From Delhi to Dharamshala / Amritsar / Shimla late December

Tjorven

From Delhi to Dharamshala / Amritsar / Shimla

Hello!

Me and my boyfriend, (both aged approx 30) will arrive in Delhi December 20, our first time in India.
We are staying until January 13.

Which is the most appropriate train to take to Dharamshala?
Do we need to bring sleeping bags considering its winter and in that case can we easily find it in Delhi?

Its possible we will visit Amritsar and/or Shimla.
Are Shimla and Amritsar or possibly other sites in the vicinity nice places to visit?

After a couple of days in Dharamshala, we will continue to Agra and Varanasi.

puchoo

I would suggest that you be open to taking buses as well. While there might not be too much difference in a Volvo and a train ticket the flexibility which a bus offers , time wise, is pretty good.

Additionally its a high traffic sector ensuring that you will get enough choices throughout the day. You can check with the Himachal Pradhesh Tourism website for timetables. they have Volvo services running.

Nearest broad gauge railhead is Pathankot 95 km. A narrow gauge railway line between Pathankot and Jogindernagar passes through Kangra, 17 km. from Dharamshala.

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Sidharth

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jyotirmoy

Take the Jammu mail in the night and reach Pathankot in the morning. From here take bus, cab, share cab to Dharmashala.
If you are staying in hotels you will be provided with blankets and or quilts so you won't need sleeping bags. In trains if you travel by AC coach, bot 2AC & 3AC you will be provided with bed and blanket.
Lots of posts on Shimla and Amritsar here, please go thru.

shashank.aggarwal

The best rain is Uttar S Kranti...

get off it at Chakki bank station, its only 5 minutes by shared auto to Pathankot. From Pathank as Dada said, take the bus, cab, share cab etc..

Uttar S Kranti is cheap and best option...

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kullukid

your best route would be Delhi to Amritsar 5hrs express train then train or bus/taxi to Pathankot where you can catch the bus to Dharamsala or the much slower toy train to Kangra then bus to Dharamsala you can get direct buses from Dharamsala to Shimla where you can then catch the toy train back towards Chandigargh then train to Delhi however it is much faster by bus from Shimla to Delhi, but the toy train is a must! Agra is a one 1-2 day trip from Delhi. To get to Varanasi verreeee long train journey from Delhi.KK

ChocolatNY

i took the Golden Mail express from Delhi to Amritsar. Amritsar is a lovely place, don't miss it. The Golden Temple is really beaut. if you need to know about eateries, i'll get back to you in a day or so. Wagah border is about 25 mins drive from amritsar, it's an interesting experience.

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karnail

Kullukid, you dont need to go to Amritsar for reaching Pathankot, from Amritsar you leave GT Road and turn right for Pathankot.

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kullukid

Yes Karnail, this i know but if you read the full post the OP wants to visit Amritsar. KK

Tjorven

Thank you very much for your advice!
We have decided to go from Delhi to Pathankot with train. If it is possible we will take the Kangra Train as far as it goes to Dharamshala. Bus still feels a little uncomfortable to use because of the terrain. We skipped Shimla due to lack of time.