Getting There & Around

Getting There & Around

Most travelers to Tamil Nadu fly into Chennai, Madurai, or Tiruchirappalli. Chennai's international airport is about 16 km (10 mi) from the center of town. From here you can get domestic flights to most major cities within India and to many smaller destinations in the south.

Travelers who can afford it often hire a car and driver for their stay in Tamil Nadu. Drivers know the major routes, and it can be a real convenience to have him with you for several days.

Chennai is linked to the north by National Highway 5 (NH-5), to the west by NH-4, and to the south by NH-45. Road and traffic conditions often make driving more time-consuming than the distance suggests, although major road improvements have made the drive to Bangalore, 334 km (207 mi) to the west, better than before.

From Chennai, the drives south to Kanchipuram, Mahabalipuram, and Pondicherry are short and simple, and make it easy to make side trips to DakshinaChitra

and other interesting places along the way. The East Coast Road is more scenic than NH-45 and gets you to Mahabalipuram in one hour. The 50-km (31-mi) drive from Tiruchirappalli to Thanjavur crosses through rice fields interspersed with canals. And the daylong (10-hour) drive on NH-5 from Chennai to Madurai takes you through several villages.

For short trips of under four hours or so, taking a bus can be a good option. The low bus fares are hard to beat. However, the drawbacks—the lack of toilet facilities and the frequent lateness in schedules—mean that a bus trip isn't for everyone.

If you do choose to take a bus, head to the bus station and look for the nicest-looking buses headed for your destination. The cheapest buses tend to be old, with worn-out shocks and interiors, making for a very bumpy, long trip.

Trains can be a useful, albeit fairly time-consuming, way to get to the major cities of Tamil Nadu. The air-conditioned chair-car (rows of chairs, but no berths) service (Vaigai Express) from Chennai to Tiruchirappalli (6 hours) and Madurai (7½ hours) is a relaxing way to see the countryside. (Alternatively, the night trains to Madurai save you sightseeing time.)