ports are served by several international shipping companies and cruise lines. There are, however, no regular passenger liners operating to South-East Asia.