Beginners guide - Train travel in India
Train travel planning - Timings - Fares - Reservations
The best way for touring India is to travel the country by train.
Indian railways have improved so much over the last few years.
Foreign tourists and Non Resident Indians (NRIs) are also offered priority reservation benefits not available to the local Indian population.
As of July 15, 2007 Indian Railways allow foreign tourists to make train reservations up to 360 days in advance. Indian residents however can make train reservations only up to 60 days in advance.
Planning your train travel in India can be done right form your home computer now thanks to online booking facility that is now available from anywhere in the world. Now you can also print your own train tickets for Indian railways after paying for them by credit card. For step by step instructions on making online train reservations in India visit 'Online Train Reservations Guide'.
Tourists visiting India can travel to almost every destination in India by train. Travelling on the train also lets tourists interact with the local population for a rich cultural experience. Prices for trains are also quite affordable. Most air-conditioned train coaches are comfortable. With proper advance planning you may be able to skip the need for a hotel also for a night or so by choosing night trains and reaching your destinations in the morning.
Planning your train travel itinerary
1. To plan your train itinerary log on to the Indian railways
website.
2. Check the various trains by using the link 'Trains between Imp
Stations'
3. Input the Source and Destination stations for your travel destination.
4. Click 'Get it' and a list of various train choices are displayed. There
are
three choices here for users, 'Get Availability', 'Get
Fare' and 'Get Schedule'
5. If you find the train timing and fare suitable and tickets are
available for
your chosen dates of travel. Then click on 'Internet
Reservation' to make
your reservations. For step by step online reservation
instructions visit our
'Online Reservation'
page.
The railways website is not very user friendly and some may find it
slightly confusing. With a little bit of patience though it does get you
where you want to go.
Luxury Trains
India also has some luxury trains that complete tourism packages to different parts of India for periods of three to seven days. These luxury trains allow sightseeing by day and you sleep on the train at night. The coaches are like rooms of a five star luxury hotel with spacious bathrooms and sleeping areas. Meals on these trains are also included in the price of the ticket. For detailed information on the various luxury trains in India visit our page 'Luxury Trains'.
Helpful links for train travel planning
To help plan your train travel around India. There is an excellent map of India provided by Indian railways. This map shows the various train routes and stations. The Map also lists places of tourist interest. To view the map use the link 'Railway Map of India'
Indian railways official website address is http://www.indianrail.gov.in/
The online reservations website address is http://www.irctc.co.in/
Are reservations necessary for train travel?
To travel by train in India one needs a ticket for the train as well as a confirmed reservation for a seat or a berth to sleep on if your trip is a overnight one.
On most important trains, such as the 'Shatabdi' and 'Rajdhani' trains. Even if you have a ticket you cannot board the train without a confirmed reservation. Don't just go to the railway station and expect to buy a ticket and board the train.
Please note: There are some trains where passengers can just buy tickets and travel without reservations. However these are slow trains and are packed full. The chance of getting a place to sit in such trains is almost impossible. Such trains also do not measure up to the class of travel expected by foreign tourists and I would recommend that tourists avoid trains that do not have reserved seating requirements. Most important trains like the Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains strictly enforce the prior reservation rule.
How do you make a train reservations in India?
Reservation system for Indian Railways is now fully computerized. Reservations can be made at almost all railway stations. Most routes require reservations several weeks or even months in advance. Some of these places are overcrowded and I have often heard that people wait in line for hours and when they reach the ticket window find out that the dates they wish to travel on are full. They either end up getting wait list tickets or no tickets.
While online booking is now available the bulk of
the population so far does not have computer and internet facility to
avail this service. Hence long lineups at reservation offices. There are
better options for foreign tourists and NRIs to make train reservations.
Train reservations for foreign tourists traveling in India.
Indian Railways offer some facilities to foreign
tourists traveling in India by reserving a certain number of seats on
each train exclusively for foreign tourists. Reservations can be made at
International tourist bureaus.
Best
place to make a reservation and buy a ticket for foreign tourist and
NRIs is the Tourist bureaus located in most major cities.
In Delhi there is a reservation office at the railway station itself on the first floor. There is also an office at the Indira Gandhi airport arrivals lounge for passengers to make reservations.
Tourists can make reservations and purchase train tickets from the foreign tourist quota, however they must pay in US Dollars or Pound Sterling. Indian Rupees are accepted on providing proof that foreign currency was exchanged for the Indian currency. Such proof can be in the form of encashment certificates issued when tourists exchange currency. On some occasions even an ATM receipt that shows a foreign card being used is accepted.
Can Foreigners buy rail tickets online?
Yes, they can. There are two types of online booking facilities offered by Indian Railways. (Only the E-Ticket is a valid online reservation option for foreigners.)
1. I - Ticket
2. E - Ticket
I- Ticket
Purchase of I tickets by foreigners is not recommended as these tickets are sent by courier to an Indian address only. Hence overseas tourists cannot avail this facility unless they have a local address.
E- Ticket
E- Ticket on the other hand is what foreign tourists can purchase online for their train travel in India. In the case of E-Tickets there are no tickets sent out by courier as the person making the booking online just prints them on their printer.
Tickets can be booked online up to 60 days in advance. E-Ticket holders must take their ticket printout and photo ID with them when they board the train. In case you forget to take the printout the ticket checker will charge you Rs 50 per ticket extra as a penalty for not having your ticket printout. A credit card is required for online booking.
Tips for E-Ticket Reservations:
√ To make an online reservation for trains in
India you need to register first.
Registration is a simple and free
process and takes only a few minutes. To
register visit
http://www.irctc.co.in/ or go directly to the new registrant page
by
clicking
register now.
√ The only foreign credit card that the railways
presently seem to be accepting
on their website is the American Express card. (American Express adds 1.8
percent to the
price of the ticket as a service charge,)
√ If you forget to take your ticket booking
printout on the train the ticket
checker will charge you Rs 50 for
each passenger you booked the ticket for
as a penalty for not having
your booking printout with you.
√ Tourist cannot make online reservations with Indrail passes.
√ In case there is no seat available online for
your preferred date of travel.
There is always the possibility that
you may get a seat from the foreign
tourist quota. However you
cannot access the foreign quota online.
This has to be done in person when you are in India at the Tourist
reservation bureaus or at most major Railway stations.
Additional details of other travel options for tourists traveling in India as well as fare a fare chart for the Indrail Pass is available on our 'Travel Incentives' page.
Train compartments on Indian Railways
In February 2007 I had an opportunity to travel on the Goa Express from New Delhi. It appears that train compartments of Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains are in a much better condition when compared with similar class compartments of other trains.
The compartment that I travelled in, on Goa Express
had switches broken and some lights not working. The cleanliness during
the journey was also neglected by the railway staff on the train. In
future I hope to travel
only on Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains. These trains are faster and given
priority by the railway authorities over other trains.
The sleeper berths were comfortable and the bedding provided was clean.
If one has a choice of trains then it is advisable to stick to the superfast trains like Rajdhani or Shatabdi. The railways it would seem pay more attention to these trains.
