How To Reach Ajanta

The ancient complex of Buddhist rock cut monuments popularly known as the Ajanta Caves lies about a 100 km towards the north of Aurangabad, past the arid regions of the Deccan Plateau. Along with the Ellora Caves, the Ajanta Caves are one of the primary tourist attractions of India, if not the world. The Ajanta Caves lie about 420 km to the northeast of the capital city of Mumbai and about 60 km from the city of Jalgaon. The nearest town is Fardapur that lies about 10 km from the Ajanta Caves.

Ajanta Caves being a hot seat of tourism is easily accessible by road, rail or air. The city of Aurangabad which is one of the major cities of Maharashtra and the biggest region of Marathwada, has a well-developed transport system and provides for an easy and comfortable access to the Ajanta Caves. The most ideal way to reach the Caves would probably be by rail.

The closest airport is the newly launched Jalgaon Airport that has domestic flights to Mumbai and Ahmedabad. From the Jalgaon airport you can hire a cab or auto rickshaw to Ajanta Caves. The airport is about 47 km from the Ajanta Caves. The other option would be the Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Airport or Chikkalthana Airport at Aurangabad that has direct and connecting flights to New Delhi, Mumbai, Udaipur, Hyderabad etc.

For international tourists, the ideal option would be flying into Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport and boarding a domestic flight to Aurangabad. There are cabs or local taxis as well as local buses that could drop you off at Ajanta Caves from Aurangabad Airport.

Two of the primary rail heads near Ajanta Caves are the Aurangabad and Jalgaon Railway Stations. The Jalgaon Railway Station that belongs to the Central Railways, is the closest by distance and has many fast and superfast trains chugging in from significant cities, so a train travel to Jalgaon would not be a problem. Trains like NZM Link Express (Hubli-Hazrat Nizamuddin), Cstn Garibrath (Jabalpur- Mumbai), Hyb Aii Express (Hyderabad-Ajmer) are some of the trains that halt at Jalgaon.

You could also take a train to Aurangabad that belongs to the South Central Railways and has trains coming in from cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bengaluru etc. You could board a bus from Aurangabad to Ajanta Caves. There are auto and taxi stands outside the railway station.

Mumbai – Aurangabad Highway is well connected to most cities like Bijapur, Udaipur, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Shirdi, Pune, Ahmedabad, Indore and Jaipur. If you would love a long drive, you could hit the road from any of these cities to Aurangabad, tour the city and continue your journey to the Ajanta Caves. You could also book a flight from either of these cities to Aurangabad. After exploring the city of Aurangabad, hop onto a state run or private bus or book a cab to the Ajanta Caves.

There are private as well as state run Maharashtra State Tourism Corporation (MTDC) regular and luxury buses that run from Aurangabad to Ajanta and Ellora Caves as well as to primary tourist destinations in Aurangabad. Check out the MTDC and MSRTC AC Volvo buses that run to Ajanta and Ellora Caves.

You might be exploring the caves on foot, so a transport within the region might not be an issue. But there are plenty of auto rickshaws, cabs and local taxis in Aurangabad that can be hired to take you to the Ajanta Caves. There are luxury and local buses as well that ply to the tourist spot and organized tour buses are arranged to run between Aurangabad to the Ajanta and Ellora Caves that include pit stops at significant places in Aurangabad like Daulatabad Fort, Grigneshwar Temple and Aurangazeb’s Tomb at Khuldabad.

The Aurangabad Bus Station is about 2 km from the Railway Station. You could hire an auto rickshaw to take you to the bus station and board a bus to Ajanta Caves.