Buddhist Tour Packages

Pick-up at Delhi airport or station and transfer to your hotel. The afternoon is free; the Buddha relics gallery at the National Museum on Janpath is a fitting start if you arrive early. Overnight at Delhi.

Morning flight from Delhi to Patna, about 1.5 hours. The vehicle for the circuit meets you at the airport, and the drive to Bodh Gaya is about 110 km and 3 hours through Jehanabad. Check in, and walk to the Mahabodhi temple in the evening when the lamps are lit. Overnight at Bodh Gaya.

Mahabodhi temple at opening time, the Bodhi tree and the Vajrasana behind it, and the Animesh Lochan chaitya and Muchalinda lake within the complex. After lunch, the Sujata stupa across the Phalgu river and the monasteries built by Thailand, Bhutan and Japan, with the Great Buddha statue at the end. Overnight at Bodh Gaya.

Rajgir is about 70 km and 2 hours. Ropeway or steps to the Vishwa Shanti stupa and Griddhakuta, the Vulture's Peak, then Venuvana. Nalanda, 15 km on, for the excavated monastery ruins and the museum. Continue about 90 km to Patna for the night; the Patna Museum's relic casket is seen if you arrive before 4.30 pm.

Vaishali is about 55 km north across the Ganga: the Ashokan lion pillar at Kolhua and the relic stupa. Then a long drive of about 230 km and 6 hours through Muzaffarpur and Gopalganj to Kushinagar. Evening at the Mahaparinirvana temple to see the reclining Buddha. Overnight at Kushinagar.

Ramabhar stupa, the cremation site, at opening, then about 250 km west through Gorakhpur and Basti to Shravasti, roughly 6 hours. Afternoon at Jetavana, the monastery grounds where the Buddha spent many rainy seasons, and the Anandabodhi tree. Overnight at Shravasti.

About 280 km and 7 hours south through Ayodhya and Jaunpur; a short stop at the Saryu in Ayodhya is possible. Reach Sarnath in the late afternoon for the Dhamek stupa and the museum with the lion capital, then continue 10 km into Varanasi. Overnight at Varanasi.

The longest day, about 380 km and 9 to 10 hours north to the Sonauli border, with immigration formalities on both sides, then 25 km to Lumbini. Depart by 6 am. Overnight at Lumbini.

Maya Devi temple, the marker stone and the Ashokan pillar in the morning, then the international monastic zone. Recross the border and drive to Piprahwa, the Indian Kapilvastu, about 100 km, for the stupa and the palace mounds. Continue about 100 km to Gorakhpur for the night.

Kushinagar is about 55 km east; a second, quieter visit to the Mahaparinirvana temple and the Matha Kuar shrine. Then about 280 km south to Varanasi, 6 to 7 hours, arriving in time for the Ganga aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat. Overnight at Varanasi.

Sunrise boat on the Ganga for those leaving later in the day, then transfer to Lal Bahadur Shastri airport or Varanasi Junction for the onward journey.