How to Reach Manali: By Road, Bus, Train and Air

Times are for a private car in normal traffic. Allow more in snow, in the monsoon and on summer weekends, when the last stretch into Manali is often jammed.

From Delhi the route runs up the NH44 to Chandigarh or Ambala, then via Ropar and Kiratpur Sahib into Himachal at Bilaspur, and on through Mandi, the Aut tunnel and Kullu along the Beas. New four-lane stretches and tunnels on the Kiratpur–Mandi section have shortened the drive in recent years, but the last 40 km from Kullu to Manali are still two-lane and slow at busy times.

A private taxi is the most comfortable way for families and groups: door to door, stops when you want them, and a driver who knows the hill roads. Most people from Delhi either leave very early to arrive the same evening, or break the journey overnight in Chandigarh, Mandi or Kullu. Our Delhi to Manali and Chandigarh to Manali pages give fares by vehicle and driving notes.

Overnight buses run every evening from Delhi to Manali, mostly from ISBT Kashmere Gate and the Majnu ka Tilla area. HRTC, the Himachal state transport corporation, runs Volvo and other AC services that can be booked on its website; private operators run many more. The journey takes 12 to 15 hours, and fares vary a lot with bus type and season, so check the current price when you book.

Buses are the cheapest option for solo travellers and couples. The trade-offs are the overnight timing, fixed stops and a drop-off at the Manali bus stand, from where you'll need a local taxi to your hotel. Our comparison of a private taxi and the bus from Delhi to Manali goes through costs and comfort.

There's no railway line to Manali. The nearest broad-gauge stations are Una (about 250 km), Kiratpur Sahib (about 268 km), Kalka (about 275 km), Chandigarh (about 310 km) and Pathankot (about 325 km). The narrow-gauge Kangra Valley line ends at Joginder Nagar, about 147 km from Manali, but it's slow and rarely practical for reaching Manali.

In practice, Chandigarh is the best railhead: it has fast trains from Delhi, including Shatabdi and Vande Bharat services, and plenty of taxis for the onward drive. Take a morning train from Delhi and you can be in Manali by night.

The nearest airport is Kullu–Manali airport at Bhuntar (code KUU), about 50 km south of Manali. Flights from Delhi are few and small, and are often cancelled or delayed in bad weather because of the short runway and mountain approach. When they run, the flight takes around 1 hour 20 minutes.

Many visitors instead fly to Chandigarh, which has far more flights, and drive from there. Others use Kangra (Gaggal) airport near Dharamshala, about 225 km away, or Amritsar. We meet flights at all of these; see our Kullu airport to Manali transfer page.

International travellers usually land in Delhi, then either take a domestic flight to Chandigarh or Bhuntar, a train to Chandigarh, or a private car straight from Delhi airport. If you arrive late at night, it's usually better to sleep near the airport and set off early the next morning than to start a 12-hour mountain drive tired.