Finally reached my home some time this afternoon after an annoyingly late train. That’s it for the land route. Had its ups and downs (literal and figurative), but overall entirely worth it.
1 Like
Nice to see how this trip turned out!
I was wondering whether it might be useful to keep a short summary of the routes that worked, especially the border crossings and train connections. A lot of the details shared here could be helpful for people planning similar trips to future gatherings.
Of course, visa rules can change, so those would still need checking. Just a thought!
I doubt any of the routes I took would be of much use for future events (except, say, if they happen in Nepal or India), but I’m happy to share my experience.
Leg-by-leg, this is how it went:
Mumbai–Jaynagar: Uneventful but very long (39 hour) journey. Arrived on time, ~2am.
At Jaynagar: Wait 2–9:30 for the first train into Nepal. Mostly at the station, a few hours at a lodge for shower. Advisable to alight at a previous station and take a later train to Jaynagar (or go to Raxaul if you need visas). Alternatively there are rickshaws all through the night that take you to the road border (likely won’t open till 5–6 am, and no immigration facility).
Jaynagar–Janakpur: Customs scan on the Indian side (there may be on the Nepali side in the opposite direction). Train only available to Indian and Nepali citizens. No immigration facility, but be prepared for questioning.
Janakpur–Kathmandu–Pokhara–Lumbini: This leg was over 2 weeks. Within Nepal but crossing provinces, which didn’t have any issues. Rains and landslides can cause significant delays.
Belahiya/Sonauli Border: This is a complete ICP open to all travellers (including visa on arrival facilities). Minimal checks, mostly still meant for “locals” (the official was curiously looking at my ID from the other side of India), immigration facilities are in separate buildings before and after the gates. Nepali side will refuse an arrival stamp without a departure stamp from India, and a departure stamp without a previous arrival stamp from Nepal.
Sonauli–Gorakhpur–Lucknow: Regular buses from about 500m away from the border, some shared taxis even starting from the Nepali side. The Indian immigration office is near the bus stop.
Lucknow–Mumbai: Significant delays of 11–15 hours for the 23 hour train ride. Ideally book a place near the station, including “retiring rooms” within the premises. Lucknow itself is a good place to visit if stuck there.
The key takeaways are basically:
- Confirm that the gates are available for you. Even if they are, do not assume you will be properly directed through the correct channels: the immigration and custom checkpoints may be separate from the gates.
- I fortunately didn’t have to deal with this, but be sure of custom/currency rules. Until July, it was not allowed to take INR 200 and 500 notes into Nepal, and even today the limits of permitted cash is different for INR/NPR and other currencies.
- Ensure that when alighting the train/bus etc halts at an appropriate time. There may not be sleeping arrangements at the destination open at the time.
- Be mindful of ground situation and remain patient with mountainous terrain. Take flights if necessary (owing to the domestic flight price differences by nationality, it may be cheaper to get to a Nepali airport and then fly domestic, or fly international from India to begin with).
Knowing what I know now, the more convenient way may have been to take the opposite route Mumbai–Barhni/Krishnanagar border–Lumbini–Kathmandu–Janakpur–Jaynagar–Mumbai, possibly beginning the journey in mid September. The train timings are more amenable with less time spent overnight on the platform. This situation might change with time.