Rishikesh · How to Reach

Rishikesh sits at the top edge of the northern plains, where the highways from Delhi and Haridwar run out and the mountain roads begin. It is well connected for a Himalayan-foothills town, but the practical detail is that the nearest big transport hubs — the major railway junction, the airport — are a short distance away in Haridwar and Dehradun, and many travellers route through those.

By train. Rishikesh has its own stations: the old terminus Rishikesh (station code RKSH) in the heart of town, and the newer Yog Nagari Rishikesh (YNRK) built as part of the broad-gauge rail line being extended into the mountains. These handle a modest number of direct services, including some links to Delhi. For a far wider choice of trains, however, the workhorse railhead is Haridwar Junction (HW), about 25 kilometres away, which is served by a heavy schedule of expresses and superfasts from Delhi, and from cities across India. Many travellers book to Haridwar and cover the last leg by bus or taxi. Because live timetables and availability change constantly, check current trains and fares in the search box on this page rather than relying on a fixed schedule.

By road. Rishikesh is roughly 240 kilometres from Delhi, a drive of about five to six hours via the National Highway through Meerut, Muzaffarnagar and Haridwar. Regular long-distance buses — ordinary, air-conditioned and Volvo-style coaches — run from Delhi's Kashmere Gate ISBT to Rishikesh, and there are frequent services from Haridwar (about 45 minutes to an hour away) and Dehradun. Shared jeeps, autos and taxis link Rishikesh with both neighbours cheaply and often. From Rishikesh the mountain highways continue north into Garhwal — toward Devprayag, Rudraprayag and on to the Char Dham shrines — so the town is also the natural staging post for onward Himalayan travel.

By air. The nearest airport is Dehradun's Jolly Grant Airport (DED), about 20–35 kilometres away depending on which part of Rishikesh you are heading to, and roughly an hour by road. It has a growing roster of domestic flights, most usefully to and from Delhi, with seasonal links to other metros — confirm current routes before planning around them. For international arrivals and the widest choice of connections, Delhi (DEL), about 240 kilometres away, is the practical gateway, from where you continue by train to Haridwar or by road.

Getting around once you arrive. Rishikesh is spread along both banks of the Ganges and clusters into a few zones — the main town near the railway station and Triveni Ghat; the twin bridge areas of Ram Jhula and Laxman Jhula upstream; and the ashram quarter of Swargashram on the east bank. Shared autos, cycle-rickshaws, battery e-rickshaws and the local Vikram tempos ply fixed routes between these, and taxis are available for longer hops. Crucially, much of the ashram and market area around Ram Jhula and Swargashram is effectively pedestrian, and the way across the river is on foot over the footbridges or by the small ferry boats that shuttle between the banks. Note that the historic footbridges have been affected by closures and renovation in recent years (see the next section), so confirm which crossings are open locally — the ferries run regardless. Fix a fare or use a metered app before setting off, and factor in that the last stretch to a riverside ashram or café is almost always on foot.