How To Reach Lilabari

A small town located in Assam’s North Lakhimpur, Lilabari is popular for its waterside, given its locale on River Brahmaputra’s left bank. Lilabari is known for its scenic views of the Sela Pass and Dirang Valley, and also as an airport that serves not only Assam but Arunachal Pradesh as well. Being one of the largest cities in Assam, Lilabari’s connected well to the rest of the country both by air and road, although it doesn’t have a railway station of its own. The nearest train station to Lilabari is in Dibrugarh, about 140km away. Here's a guide on how to reach Lilabari.

One of the best ways of reaching Lilabari is to take a flight. With an airport of its own, there are flights coming in from Guwahati every day which is just an hour away via flight, making it easier to reach Lilabari. However, flight travel may be affected during winter, hence it’d be better to explore flying into the next available airport. The closest airport to Lilabari is in Jorhat, about 63km away. If you are traveling from New Delhi, then take a flight to Jorhat, for which the travel time is roughly 4 hours and 30 minutes in the approximate cost range of INR 5,000-16,000. On arrival at Jorhat, you can then make the onward journey to Lilabari by taxi which takes another 5 hours or so. Alternatively, you can also explore flying into Dibrugarh or Tezpur and then making the onward journey to Lilabari by train. 

Since there’s no direct train station in Lilabari, the closest one to the town is in the city of Dibrugarh about 140km away, which services trains from Delhi and Guwahati daily and is the next best option to reach Lilabari. This is also one of the cheapest ways of reaching Lilabari. Second class travel from Guwahati-Dibrugarh is about INR 250, however, it is best to secure advance reservations for booking your travel. If you’re traveling from Delhi, then from the Anand Vihar Terminal, there’s a train for Harmuti, twice a week, which takes about 37 hours to reach and then it’s a ½ hour’s drive to Lilabari by Taxi. The estimated fare for train travel, inclusive of transfers is about INR 1,600-2,000.

Lilabari’s road accessibility is quite efficient which, however, is affected during Monsoons, with possible flood or landslide challenges. Through most part of the year, it is easy to reach Lilabari from neighboring cities of Guwahati, Imphal, Dispur and Aizwal. From Guwahati, there are buses plying thrice a day to North Lakhimpur in the range of INR 800-1,000, which takes about 11 hours and 44 minutes, and then the onward journey to Lilabari can be made in less than 5 minutes by taxi.

To move around Lilabari, there are taxis, bus services and shared jeeps that connect the town to other neighboring cities and towns. Alternately, you can hire a car for your personal use and then drive around yourself. You can explore numerous state transport buses and tourist vehicles via Guwahati, Tezpur, Jorhat, etc., and also use cab services like a Maruti Van/Tata Sumo.