How to reach Dhanaulti

The distances that matter

From Delhi

~300 kmSeven to nine hours depending where you join the highway

From Dehradun

~50 kmTo the railhead; then up through Mussoorie

From Jolly Grant Airport

~83 kmAbout three hours, the last one all bends

From Mussoorie

~25 kmPast Landour and Suwakholi along the ridge

Those last two lines are the ones people get wrong. Dhanaulti looks close to Dehradun on a map, but almost all of it is hill road, and hill road does not do highway speeds.

From Delhi by road

Three sensible routes. They differ more in character than in time.

Via Dehradun and Mussoorie

Delhi → Meerut → Muzaffarnagar → Roorkee → Dehradun → Mussoorie → Suwakholi → Dhanaulti. The one most people take and the one we would pick. You climb through Mussoorie and Landour, the views start early, and the last stretch runs along the ridge.

Via Rishikesh, Chamba and Kanatal

Delhi → Haridwar → Rishikesh → Narendra Nagar → Chamba → Kanatal → Dhanaulti. Quieter, fewer towns, and it follows the Ganga for a stretch. You approach Dhanaulti from the far side.

Via Saharanpur

Delhi → Baghpat → Baraut → Shamli → Saharanpur → Dehradun → Mussoorie. Useful if you are starting from west or north Delhi and want to miss Meerut.

From Dehradun

Up through Mussoorie, then along the ridge road past Landour and Suwakholi. It is not a long distance but budget properly for it — the climb out of Dehradun and the traffic through Mussoorie are both slower than the map suggests, particularly on a weekend.

From Rishikesh and Chamba

The approach from the Tehri side, through Narendra Nagar, Chamba and Kanatal. Fewer towns to crawl through and a genuinely good drive. If you are already in Rishikesh this is the obvious way; if you are coming from Delhi it is worth considering just for the change of scenery.

By train

Dehradun is the nearest railhead, about 50 km away. From the station you will want a taxi — there is no rail connection into the hills, and the last stretch is a climb.

By bus

Buses run up this road, and they are cheap. What they are not is frequent or fast, and they keep to their own schedule rather than yours. If you are travelling with luggage, with children, or arriving after dark, take a taxi from Dehradun instead. If you are travelling light and have the day to spare, the bus is a fine way to see the road.

When to set off

The single most useful piece of advice we can give: leave early enough that you are not driving the bends after dark. The hill section has no street lighting, and between November and March there can be ice on the shaded corners in the early morning and late evening.

From Delhi, that means starting at first light rather than after breakfast. From Dehradun airport, it means not booking the last flight in.

We sit on this same road, about twenty minutes before Dhanaulti. If you are coming our way, how to reach us has the last-mile detail — the turning is easy to miss.