If you are planning a trip later in the year and want to blend it with a spiritual sojourn, you can explore IRCTC Tourism's Buddhist Circuit Special Train package that entails an eight-day long itinerary, and will cover places of spiritual significance including Bodhgaya, Nalanda, Rajgir, Varanasi, Samath, among others. The IRCTC Tourism's Buddhist Circuit Special Train is an exclusive air conditioned train for Buddhist circuit destinations and does not carry passenger other than the tourist booked with IRCTC for this special tour. The special train (train number 2012) is equipped with private security guards in each coach for round-the-clock watch to for the safety of passengers.
The tourists can choose from an assortment of sumptuous hot meals (both veg and non-vegetarian), snacks and cold drinks.
The stay will happen in decent hotels in the cities that will be covered along the route. The cities that will be covered during the trip include Bodhgaya, Nalanda, Rajgir, Varanasi, Samath, Kushinagar, Lumbini Sravati and Agra.
The tourists interested to go on Buddhist Circuit Train are offered IRCTC special promo offer that entails 10 per cent discount on the charges. The offer will be applicable for bookings received before October 6 this year.
There are three types of stays on offer. The premium offering is first class which is available for Rs 78,713, followed by 1 AC Coupe which is also available at the same rate. The first AC Coupe consists only two passengers sharing a cabin during the train journey. The eight-day journey in the second AC train (two-tier) is available for Rs 64,402.
Eight-Day Long Buddhist Circuit Itinerary:
Day 1: The train will start from Delhi Safdarjung station in the afternoon.
Day 2: The train arrives in Gaya in the morning. The passengers will visit Bodhgaya. There will be overnight stay in the hotel.
Day 3: The passengers will visit Rajgir and Nalanda. From there, there will be departure for Varanasi in the evening.
Day 4: The tourists will arrive in morning. Thereafter they will visit Somnath, followed by a visit to Ganges to witness the evening aarti. In the evening, the tourists will depart for Gorakhpur in the evening.
Day 5 - Day 6: The tourists will arrive in Gorakhpur in morning. They will visit Kushinagar/ Lubini (Nepal). There will be overnight stay at hotel. The breakfast will be served in the hotel followed by sightseeing.
Day 7: The tourists will reach Gonda in morning. They will be escorted to Srasvati. From there, they will depart for Agra in the evening.
Day 8: The tourists will reach Agra in morning. They will get to see Taj Mahal. Finally the jouney comes to an end when they will depart for Delhi in the afternoon. The train will reach Safdarjung Railway Station in evening.
Dates on which you can start your journey:
TOUR DATES (commencement from Delhi) | ||
---|---|---|
Month | Date | Year |
September | 29th | 2018 |
October | 13th | 2018 |
October | 27th | 2018 |
November | 10th | 2018 |
November | 24th | 2018 |
December | 08th | 2018 |
December | 22nd | 2018 |
January | 05th | 2019 |
January | 19th | 2019 |
February | 02nd | 2019 |
February | 16th | 2019 |
March | 02nd | 2019 |
March | 23rd | 2019 |
September | 21st | 2019 |
October | 05th | 2019 |
October | 19th | 2019 |
November | 02nd | 2019 |
November | 16th | 2019 |
November | 30th | 2019 |
December | 14th | 2019 |
December | 28th | 2019 |
January | 11th | 2020 |
January | 25th | 2020 |
February | 08th | 2020 |
February | 22nd | 2020 |
March | 14th | 2020 |
March | 28th | 2020 |
Credit: www.irctctourism.co.in | All the above dates are on Saturdays |