Gaggal Airport to Dharamshala taxi

About this drive

This is the short, steady climb most visitors make within minutes of landing. Gaggal Airport sits on the valley floor at about 770 metres, and Dharamshala is spread across the hillside above it. In 13 km the Dhauladhar goes from a line on the horizon to a wall that fills the windscreen.

Our driver will be outside arrivals with your name on a board. He tracks your flight, so if it is late (and Gaggal flights often are when the weather turns), he waits without extra charge.

The road

Out of the airport onto the Pathankot–Mandi highway, through Gaggal bazaar, then up the Dharamshala road past Sidhbari and the Chinmaya Tapovan turn to Kotwali Bazaar in lower Dharamshala.

Worth a stop on the way

• Chinmaya Tapovan: A quiet ashram with a large Hanuman statue, just off the road at Sidhbari.
• HPCA Stadium: One of the most photographed cricket grounds anywhere, with the mountains straight behind it.

Season and road conditions

Open all year. In July and August Dharamshala gets very heavy rain. The road stays open, but leave extra time.

Local tip: If you are staying in McLeodganj, book that route instead. It is 9 km more uphill through a narrow one-way bazaar, and the fare is different.