In
the past few years, Gangtok has gained much attention of people. Every
year, this beautiful hill-station is visited by many tourists from all
over the world. In this article, we will tell you how to reach Gangtok.
Reaching Gangtok is a bit problematic task, but once you reach there,
all your weariness would vanish. Gangtok is connected with Indian
National Highway No. 31A. In order to reach Gangtok, one has to go
enroute West Bengal. Neither Gangtok nor Sikkim has its own airport or
railway station. However, Gangtok is connected by roads to the rest of
India. Check out traveling/ travelling to Gangtok.By Air
Gangtok doesn't have its own airport; however the nearest airport lies at Bagdogra in West Bengal. Located at a distance of 124 kms from Gangtok, Bagdogra Airport is well connected with Kolkata, Delhi, Patna, Imphal and Guwahati. From the Airport, one can take regular buses, coaches and taxis that take around 4 hours to reach Gangtok.
By Helicopter
Helicopter service is available from Bagdogra to reach Gangtok and vice-versa. To get the benefit of this service, you have to contact your travel agent to get the booking done. Helicopter takes around 20 minutes to reach Gangtok from Bagdogra. This service is available only once during a day and four passengers are allowed at a time.
By Rail
As Gangtok also doesn't have its own railway station, the city relies on two nearest railway stations at New Jalpaiguri and Siliguri. These stations are connected to all the major cities of India. Located at a distance of 126 kms and 114 kms, these places are well-connected to Gangtok by road. From station itself, you can take regular tourist buses, coaches, taxis or jeeps to reach Gangtok.
By Road
Gangtok has a well-developed network of roads. National Highway 31A connects Gangtok to Siliguri, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and other mountain locales. Keeping in mind the weather conditions, the road has been touched up with metal. Regular tourist buses, coaches, taxis and jeeps commute daily to and fro from Siliguri, Bagdogra, Darjeeling and Kalimpong to Gangtok. From Gangtok, Bagdogra, Siliguri, Kalempong and Jalpaiguri lie at a distance of 124 Kms, 114 kms, 75 Kms and 125 kms respectively.
Entry Formalities
Since Sikkim falls at the border region of India, foreigners are required to get an Inner Line Permit (ILP) in addition to Indian visa. This permit can be acquired from the Indian Missions abroad. Moreover, this permission can also be obtained from offices of Sikkim Tourism at Siliguri, Delhi and Kolkata too.
