Ins and outs
Getting there
The most convenient way to get to Agartala is by air, with connections to Kolkata and Guwahati taking under an hour. Foreigners must register their arrival at the airport. Transfer to the centre of town is by taxi (Rs 225) or auto (Rs 95). Buses from Guwahati take about 20 hours or the train involves a change at Lumding in Assam, then chair-car onward to Agartala. The border with Bangladesh, just 2 km from Agartala, is convenient for anyone with a visa to get to Dhaka, which is three hours by road and three hours by train.
Agartala
Air
Airport transfer, 13 km: taxi, Rs 225; auto-rickshaw, Rs 95. Flights to Kolkata, and Guwahati with Indian Airlines, Palace Compound, T0381-232 5470, airport, T0381-234 2020, http://www.indian-airlines.nic.in; Jet Airways , http://www.jetairways.com; Indigo, http://www.goindigo.in; and Kingfisher, http://www.flykingfisher.com.
Bus
Travelling around Agartala is easy. North-bound buses within the state leave from the Motor Stand on Motor Stand Rd, along with sumos. The south-bound station has bus and jeep connections to Neermahal, Udaipur and all other southerly destinations, just turn up as departures are consistent from 0600 until around 1600. Jeeps are faster and a bit more expensive.
The new International Bus Stand is on HG Hospital Rd, where buses leave for Bangladesh daily at 1200 (booking counter opens at 1030, Rs 1000 through to Kolkata).
In the same building is the TRTC office (0530-1900) with daily buses to Guwahati (1130, 20 hrs, Rs 424/500 for non or a/c) via Shillong and Silchar (0600, 13 hrs, Rs 137). There are private buses, also from the International terminal, to Guwahati (2 leave at 0600, 7 leave at 1200, Rs 475-495) and Silchar (1 at 0600, 12 hrs, Rs 250).
Car/taxi
Tourist taxi from Directorate of Information, about Rs 700 per day, T0381- 222 2419. Car hire also possible from agents around town (clustered around Durga Bari Road). The Welcome Palace charge Rs 600 per day for an Indica car, plus Rs 6 per km.
Train
Agartalans are proud of their gleaming new railway station (5 km south) completed in 2008 and modelled on the Ujjayanta Palace. Computerized bookings at the station or office opposite the International bus station, T0381- 232 5533, Mon-Fri 0800-1945, Sun 0800-1345. 3 trains per day link with Lumding (8 hrs), Dharmanagar and Silchar (16 hrs) but, as these are only chair-car so the bus might be the more comfortable option. If travelling north to Kalaishahar, it’s much quicker to take the train than the bus. From Lumding, it’s a sleeper car on to Guwahati. Construction is underway to complete the line, south to Sabroom, by 2011.
