How do I get to Varanasi?

Varanasi's airport occupies a single-runway strip in Babatpur village, about 45-70 minutes by taxi from the ghat waterfront depending on the Cantonment Road bottleneck. The terminal has one baggage carousel, and the prepaid taxi counter sits outside arrivals. IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet, and Akasa Air run 15-20 daily domestic departures to Delhi (DEL), Mumbai (BOM), Kolkata (CCU), and Bengaluru (BLR), with typical Delhi one-way fares around ₹3,500-5,000 ($37-52). From the US, Emirates via Dubai (DXB) and Qatar Airways via Doha (DOH) are the standard international routings, at $900-1,400 round-trip from the East Coast and 20-24 hours of total travel. From London, Air India through Delhi or Qatar via Doha runs £500-850 round-trip. Fares drop in July-September during monsoon and rise around Diwali and Dev Deepawali in October-November, when over 1 million clay lamps line the riverfront. From Southeast Asia, AirAsia and IndiGo fly Bangkok (BKK) to Delhi for $100-180 one-way, with same-day onward connections to VNS.

If you're already in India, trains are likely the better option. Varanasi Junction (BSB) sits 3 km from Dashashwamedh Ghat, and the Vande Bharat Express from New Delhi covers 760 km in about 8 hours for ₹1,500-2,500 ($16-26) in chair car. The overnight Rajdhani takes 11-12 hours with AC sleeper berths at ₹1,800-3,500 ($19-37). To be fair, the Rajdhani is more comfortable for that distance. You sleep through central Uttar Pradesh and wake around 6 a.m. to temple bells carrying across the Ganga. From Kolkata, the Vibhuti Express runs about 12 hours. Book through irctc.co.in at least 3-4 weeks ahead, because confirmed berths on Delhi-Varanasi trains sell out during festival months. Mind you, many long-distance express trains stop at Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction (DDU), 17 km south of town, not at BSB. Check your ticket carefully before boarding.

The last stretch into Varanasi is the part that catches first-timers off guard. Roads narrow as you approach the Ganga. Cars and auto-rickshaws stop 500-800 meters from most ghat-side hotels. From there, you walk through lanes barely 2 meters wide, pulling luggage over worn stone past chai vendors ladling milky tea into clay cups and the warm smell of jalebis frying in mustard oil. A prepaid airport taxi runs ₹800-1,000 ($8-10) to the Assi Ghat area. From BSB station, an auto-rickshaw to Dashashwamedh Ghat costs ₹100-150 ($1-1.50). Plan to reach your hotel before 5 p.m. After sunset, the lanes near Manikarnika Ghat are lit by cremation pyres and phone screens, and finding your guesthouse without offline maps gets difficult. Download maps.me or OsmAnd before landing. Google Maps tends to lose accuracy in the gali network south of Meer Ghat.