How to Reach Meghalaya
Meghalaya is a state in the northeastern region of India that has some of the most alluring sites to escape from the high-intensity areas of the country. Meghalaya’s dense forest, stunning waterfalls, enchanting lakes, and green peaks provide a feeling of paintings that a person used to hang in their drawing room.
Meghalaya Travel By Road
The best way to explore all the eye-soothing places of Meghalaya is through a road trip with a well-maintained highway NH-40. You can travel over Meghalaya by driving down on your own. If you are not willing to drive down on your own then there are
multiple ways to plan an excursion to Meghalaya. ASTC ( Assam State Transport Corporation) and MTC (Meghalaya Transport Corporation) are the two best means of transportation that connects Guwahati To Shillong (The Capital City of Meghalaya). These
ASTC and MTC buses provide each and every comfort in terms of traveling, as these buses have facilities like Air-Conditioned sleepers, Luxury, Sleeper, and Volvo buses. A Traveller can select any of these buses according to their budget. Since
the time the NH-40 was constructed, transportation within Meghalaya and around Meghalaya has improved at a rapid speed. Even road transportation is one of the supreme means of transferring goods and commodities within the Meghalaya region.
The national highway that runs through Meghalaya is well-maintained and connects its capital city to some of the neighboring states of Meghalaya like Assam, Mizoram, and other few states of the Northeastern region of India. Because of its well-maintained
highway only, a traveler can opt for a rental cab or taxi service from the major cities, which are situated close to Meghalaya like Guwahati, Silchar, Imphal, and Aizawl. The highway that joins Shillong with Guwahati provides a majestic trip because
it offers an outstanding route that is filled with beauties like elevated cascades, green valleys, and lakes. This beautiful route is also termed the best road trip within the northeastern region of India due to its scenic vistas.
| Distance in kilometers and time duration | From |
|---|---|
| 100 kilometers and about 3 hours | Guwahati to Shillong |
| 54 kilometers and about 2 hours | Cherrapunji to Shillong |
| 1130 kilometers and about 26 hours | Kolkata to Shillong |
| 451 Kilometres and about 13 hours | Agartala to Shillong |
| 567 kilometers and About 14 hours | Siliguri to Shillong |
Meghalaya Travel By Railways
Within the state of Meghalaya, a traveler will only not be able to witness railheads because Meghalaya is a mountainous region. But now the Government of Meghalaya is planning to link the Guwahati railhead to Byrnihat, a district in Meghalaya. The closest railhead a traveler can observe near the capital city of Meghalaya is the Guwahati railhead, which is located at a distance of 100 kilometers approximately. From Guwahati, a traveler can easily opt for a taxi/cab service to reach Shillong, because numerous cab/taxi services are available that connect these two major cities. The total time required to cover the journey from Guwahati to Shillong is approximately three hours if you are traveling by cab. Still, if you are traveling by bus then its duration increases a bit because a bus takes nearly 4 hours to reach Shillong city. Although Meghalaya does not have its own railhead, it is well-connected with Guwahati Railhead Through NH-40, Guwahati railhead is well connected to major cities of India like Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Patna, and many more. If you are planning to explore Meghalaya, then traveling by train is a Budget-friendly trip. Even traveling by train is the ideal choice for you if you are staying in the cities of Kolkata, Lucknow, and Patna. There are some railheads that are situated close to Meghalaya if you are not getting a straight train service to Guwahati then you can check the below-mentioned railheads:
- Railhead: This is about 95.7 km away from Shillong.
- Junction: This is about 67.36 km away from Shillong.
- Road Railhead: This is about 116.5 km away from Shillong.
- Junction Railhead: This is about 159.9 km from Shillong.
There is some name of the important trains are mentioned below which are located nearby the stations of Shillong:
| Train name and number | From |
|---|---|
| Train GHY BSB SPECIAL (25653) | Varanasi to Guwahati |
| Train GHY HWH Special (02346), Saraighat Express (12346) | Kolkata to Guwahati |
| Train Guwahati Express (12515) | Trivandrum to Guwahati |
| Train Brahmputra Mail (14055) | Old Delhi to Guwahati |
| Train DBRT Rajdhani(12424) | New Delhi to Guwahati |
| DIBRUGARH EXP (15929) | Chennai to Guwahati |
| Train LTT GHY SPECIAL (05647) | Mumbai to Kamakhya |
| Train Avadh Assam Express (15910) | Lalgarh to Chapramukh Jn |
| Train New Tinsukia Express (15910) | Darbhanga to Chapramukh Jn |
Meghalaya Travel By Air
Traveling by air is the second-best option to arrive in the state of Meghalaya. Near the capital city of Meghalaya, travelers can witness a domestic airline by the Umroi airport. This Umroi airport is situated at a distance of 28 kilometers from Shillong. A traveler can easily avail of a straight flight service if he/she is staying in cities like Kolkata, Imphal, and Bagdogra. Since Umroi airport is a domestic airline that is why it has limited flight options. But at a distance of 115 kilometers from Shillong travelers can observe an International Airport named Lokpriya Gopinath Bordolai Airport. Therefore, if you are not availing of a straight flight service to Umroi then you can opt for this international airport as it is connected to many major cities with a direct flight service some of them are; Delhi, Mumbai, Bagdogra, Imphal, Bangalore, Kolkata, Silchar, Agartala, and many more. This Guwahati International Airport is the only airport in the northeastern region of India which connects with many countries like Bangkok, Singapore, Paro, and many more. From Guwahati Airport there are multiple ranges of transportation available that can lead a traveler to Shillong. The best way to reach the capital city of Meghalaya from Guwahati International Airport is by hiring a cab which takes around 3 hours. Apart from this travelers can also opt for a bus service, as there are numerous bus services available in Guwahati that run in between Shillong and Guwahati.
| Airlines | From |
|---|---|
| IndiGo | Kolkata–Umroi |
| Alliance Air | Imphal–Umroi |
| IndiGo, AirAsia (India) | New Delhi-Guwahati |
| Spicejet | Jaipur–Guwahati |
| IndiGo | Pune–Guwahati |
Helicopter Services in Meghalaya
If you are an adventure junky then you must try a thrilling and exciting journey that is a Helicopter service. From Guwahati, there are numerous helicopter services available to Shillong. If you opt for a helicopter service from Guwahati then it will take only 20 minutes to reach the capital city of Meghalaya. Guwahati, helicopter services are also for Tura and it takes nearly one hour to get to Tura from Guwahati. The government of Meghalaya used to operate these helicopters services facility. The fare of traveling by helicopter is quite cheap and affordable. It takes about Rs 1700/- per person to travel from Guwahati to Shilling by helicopter whereas it takes around 1900/- per person to travel from Guwahati to Tura. If you don’t have any previous experience with helicopter traveling, then you must try this service facility to reach the synonyms of paradise.