By train
Travelling by train is one of the great experiences of India. It's a system which looks like chaos, but it works, and well. Trains are often late of course, sometimes by hours rather than minutes, but they do run, and with amazing efficiency too: when the train you've been waiting for rolls into the station, the reservation you made halfway across the country several weeks ago will be on a list pasted to the side of your carriage, and when it's time to eat, the packed meal you ordered down the line will be ready at the next station, put on the train and delivered to your seat.

It's worth bearing in mind, with journeys frequently lasting twelve hours or more, that an overnight train can save you a day's travelling and a night's hotel bill, assuming you sleep well on trains. While sleeper carriages can be more crowded during the day, between 9pm and 6am anyone with a bunk reservation is entitled to exclusive use of their bunk. When travelling overnight, always padlock your bag to your bunk; an attached chain is usually provided beneath the seat of the lower bunk.

By bus
Although trains are the definitive form of transport in India, and generally more comfortable than buses , there are places (such as most Himalayan valleys) where trains don't go, where they are inconvenient, or where buses are simply faster...
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By boat
Apart from river ferries, few boat services run in India. The Andaman Islands are connected to Calcutta and Chennai by boat - as well as to each other - and there are luxury services between Kochi and Lakshadweep. Kerala has a regular passenger service with a number of services operating out of Alappuzha and Kollam, including the popular "backwater trip" between the two. The Sunderbans in the delta region to the south of Calcutta is only accessible by boat.

By car
It is much more usual for tourists in India to be driven than it is for them to drive; car rental firms operate on the basis of supplying chauffeur-driven vehicles , and taxis are available at cheap daily rates. Arranged through...
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By motorbike
Riding a motorbike around India has become increasingly popular but is not without its hazards. Beside the appalling road conditions encountered and the ensuing fatigue, renting a bike , unless you are well versed in maintenance, can be a bit...
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By bicycle
Ever since Dervla Murphy's Full Tilt , a steady but increasing trickle of travellers have either themselves done the overland trip by bicycle , or else bought a bike in India and ridden it around the country. In many ways it is the...
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City transport
Transport around town takes various forms, with buses the most obvious. These are usually single-decker, though double-deckers (some articulated) exist in Mumbai and elsewhere. City buses can get unbelievably crowded, so beware of pickpockets, razor-armed pocket-slitters, and "Eve-teasers"; the same applies to suburban trains in Mumbai (Chennai is about the only other place where you might want to use trains for local city transport). Any visitor to Calcutta will be amazed by the clean efficiency of India's only metro.

You can also take taxis , usually rather battered Ambassadors (painted black and yellow in the large cities) and Maruti omnivans. With luck, the driver will agree to use the meter ; in theory you're within your rights to call the police if he doesn't, but the usual compromise is to agree a fare for the journey before you get in. Naturally, it helps to have an idea in advance what the fare should be, though any figures quoted in this or any other guide should be treated as being the broadest of guidelines only. From places such as main stations, you may be able to find other passengers to share a taxi to the town centre; many stations, and certainly most airports, operate prepaid taxi schemes with set fares that you pay before departure; more expensive prepaid limousines are also available.

The auto-rickshaw , that most Indian of vehicles, is the front half of a motor-scooter with a couple of seats mounted on the back. Cheaper than taxis, better at nipping in and out of traffic, and usually metered (again, in most places they probably won't use them and you should agree a fare before setting off), auto-rickshaws are a little unstable and their drivers often rather reckless, but that's all part of the fun. In major tourist centres rickshaw-wallahs can, however, hassle you endlessly on the street, often shoving themselves right in your path to prevent you from ignoring them, and once you're inside they may take you to several shops before reaching your destination. Moreover, agreeing a price before the journey will not necessarily stop your rickshaw-wallah reopening discussion when the trip is under way, or at its end. In general it is better to hail a rickshaw than to take one that's been following you, and to avoid those that hang around outside posh hotels.

One or two cities also have larger versions of auto-rickshaws known as tempos (or Vikrams), with six or eight seats behind, which usually ply fixed routes at flat fares. Here and there, you'll also come across horse-drawn carriages, or tongas . Tugged by underfed and often lame horses, these are the least popular with tourists.

Slower and cheaper still is the cycle rickshaw - basically a glorified tricycle. Foreign visitors often feel uncomfortable about travelling this way; except in the major tourist cities, cycle rickshaw-wallahs are invariably emaciated pavement dwellers who earn only a pittance for their pains. In the end, though, to deny them your custom on those grounds is spurious logic; they will earn even less if you don't use them. Also you will invariably pay a bit more than a local would. Only in Calcutta do the rickshawwallahs continue to haul the city's pukka rickshaws on foot.

If you want to see a variety of places around town, consider hiring a taxi, rickshaw or auto-rickshaw for the day. Find a driver who speaks English reasonably well, and agree a price beforehand. You will probably find it a lot cheaper than you imagine: the driver will invariably act as a guide and source of local knowledge, and tipping is usually in order