Travel Tips for Pilgrims

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Travel Tips for Pilgrims
updated April 2012

Travelling in India can be quite an austerity! Here are some Travel Tips to help make your pilgrimage a little more pleasant. Please also see Booking Train Tickets and information of the best train from Howrah to Nabadwip.

Travel Light

You will be the one to appreciate it most! Always take good care of your baggage, passport, money, and other valuables. It is a good idea to carry your valuables in a money-belt.

Travel Agents and Fares

Economically priced Travel Agents abound on Sudder Street, Kolkata, but be warned: India is no longer a bargain centre for cheap flights. In most cases tickets are now more expensive here than abroad.

Domestic Flights

Domestic air fares have dropped substantially with the arrival of competition from private airlines. Cheap domestic flights can often be booked over the internet.

Allow Extra Time

When preparing to leave India, allow yourself an extra day to catch your plane on time. Strikes frequently occur in West Bengal with little prior warning, often paralysing rail and road transport. If you are leaving from our main Nabadwip Math, we therefore recommend that you spend the night prior to your departure at our Dum Dum Park Temple, Kolkata.

Airport Taxes

The old system of having to separately pay the airport tax at the airport on departure has been abolished. Since November 2001 this tax is now included in the purchase price of your ticket.

Tax Clearance Certificate

Tax clearance certificates are no longer required for visitors leaving India, even if they have been in India for more than 180 days. Other rules may apply if you are in India on a visa other than a Tourist Visa. Enquire from a reliable travel agent or the relevant Government department.

Changing Money

There is now an official money changer near our Math in Nabadwip, though you will get a slightly higher rate in Kolkata. At least one money changer is always open at India's international airports.
In Kolkata city there are several money changers, especially in the main tourist areas of Chowringhee and Sudder Street. The nearest to the Tourist Booking Office is exactly on the opposite side of Delhousie Square [also known as B.B.D. Bhag] from the General Post Office [G.P.O.]. It has a signboard above the entrance to a building on the main walkway.

Mailing Letters

When Posting Mail it is advisable to always have the stamps cancelled in front of you. Mail goes quicker from Kolkata than Nabadwip. Nabadwip now has an apparantly efficient computerised post office.

In Kolkata, if possible use the main Post Office, known as the 'G.P.O.' or the General Post Office [it's at Delhousie Square - also known as "B.B.D. Bhag"]. The "New Market Post Office," on Free School Street [Mirza Galib Street], in the main shopping area of Kolkata, seems also to function properly and the staff are helpful.

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	Travel Tips for Pilgrims updated April 2012 Travelling in India can be quite an austerity! Here are some Travel Tips to help make your pilgrimage a little more pleasant. Please also see Booking Train Tickets and information of the best train from Howrah to Nabadwip.

Travel Light
	You will be the one to appreciate it most! Always take good care of your baggage, passport, money, and other valuables. It is a good idea to carry your valuables in a money-belt.
Travel Agents and Fares
	Economically priced Travel Agents abound on Sudder Street, Kolkata, but be warned: India is no longer a bargain centre for cheap flights. In most cases tickets are now more expensive here than abroad.
Domestic Flights
	Domestic air fares have dropped substantially with the arrival of competition from private airlines. Cheap domestic flights can often be booked over the internet.
Allow Extra Time
	When preparing to leave India, allow yourself an extra day to catch your plane on time. Strikes frequently occur in West Bengal with little prior warning, often paralysing rail and road transport. If you are leaving from our main Nabadwip Math, we therefore recommend that you spend the night prior to your departure at our Dum Dum Park Temple, Kolkata.
Airport Taxes
	The old system of having to separately pay the airport tax at the airport on departure has been abolished. Since November 2001 this tax is now included in the purchase price of your ticket.
Tax Clearance Certificate
	Tax clearance certificates are no longer required for visitors leaving India, even if they have been in India for more than 180 days. Other rules may apply if you are in India on a visa other than a Tourist Visa. Enquire from a reliable travel agent or the relevant Government department.
Changing Money
	There is now an official money changer near our Math in Nabadwip, though you will get a slightly higher rate in Kolkata. At least one money changer is always open at India's international airports. In Kolkata city there are several money changers, especially in the main tourist areas of Chowringhee and Sudder Street. The nearest to the Tourist Booking Office is exactly on the opposite side of Delhousie Square [also known as B.B.D. Bhag] from the General Post Office [G.P.O.]. It has a signboard above the entrance to a building on the main walkway.
Mailing Letters
	When Posting Mail it is advisable to always have the stamps cancelled in front of you. Mail goes quicker from Kolkata than Nabadwip. Nabadwip now has an apparantly efficient computerised post office. In Kolkata, if possible use the main Post Office, known as the 'G.P.O.' or the General Post Office [it's at Delhousie Square - also known as "B.B.D. Bhag"]. The "New Market Post Office," on Free School Street [Mirza Galib Street], in the main shopping area of Kolkata, seems also to function properly and the staff are helpful.
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