How to Reach Shillong by Air, Rail and Road in 2026

Shillong is only 100 km from Guwahati, but it is 100 km of climbing road, and that is the whole story of getting there. You fly or take a train to Guwahati, then spend about three hours rising from the Brahmaputra plains to a pine ridge at 1,525 m.

We do this transfer for guests several times a day in season. Below are all the ways in, what each costs in time and money, and the small choices that decide whether you reach your hotel for lunch or in the dark.

Every way to reach Shillong at a glance

Costs are indicative and change with season, fuel prices and vehicle type.

By air via Guwahati

Guwahati's Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (GAU) is the main gateway to the whole Northeast. It sits at Borjhar on the western edge of the city, about 28 km from central Guwahati, and has direct flights from Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and several other cities. A new integrated terminal opened in December 2025.

From the airport to Shillong it is about 120 km. In normal traffic that is 3 to 3.5 hours. The route skirts Guwahati on the bypass to Jorabat, then turns south onto the Guwahati-Shillong Road, now four-laned as NH6, through Byrnihat, Nongpoh and past Umiam Lake.

Tips from our drivers:

• Take a morning flight. A flight landing before noon lets you reach Shillong in daylight all year.
• Use the prepaid counter if you have not booked a car. Agree the drop point in Shillong before you leave.
• Stop at Umiam for 15 minutes. It is the natural break, with viewpoints and tea stalls on the highway.
• Jorabat is the bottleneck. Traffic from Assam, Meghalaya and the Guwahati bypass merges here, and evening queues can add 30 to 60 minutes.

Our two-night Shillong Weekend, from INR 9,500 per person, starts with this airport transfer, with Umiam on the way up.

By air to Shillong Airport at Umroi

Shillong has its own airport at Umroi, about 30 km north of the city on the Guwahati road. Its runway is about 6,000 ft, which limits it to small turboprops, and it has handled only a handful of routes at a time. Recent schedules have included IndiGo to Kolkata, Dibrugarh and Imphal, SpiceJet to Delhi, and Alliance Air on regional hops to Guwahati, Aizawl, Dimapur, Tezpur and Lilabari. A runway extension has been planned.

When it works, it is the easiest way in: 45 minutes from the terminal to Police Bazar. When it does not, you lose a day. Small aircraft are more affected by low cloud, and routes appear and disappear with the season.

Our rule: if a direct Shillong flight fits your dates, use it, but do not build a tight itinerary on it. Keep the return on a Guwahati flight if your onward connection matters. Check current schedules on the airlines' own sites before booking.

By train to Guwahati

There is no railway station in Shillong. The nearest major station is Guwahati (GHY), in Paltan Bazar in the middle of the city, about 100 km and 3 hours from Shillong. Kamakhya station (KYQ), on the western side of Guwahati, handles some long-distance trains and is closer to the airport road.

Long-distance options include Rajdhani trains from New Delhi, the Saraighat Express from Howrah (Kolkata), and trains from Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai that take two days or more. From Kolkata the overnight train is a good alternative to flying if you prefer rail.

A rail line from Tetelia in Assam to Byrnihat, on the Meghalaya border, has been under construction for years. It will bring trains closer, but not to Shillong itself, which remains a road-only city.

From Guwahati station:

• Taxis wait outside and the Paltan Bazar taxi stands are a two-minute walk away.
• Shared taxis to Shillong leave from Paltan Bazar when full, mostly between 6 am and 5 pm.
• Buses run from the same area through the day.

By road: taxi, shared taxi or bus

Private taxi

A private car is the most comfortable way up and the one we use for almost every guest. Indicative one-way fares from Guwahati airport to Shillong:

Fares from the railway station are usually a little lower because the distance is shorter. Our Guwahati to Shillong transfer guide goes into taxi rates in more detail.

Shared taxi

Shared Sumos and smaller cars run between Guwahati's Paltan Bazar and Shillong's Police Bazar area through the day. You pay per seat, a few hundred rupees, and the car leaves when it fills. It is the cheapest fast option, but space is tight and luggage goes on the roof. Our getting around the Northeast guide explains how shared Sumos work across the region.

Bus

The Meghalaya Transport Corporation and private operators run buses from Guwahati to Shillong. They take 3.5 to 4 hours, cost the least and do not serve the airport. Night buses to Guwahati also run from Shillong for travellers catching early trains.

What about a helicopter

Guwahati to Shillong helicopter flights have run in past years, and many older travel pages still list them. When we checked for 2026, the operator's booking system showed no Guwahati to Shillong sector. Any future service would be small, weather-dependent and strict on baggage. Treat it as subject to operation, check current status before you travel, and plan around the road.

From Kolkata, Delhi and other cities

Travellers coming overland from Bangladesh cross at Tamabil-Dawki; the drive from Dawki to Shillong is roughly 82 km. Foreign nationals need the right visa and entry endorsement for a land border, so confirm before you plan this route.

Driving yourself

Since June 2025, Meghalaya has prohibited renting private vehicles to tourists for self-drive, so a self-drive rental from Guwahati or Shillong is not an option; check current status before you travel. Driving your own car is allowed, and the NH6 is an easy road by hill standards: four lanes most of the way, gentle gradients and plenty of fuel stations up to Nongpoh. A few things to know before you take your own car up the hill:

• Parking in Shillong is scarce. Police Bazar and Laitumkhrah have paid lots that fill by 11 am. Choose a hotel with its own parking.
• One-way systems in central Shillong change by time of day. Follow local traffic police rather than your map app.
• Beyond Shillong the roads narrow. The Sohra road and the Dawki road are two-lane, with tight bends, fog and trucks on the Dawki stretch.
• Fuel up in Shillong before Sohra or Dawki; pumps are fewer on those routes.
• Carry the car papers and your licence; police checks are routine near Byrnihat and Jorabat.

For most visitors a car with a local driver is the answer. The time you save hunting for parking and finding viewpoints is worth more than the cost of the driver.

Reaching Sohra, Dawki and the rest of Meghalaya

Shillong is the hub; almost every other place in the state is reached through it.

• Sohra (Cherrapunji) is about 54 km south, 1.5 to 2 hours by road. Shared taxis leave from Bara Bazar in Shillong through the morning.
• Dawki is about 82 km south-east, 2.5 to 3 hours, and Mawlynnong is roughly 35 km from Dawki.
• Jowai in the Jaintia Hills is about 64 km east on NH6, 1.5 to 2 hours.
• Tura in the Garo Hills is a long day's drive west; many people route through Guwahati instead.

If you land in Guwahati late and want to start with Sohra, you can drive straight through Shillong, but it makes a 5 to 5.5-hour first day. We prefer one night in Shillong first.

When to arrive and what to plan for

Arrival day shapes the first evening. A few practical points:

• Daylight is short in winter. Sunset in Shillong is about 4:40 pm in December. Aim to leave Guwahati by 2 pm between November and February.
• Monsoon delays. From June to September, allow an extra hour for slow stretches and occasional landslide clearance above Nongpoh.
• Sunday in Shillong. Most shops close on Sundays, so an arrival on Sunday evening is quiet.
• Registration. Since June 2025, hotels, homestays and resorts in Meghalaya must register every guest on the state tourism app; carry photo ID for every adult. Entry-point registration has been announced but was not live when we last checked. Our Meghalaya travel rules guide explains the process.
• No permit for Indians. Meghalaya does not need an Inner Line Permit, unlike Arunachal, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram.

Getting back down for your flight

The return trip is where people cut it too fine. Guwahati airport is about 120 km from Shillong, and the last 30 km through Jorabat and the Guwahati bypass are the least predictable.

• Leave four and a half hours before departure for a domestic flight, five hours in the monsoon or on a Monday morning.
• Avoid a same-day Dawki or Sohra visit before an afternoon flight. Plan those for the day before.
• Early flights before 9 am mean leaving Shillong at about 3 am; a last night in Guwahati is often the calmer choice.
• Trains from Guwahati station are closer, about 3 hours, but the station approach through Paltan Bazar is slow in the evening.

How we'd plan it

For most guests we fix the arrival first and build the trip around it.

1. Book a morning flight into Guwahati. Land by noon, be in Shillong by 4 pm, and take Umiam Lake on the way.
2. Use a Shillong-based car for the whole trip. One vehicle from the airport pick-up to the final drop avoids the Assam-Meghalaya taxi issue at sightseeing stops.
3. Stay two nights in Shillong before Sohra. It gives a buffer if the flight is late. Our three-night Shillong and Cherrapunji trip, from INR 12,500 per person, follows a similar pattern.
4. Add Dawki and Mawlynnong if you have four nights; our four-night Shillong, Cherrapunji, Dawki and Mawlynnong itinerary, from INR 16,500 per person, loops back to Guwahati for the flight home.
5. For groups, a Tempo Traveller from the airport keeps everyone together; our Guwahati and Shillong team offsite is built for that.
6. For a longer trip, fly into Guwahati and add Kaziranga on the way out, as in our Northeast in a Week tour.

Once you are in Shillong, our places to visit in Shillong guide covers the first day in town.

Share your flight or train times on the contact page and we will arrange the pick-up.