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The front of Guwahati railway station at Paltan Bazar, with blue auto-rickshaws and people outside its red-roofed entrance
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Photo: BhuyanBhaskar · CC BY 4.0
ArticleVerified 2026-10-24

How to reach Meghalaya and Nagaland from Delhi — Guwahati, Dimapur, Shillong airport and the hill roads

Delhi to Shillong, Cherrapunji and Kohima: flights and trains to Guwahati and Dimapur, hill road times in km, Shillong airport and the Nagaland ILP.

Meghalaya and Nagaland are far from Delhi: about 1,869 km to Shillong and about 2,106 km to Kohima by road, so nearly everyone flies or takes a train. The gateway to Meghalaya is Guwahati, and the gateway to Nagaland is Dimapur. Every road figure here is OpenStreetMap routing from our hub guides, free-flow, and the rain and hill roads add time. We have no verified train, flight or bus timetable, so check current services.

Photos: Harshogogoi (CC BY-SA 3.0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.

By road from Delhi

  • Shillong: about 1,869 km, 22.5 hours free-flow.
  • Cherrapunji: about 1,916 km, 23 hours.
  • Kohima: about 2,106 km; free-flow routing says 25.5 hours, and the drive takes several days.

To Meghalaya

  • By air and train to Guwahati. Shillong is about 100 km from Guwahati on NH 40, about two and a half hours by Wikipedia's account, through hills with Umiam Lake on the way. On our routing it is about 97 km and 146 minutes from the city side to the town centre, and Guwahati airport is about 117 km and 161 minutes from Shillong. Private and state buses and taxis run daily.
  • Shillong Airport at Umroi, the only operating civilian airport in Meghalaya by Wikipedia's account, is about 26 km and 50 minutes from the town. It is small, with flights to Kolkata and some north-eastern cities, so check the schedule before you plan around it.
  • By rail: none to Shillong. Wikipedia says a 22 km line from Tetelia to Byrnihat was planned for completion by 2026, with an extension to Shillong expected to start the same year. See how to reach Shillong.
  • Cherrapunji is about 50 km and 88 minutes from Shillong on our routing. From Shillong Airport it is about 74 km and 132 minutes, and from Guwahati airport about 164 km and 242 minutes. See how to reach Cherrapunji.

To Nagaland

Kohima is a hill capital with no railway and no working airport of its own, and everyone comes through Dimapur.

  • Dimapur Airport: about 66 km and 105 minutes from Kohima on our routing; Wikipedia and Wikivoyage say 74 km. Kohima's own airport at Chiethu is under construction.
  • Dimapur railway station: about 69 km and 107 minutes. Chümoukedima Shokhüvi station: about 59 km and 100 minutes. Wikipedia says a line towards Kohima, with a station at Zubza, is being built.
  • From Guwahati: about 335 km and 258 minutes on free-flow routing, before traffic.
  • The Dimapur–Kohima highway, on NH 2 and NH 29, is tolled.

Permits for Nagaland

Indian citizens from outside Nagaland need an Inner Line Permit to go beyond the inner line. The Commissioner, Nagaland's page says the tourist permit is valid for 15 days and is applied for online at ilp.nagaland.gov.in; we last read it on 23 October 2026. Do it before you travel. For foreign nationals, press reports in December 2024 said the Protected Area Regime had been reimposed, so check the current rule with the state before you plan. Read how to reach Kohima.

Plan the trip

Read the best time to visit Meghalaya and Nagaland, month by month, the festivals by month and what to eat.

Places to visit

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Nagini
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Vashisht Temple and hot springs
Vashisht Temple and hot springs
Manali
The white domed Shanti Stupa and its stairway against a blue sky with bare brown hills behind
Shanti Stupa — the white stupa on the ridge above Leh
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A central water channel with fountains and flower beds climbing the terraces of Nishat Bagh below dry mountains
Nishat Bagh — the terraced Mughal garden of joy on Dal Lake
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The stone entrance gate of the Bagnath temple with hanging bells and a small tower behind it on a paved forecourt
Bagnath Temple, Bageshwar — the Shiva shrine at the Sarayu–Gomati confluence
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Tosh village stacked on its slope above the Parvati
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Kasol
Forest and sky reflected in the still water of Tani Jubbar Lake
Tani Jubbar Lake
Narkanda
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Destinations to explore

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Today on HimLocal

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Questions people ask

How do you reach Shillong from Delhi?

Most people fly or take a train to Guwahati, then go about 100 km up the national highway, roughly two and a half hours by Wikipedia's account. Shillong Airport at Umroi, about 26 km from the town, is small, with flights to Kolkata and some north-eastern cities. By road, Delhi is about 1,869 km away.

How do you reach Kohima?

Through Dimapur, on the plain below. Dimapur Airport is about 66 km and 105 minutes by road from Kohima on our routing, and Dimapur railway station about 69 km and 107 minutes. Kohima has no working airport or railway of its own, and Indian visitors from outside Nagaland need an Inner Line Permit.

Is there a railway to Meghalaya?

Not to Shillong or Cherrapunji. Wikipedia says a 22 km line from Tetelia on Guwahati's edge to Byrnihat was planned for completion by 2026, with an extension to Shillong expected to start the same year. Until then Guwahati, about 165 km from Cherrapunji, is the nearest railway station, and the rest is by road.