salt lake city accommodation and travel

eureka

Does anyone know how long it would take to travel from Sudder St. to Salt lake city by car/ autorickshaw? How much should this journey cost?

Also, are there any budget hostels/ hotels in salt lake city or its environs that can be booked online? (Basic is fine, as long as it has a clean loo!).

Thanks!

martinez

Hi,
the trip from sudder st to saltlake is around 40 mins in normal traffic at a fare of around 300rps.It could be less if u want to be extra frugal in which case you might want to get the bus from the bus stands at esplanade (right near sudder street).
Maybe a good alternative accomodation for you might be at the beggining of Mahatma Gandi road just near Sealdah station ....its much nearer salt lake and away from tourist town(sudder area)...Enjoy Kolkata, it is a jewel of a city with a wonderful soul. Martinez

stungan

Hi,
The round-trip taxi fare from Sudder Street to Saltlake shouldn't be more than INR 300. Ask the cabbie to take you there via Park Circus & Science City. It's a bit long-winded route but you'll avoid traffic snarls that way and reach faster. Calculating cab fare in Calcutta is simple: if it's an electronic meter (inside the cab) then double the reading and you get the fare. [Actually should be a little bit less but that calculation is a bit complicated]. If the metre is a simple, mechanical one and placed on the bonnet then 4X the reading to get the fare.
If you can pinpont the location in Saltlake you want to visit, then I can probably tell you cheaper ways to get there. But do your homework about Saltlake as addresses can be confusing. Wikimapia can be a good guide.
Cheers!

eureka

That's very useful. Well, I need to regularly visit a friend in Sector 3 in Salt Lake, and living closeby would be useful. Any suggestions as to cheap hostels/ hotels in the area? I'm not sure living in Sudder and commuting to Salt Lake every day would make sense...

stungan

To be very frank, I don't have much idea about accommodation at Saltlake except that you may have to shell out a premium even at the "cheaper" places. However, if you factor in the cabfare from Sudder St, then it makes sense to stay in the hood. Googling can give you some idea. I found this one: http://www.clicksaltlake.info/details.php?main_category=2&su b_cat_id=92&id=1622. This is in Sector III. When are you planning a trip? I'll try see if I can dig out some more info if there's time.

somnath

Hi eureka,
Welcome to Kolkata.

From Sudder st. to Saltlake – I prefer shuttle taxi service. This is a very popular as well as comfortable ride. If you can come down to Park Street or Exide area you’ll find Maruti omni vans / Tata Sumo are waiting (well, you need to wait for couple of moments somtimes). This shared taxi service will cost you 10 – 15 Rs. To come down to Karubamoyee, which is actually heart of Saltlake.

BTW, I’ll suggest you to take the first ride from Karunamoyee to Park St. or Exide because the taxi stand is situated in more prominent place there.
Another route :
Avail Metro and get down at Shobhabazar > auto rickshaw for Ultadanga and change another one for Saltlake.

Accommodation : Saltlake is a very preferred place for IT guys. There are some paying guest and all but I think you can ask your friend for a safe and better option. BTW, Udaychal guest House is a good option in Saltlake.

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eureka

Thanks for the link Stungan. I had in fact shot off emails to the whole list on that page the day before but so far I've just got one response - something about how they only rent out to "clients in the corporate sector"... wanted details of my company In any case, my friend has sorted me out with accommodation in sector 3, so I'm good to go.

So now I guess I have to figure out how to get from salt lake to everywhere else in town to do the usual tourist sites. The book fair sounds like fun too.

Somnath, do outbound Salt Lake shuttle taxis only depart from Karubamoyee? Is it possible to walk to this place from sector 3, or do you have to take a taxi? (I have no idea how large salt lake actually is). Does the shuttle taxi service go to places other than sudder st? And if so, are their routes made public somewhere? Thanks!

stungan

Hello Eureka! The problem with these shuttle cabs is they are not regulated and therefore the routes are usually not made public.
There are two types of shuttle cabs: The dedicated ones ply on 'fixed' routes and the other group is basically chauffeurs of privately owned cars looking to make a few quick bucks by picking up the odd passenger for a small fee. The second group usually doesn't have any fixed route and you can only avail their service if your destinations match.
There are plenty of buses plying to and from Salt Lake to Kolkata city centre and you can easily get onto one of them. Karunamoyee is a big junction for all buses/autos/shuttle cabs/normal cabs plying in Salt Lake so you can take a look and decide what is best for you. That said, taking a cab won't be a bad idea especially if you are travelling in a group, just remember how to calculate the fare so that the cabbie doesn't rip you off.
My suggestion will be: Take a cab to the Indian Museum and start checking out the touristy stuff from there. Esplanade and Park Street are just a corner away and you also have the city tube at your disposal, which is the cheapest and the fastest way to move across the city's north-south corridor.
As for your questions:
Outbound shuttle taxis usually depart from Karunamoyee.
It is possible to walk from Sector 3, but again it depends on the distance.
Saltlake is fairly large. It's a full-blooded township in the what-was-earlier the outskirts of Calcutta. I strongly suggest that you take a look at online maps like http://www.wikimapia.org.
I don't think shuttle taxis will go all the way to Sudder Street. They usually operate between fixed points and drop off the passengers at a well-connected location, like Exide Crossing, which is two tube stations away from Park Street/Sudder Street.

BTW, you can check out these few places in and around Salt Lake:
Nicco Park - This is an amusement park near Sector 3
City Centre - A shopping mall with decent open air eateries and cafes
Swabhumi - Open air amusement and shopping centre
The restaurant on top of Charnock City - Not so high, but not bad either

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travo

Hi,
When are U coming to Kolkata? Why dont U stay in salt lake if U really need to come to Salt Lake everyday? just check the following link for a salt lake hotel in sector 3:
http://www.hotelthesojourn.com

Other hotels

Hyatt Regency, JA-1, Sector-3, phone (033)2335-1234 & 5
The Stadel, gate 3, Salt Lake Stadium, Sector-3, Phone (033)2335-7220, (033)2335-7219,e-mail:stadel@vsnl.net
Udayachal Tourist Lodge, DG-1, Sector-1, phone033)2321-6127Aayash hotel DD-24A, Sector 1,Salt Lake,Phone (033)2358-0809

Link to Salt Lake map
http://www.clicksaltlake.info/slmap....dd9a395d363532

stake501

i would take metro to belgachia, and then take auto or taxi from there, much quicker, cleaner and cheaper

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