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How to Reach Delhi

Part of our full Delhi travel guide.

By air. Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) is India's busiest airport and the country's principal international gateway, roughly 16 km southwest of central Delhi. It has three terminals — Terminal 3 handles most international and many domestic flights, Terminal 1 handles domestic low-cost carriers, and Terminal 2 handles additional domestic traffic. Free inter-terminal shuttles run, but allow time, as the terminals are not close together.

Getting into the city:

  1. Airport Express Metro (Orange Line) — the fastest and best-value option, connecting Terminal 3 to New Delhi Railway Station in around 20–25 minutes for a modest fare. Runs roughly 5:20am to 11:30pm, every 10–15 minutes. Terminal 1 is served by the Magenta Line.
  2. App cabs (Uber, Ola) — readily available; 45 minutes to over an hour depending on traffic and destination
  3. Prepaid taxis — booked at official counters inside the terminal; use these rather than accepting offers from touts

By train. Delhi is India's largest rail hub, with four major stations:

  1. New Delhi (NDLS) — the main station, centrally located near Connaught Place and Paharganj, connected to the Airport Express and Yellow Line metro
  2. Old Delhi / Delhi Junction (DLI) — near Chandni Chowk
  3. Hazrat Nizamuddin (NZM) — serves many trains heading south
  4. Anand Vihar (ANVT) — serves eastern routes

Fast, comfortable trains connect Delhi to Agra (Gatimaan and Shatabdi services, around 100 minutes), Jaipur, Amritsar, Lucknow, Varanasi and Chandigarh. Book through IRCTC well in advance for good classes.

By road. Delhi is the hub of India's national highway network. Three main interstate bus terminals operate: Kashmere Gate ISBT (the largest, serving north and west), Anand Vihar ISBT (east) and Sarai Kale Khan ISBT (south).

The Yamuna Expressway to Agra and the Delhi–Meerut Expressway have cut journey times considerably. Agra is around 3–4 hours by road, Jaipur around 5 hours, Chandigarh around 4–5 hours.