Travel within India
Mumbai is the nexus of several major internal flight routes, train networks and highways, and is the main transport hub for traffic heading towards south India. The most travelled trails lead north up the Gujarati coast to
Rajasthan and
Delhi ; northwest into the
Deccan via Aurangabad and the caves at Ellora and Ajanta; and south, through Pune and the hills of the Western Ghats towards
Goa and the Malabar coast. Public transport is cheap and frequent, but book in advance and be prepared for delays.
Getting to Goa
Since the inauguration of the controversial Konkan Railway, the best-value way to travel the 500km from Mumbai to Goa has been by
train . However, tickets for the twelve-hour ride down the coast tend be in short supply, and virtually impossible to obtain at short notice, so it's best to try and book with an Indian Railways agent back home before setting off. Otherwise, you'll probably find yourself having to shell out for a
flight . Considering how hellish the bus ride can be, and how hard getting hold of train tickets is, it's well worth paying the extra to travel by plane, ideally before you leave home, which could save you days waiting around in Mumbai.
Leaving India
In spite of its prominence on trans-Asian flight routes, Mumbai is no longer the bargain basement for
international air tickets it used to be. Discounted fares are very hard to come by - a legacy of Rajiv Gandhi's economic reforms of the 1980s. If you do need to book a ticket, stick to one of the tried and tested agents we've listed.
All the major airlines operating out of Mumbai have offices downtown where you can buy scheduled tickets or confirm your flight. The majority are grouped around Veer Nariman Road, opposite the Ambassador Hotel , or else on Nariman Point, a short taxi ride west of Colaba.
Travel details
Trains
Direct services to: Agra (4 daily; 23hr 15min-27hr); Ahmedabad (4 daily; 7hr 10min-12hr); Aurangabad (2 daily; 7hr 20min); Bangalore (3 daily; 24hr 30min); Bhopal (4 daily; 14hr); Calcutta (4 daily; 33-40hr); Chennai (3 daily; 24-29hr); Coimbatore (1 daily; 10hr); Delhi (11 daily; 17-33hr); Hyderabad (2 daily; 15-17hr); Indore (1 daily; 14hr 35min); Jaipur (2 daily; 18-23hr); Jodhpur (1 daily; 22hr; change at Ahmedabad); Kolhapur (3 daily; 11-12hr); Nagpur (4 daily; 14-15hr); Nasik (15 daily; 4hr); Pune (25 daily; 3hr 15min-5hr); Thiruvananthapuram (2 daily; 42hr); Udaipur (1 daily; 25hr; change at Ahmedabad); Ujjain (1 daily; 12hr 25 min); Varanasi (2 daily; 29-36hr).
Buses
Only state bus services are listed here.
Mumbai Central to: Aurangabad (2 daily; 10hr); Bangalore (3 daily; 24hr); Bijapur (3 daily; 12hr); Goa (2 daily; 18-19hr); Indore (2 daily; 16hr); Ujjain (1 daily; 17hr).
ASIAD Dadar to: Kolhapur (4 daily; 10hr); Nasik (17 daily; 5hr); Pune (half-hourly; 4hr).
Flights
In the listings below, AA represents Alliance Air, IA is Indian Airlines, JA Jet Airways, and SA Sahara Airlines.
Santa Cruz airport to: Ahmedabad (AA, IA, JA 6-7 daily; 1hr); Aurangabad (IA, JA 2 daily; 1hr 30min); Bangalore (AA, IA, JA 11 daily; 1hr 30min); Bhopal (SA, AL 2 daily; 1hr 25min); Calcutta (AA, IA, JA, SA 5-6 daily; 2hr 25min); Calicut (AA, IA, JA 2-5 daily; 1hr); Chennai (AI, JA 8-9 daily; 1hr 45min); Cochin (AA, IA, JA, 4 daily; 1hr 50min); Coimbatore (IA, JA 2 daily; 1hr 50min); Delhi (AA, AL, IA, JA, SA, 22-26 daily; 1hr 45min-2hr); Goa (AA, IA, JA, SA 3-4 daily; 1hr 55min); Hyderabad (AA, AL, IA, JA 6-8 daily; 1hr 15min); Indore (AL, JA, SA 3-4 daily; 1hr 10min); Jaipur (AL, JA, SA 7-8 daily; 1hr 35min); Jodhpur (AL 4 weekly; 2hr 20min); Madurai (IA, 1 daily; 1hr 55min); Mangalore (AL, JA 4 daily; 1hr 15min); Nagpur (AL, IA 2 daily; 1hr 55min); Pune (JA 2-3 daily; 35min); Thiruvananthapuram (AA, IA, JA 3-5 daily; 2hr); Udaipur (AA, IA, JA 2-3 daily; 1hr 45min); Varanasi (IA, SA 1-2 daily; 3hr 5min
