Jodhpur Transportation

Auto rickshaws provide the best option of maneouvering your way around Jodhpur, especially when it comes to tackling the byzantine alleys of the old part of town.
Before embarking on a round of the key points of interest, take the trouble to bargain hard with your friendly neighbourhood auto-wallah.

We arrived at Jodhpur after a 4 hour drive from Bikaner.The roads are busy, but in fairly good condition.Distance was about 240 kms from Bikaner. One can usually arrange car & driver as most hotels have a travel desk or connection. Trains can easily be booked at short notice.

'Distances from other cities by car:

Jaipur - 345 kms
Jaisalmer - 290 kms
Mumbai - 1075 kms
Delhi - 590 kms.

There are train connections from all major cities- the train from Delhi is overnight and day.

The Jodhpur Airport is 5 km from the city center. Regular flight services connect the city with other major cities in and around Rajasthan. There are daily flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Udaipur and Jaipur.

I took a government bus from Pushkar to Jodhpur from the bus station that is located to the north of Pushkar town near the track that takes you up to the Pap Mochani Temple. Unlike other buses in India, the one I took had good legroom. It left as 8.30am, took 5hrs and cost Rs100. The roads out of Pushkar are very good but be warned, they get worse the further you go towards Jodhpur. You'll get a good taste of rural Rajasthan on this trip and go through some real rural villages where the roads are all but washed away. The roads improve dramatically near Jodhpur. In fact we drove on a 4 lane toll road for about 30 miles. The Government Roadways bus stop is on Raika Bagh in Jodhpur.

Jodhpur Junction Railway Station is served by Northern Railways in Rajasthan. I took an early morning train from here to Jaisalmer (No. 4059) which left late but what can you do. It left 2 hours late at 8:45am and arrived in Jaisalmer at 3pm. On the way you'll notice that you'll arrive at a station in one direction and then leave it going back in the opposite direction. All strange!

As anywhere in India, auto-rickshaw's are widely available. I arrived in Jodphur by bus from Pushkar and took one into the city centre to my hotel which cost Rs30. I then left Jodhpur on the train to Jaisalmer and took another to the station which cost Rs40. If you want to visit the Umaid Bhavan Palace which is a fair distance outside the city centre, then you can take an auto-rickshaw. Mine cost Rs180 return plus waiting time.

By Air : Indian Airlines flights connect Jodhpur to Bombay, Delhi, Jaipur, and Udaipur. The Jodhpur airport is 5 km from the main city.

By Train : Trains to Jodhpur from Jaisalmer, Jaipur, Kota, Ahmedabad, Delhi, and Bikaner. The ‘Palace on Wheels’ is train travel in style. Rranked one of the best train in the world, the interiors of this luxury train along with appetizing cuisine and personalized service. Every salon has its own personal attendant dressed in ethnic Rajasthani costume. The train departs Delhi, stopping at many stations including Jodhpur on a roundtrip back to Delhi.

By Road : Buses are available to Jodhpur from Udaipur, Jaipur, Aimer, Jaisalmer, Ahmedabad and Delhi. RSTC buses as well as private luxury buses travel these routes to Jodhpur.

Autos are the standard mode of transportation in many Indian cities. They turn on a dime, careen around corners, and seem to narrowly avoid pedestrians too often to make for a relaxing trip. . .the excitement is almost as much as that at an amusement park ride.

Jodhpur has particular panache when it comes to decorations ~ there are stars, stripes, movie posters and decals all over, personalizing each ride you take.