let's travel to rishikesh

Rishikesh background

Let’s begin this Rishikesh travel guide with a little background. Rishikesh is one of the places to visit in Uttarakhand state in Northern India.

As a holy city, it’s been known for its spiritual importance for some time and even attracted a visit from The Beatles in the ’60s. This really put it on the map with Westerners and in recent years, it’s become a hotspot for Eat, Pray, Love types doing a little soul-searching and a lot of yoga.

Getting to Rishikesh

Bus: I arrived into Rishikesh by overnight bus from Dharamsala but it’s more common to arrive by bus from Delhi (both journeys take 13 hours). The bus station isn’t far from the centre of Rishikesh so it’s easy to jump into a tuk-tuk once you arrive.

Train: there are two railway stations, Rishikesh and Yog Nagri. There’s also one an hour’s drive away in Haridwar which better connects other destinations. Arranging taxi journeys in India is easy and affordable; just ask staff at your accommodation to help

Where to stay in Rishikesh

It’s worth noting that there are two areas of Rishikesh: the tourist part around Laxman Jhula bridge and the local heart a 30-minute drive away. While I’d recommend checking out both, the really scenic and relaxing part of Rishikesh is the tourist area by the bridge.

I stayed at an amazing hostel, Shiv Shakti, which had so much atmosphere and really wonderful, caring staff. Half of them took me to hospital during my stay so I would know! They also put on Bollywood dance nights, a free hostel dinner on a Thursday and trips to the beach, ghats and sunrise temple when enough people sign up. Highly recommended!

Rishikesh travel guide – things to do

Despite being pretty laid back, I found that there are actually a lot of things to do in Rishikesh. It’s not really one for city types but it’s fantastic if you like nature, outdoor adventures, anything spiritual or just kicking back in a cafe with a good book.

During my three weeks, I did these things around my schedule of work, coffee and returning to hospital (in case I haven’t harped on about it enough).