Local Travel
An auto-rickshaw from the Varanasi station to the Godaulia area and the Old City (2km) should be around Rs 25 or Rs 15 for a bike-rickshaw. If they want to charge less than these prices most likely they just want to bring you to a hotel to get a commission and they will often refuse to bring you to the hotel of your choice. There is a shared tempo stand outside the southern entrance for tempos to the Godaulia and Lahurabir areas (Rs 5). From the railway station to the cantonment area is Rs 3 by tempo and Rs 15 by auto-rickshaw.

Rickshaws cannot fit in the narrow lanes of the Old City. Bike-rickshaw drivers in the Godaulia area try to get really high prices. If the correct fare is five rupees, they will usually start at Rs 40, and then go quickly down to Rs 10. To get the five rupee fare may take a few minutes of bargaining. By bike-rickshaw from the railway station to Dasaswamedha Ghat should be about Rs 120, from a Cantonment hotel to Dasaswamedha Ghat around Rs 25 and from Lahurabir Rs 15. You will have to work to get these prices, especially if you are carrying your bags.

Travel
Air Babatpur Airport is 22km northwest of Varanasi.

There are flights to Delhi (3 daily, $120) Mumbai (1 daily, $220), Agra (1 daily, $100). Indian Airlines has a daily flight to Kathmandu ($80), which is heavily booked in the winter. There is a daily Indian Airlines flight to Delhi ($120) via Khajuraho ($80) and Agra ($100).
The Indian Airlines office (345-959; fax 348-637; Airport: 622-090) is behind Hotel de Paris, in the Cantonment area, and there is an office at the airport (43742). The Air India office is in the Hotel Clarks (46326).

Sahara India Airlines (343-094) has daily flights except Sunday to Delhi and Lucknow and a daily flight except Saturday to Mumbai. Jet Airways (511-444; Airport: 622-334).

A rickshaw to the airport is around Rs 90, or cheaper if you bargain. A rickshaw from the airport may be Rs 35, because the rickshaw driver is hoping to get a commission from the hotel they take you to. A taxi to the airport is around Rs 200, but they will ask for much more. There is an Indian Airlines bus into town that goes to the Indian Airlines office in the Cantonment area. Buses (45 min, Rs 25) depart to the airport at 10.30 am and 2.30 pm from the Vaibhav Hotel in the Cantonment. They may also depart at other times to coincide with the Indian Airlines flights.

Train There are two railway stations in the Varanasi area. There is Varanasi Cantonment (also called Varanasi Junction) and a big train station in the suburbs called Mughal Sarai Station, which is 14km south of the center of the city. From the center of town to Mughal Sarai it is a Rs 50 auto-rickshaw ride or a 45-minute bus (Rs 4) or tempo ride. The only decent place to stay near the Mughal Sarai station is the railway Retiring Rooms (Rs 70 for a double).

Tourist quota tickets can be purchased from the ticket office near the UP Tourism counter in the main building (daily except Sun 10 am to 5 pm). You can also get tickets (not tourist quota) at the reservation center, which is to the left of the main building (Mon to Sat 8 am to 8 pm and Sun 8 am to 2 pm). You can reserve trains departing from Mughal Sarai at the Varanasi Cantonment station.
Most of the trains going between Delhi and Calcutta stop at the Mughal Sarai station, and not at Varanasi Cantonment. There are several trains daily to both Delhi and Calcutta that take about 15 hours to get to either city. The Amritsar-Howrah Mail #3006 is the fastest train to Calcutta (15 hr). There is one train daily to Agra (10½ hr) and six trains a day to Gaya.     

There are three passenger trains daily to Gorakhpur, which take 8 to 10 hours, with frequent delays. If you are heading to Nepal it is usually better to take a bus to the border. There is a daily direct train to Haridwar (20 hr). There are three trains weekly to Puri and four trains daily to Mumbai.

Be especially careful of thieves and con-men at the station. Varanasi is known for these kinds of people.

Allahabad Kashi Exp #1028 (11 am, 5½ hr), Uchchavi Exp #5205 (3 pm, 3 hr); Chennai #6040 Ganga-Kaveri Exp (5.50 pm, 41 hr); Gaya Doon Exp #3010 (4.15 pm, 4 hr); Lucknow Varuna Exp #4227 (5.15 am, 4½ hr); Mahoba (for Khajuraho) Bundelkhand Exp #1108 (2.20 pm, 10 hr), Mumbai Mahanagri Exp #1094 (28 hr, 11.35 am).

Bus Most buses depart from the Varanasi Bus Stand, which is about 250m from the railway station. There are deluxe buses to Allahabad (3 hr Rs 40), Gorakhpur (6½ hr, Rs 70), Faizabad (7 hr, Rs 70), and Lucknow (9 hr, Rs 95).
Buses depart from the Cantonment Bus Stand to Gaya, Gorakhpur (7 hr), and Sunauli (9-11 hr) to get to Nepal.

To get to Nepal from the Varanasi bus stand there are regular buses to Sunauli (8 hr, Rs 95) and deluxe bus (8 hr, Rs 130) at 10 am and 10 pm. From there you get another bus to Kathmandu (Rs 100) or Pokhara. Travel agents offer buses to Kathmandu, which includes a bus to Sunauli, and then another bus to Kathmandu. It is cheaper and just as easy to do it yourself. Also after you enter Nepal you can choose the bus and the place that you want to stay at yourself, instead of someone doing it for you. To get to Nepal it is better to take the bus directly to Sunauli and not go to Gorakhpur first.

Rewarding Tours & Travels (348-546) can arrange a car for up to four persons to Kathmandu for $250.

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