Getting from New Delhi Airport
The fastest and most reliable way to get to the airport is by metro. Terminals 2 and 3 are served by a direct line from the city centre, while Terminal 1 is served by the Magenta circle line around Delhi and requires a change of trains to get to the city centre.
An express bus service from Terminals 2 and 3 also provides direct connections to major tourist and transport destinations.
Metro - Airport Express (Terminals 2, 3)
The fastest metro line to central Delhi is the orange "Airport Express", station is located directly between terminals 2 and 3. Delhi Metro is modern, clean and safe.
The Airport Express Metro can also be used to get to Terminal 1. From the T1 arrival hall, the so-called "Feeder Bus" runs to the Aerocity metro station. A ticket for the Feeder Bus costs 60 inr and can only be bought with cash from the conductor inside the bus.
The route connects the airport with New Delhi's city centre, main railway station and Dwarka, the largest housing estate in Asia.
Although the "Airport Express" line crosses several other routes, it is only possible to buy a ticket within the airport line and you must subsequently buy a new ticket when you change buses.
Official information and connection search: delhimetrorail.com.
Tickets
Tickets are sold at the station ticket office and can only be paid for with cash. You will be given a paper ticket with a QR code that you scan at the turnstile when you enter the station.
Tickets can also be paid by QR code via the DMRC Momentum mobile app (available at: Google Play / App Store). However, registration with personal details is required and registration is possible only with an Indian phone number.
The price is calculated according to the distance travelled.
- Terminal 2/3 - New Delhi (downtown + station): 60 inr
- Terminal 2/3 - Shivaji Stadium: 50 inr
- Terminal 2/3 - Aerocity: 20 inr
- Aerocity - New Delhi (downtown + station): 50 inr
Tourist Card with unlimited day pass for 200 inr is valid for all Delhi Metro lines except "Airport Express".
Timetable
Metro lines "Airport Express" run every day of the week with the same timetables.
- Travel time - 15 minutes
- Frequency - 4 to 6 minutes
- Last train from the airport - 23:18
- First train to the airport - 4:40
- Tip for cheap hotel about 10 minutes walk from Shivaji Stadium station - New Delhi YMCA Tourist Hotel
Metro - Magenta Line (Terminal 1)
There is a purple metro line to Terminal 1, but it only connects the southern and eastern areas of Delhi.
To get to the city centre, you need to change either to the yellow line at "Hauz Khas" station or in the other direction at "Janakupri West" station to the blue line.
- Terminal 1 - Hauz Khas - change to the yellow line - New Delhi (downtown): approx. 47 minutes
- Terminal 1 - Janakupri West - change to Blue Line - RK Ashram Marg (downtown): approx. 58 minutes
Official information and connection search: delhimetrorail.com.
Tickets
Tickets are sold at the ticket office or at the vending machine at the station and can be paid by cash or regular credit card. You will be given a paper ticket with a QR code which you scan at the turnstile when you enter the station.
Tickets can now also be paid by QR code via the DMRC Travel App (available on Google Play / App Store). However, registration with personal details is required. Through this app, you can pay tickets for all Delhi Metro lines except the orange "Airport Express" running to terminals 2 and 3 (see info above).
The price is calculated according to the distance travelled.
- 40 inr: Terminal 1 - Ramakrishna Ashram Marg (including transfer to the Blue Line)
- 40 inr: Terminal 1 - New Delhi (incl. transfer to Yellow Line)
- 40 inr: Terminal 1 - Kalkaji Mandir (Lotus Temple)
Tourist Card with unlimited day pass for 200 inr is valid for all Delhi Metro lines except "Airport Express" and can be purchased at the ticket counter.
Timetable
Metro Magenta Line runs from Monday to Saturday as per weekdays. On Sundays, the service starts later.
- Frequency - 15 minutes
- Last train from the airport towards Hauz Khas and Botanical Gardens - 23:07
- Last train from airport towards Jankpuri West - 23:42
- First train from Hauz Khas station - 6:35am (8:35am on Sundays)
- First train from Janakpuri West station - 5:40am (Sunday 8am)
Bus Terminal 1 <-> Aerocity
A special shuttle bus runs between Terminal 1 and the Aerocity metro station, where the much faster "Airport Express" metro stops, every 15 minutes from 6:00am to 11:00pm.
Tickets cost 60 inr and can be bought with cash from the driver or conductor.
Public transport map
See the map of metro and express bus routes to/from Delhi Airport.
Uber, Ola
If you're travelling with bulky luggage or if you want a convenient and hassle-free transfer directly to your destination, use the Uber or Ola app.
When you travel in Uber or Ola cars, you know the price upfront and can pay by mobile payment. Uber / Ola are very popular in Delhi and you can get a car around the city and at the airport at all hours of the day and night.
Average prices are as follows:
- Terminal 2/3 - Railway Station New Delhi: 600 inr
- Terminal 1 - Railway Station New Delhi: 470 inr
- Terminal 2/3 - Red Fort: 700 inr
- Terminal 1 - Red Fort: 550 inr
The Uber / Ola car ranks are different from regular taxis and are marked with a sign App Based Taxi.
Taxi
Regular taxis always have a stand directly in front of the terminal.
On the way from the airport, you can pre-pay for a taxi at the ticket office outside the terminal. The cheapest prices are offered by the official city taxis, which you can subscribe to at the ticket office, signposted Delhi Traffic Police.
You can pay by cash or card and prices are higher than Uber/Ola:
- Terminal 2/3 - Railway Station New Delhi: 1 000 inr
- Terminal 1 - Railway Station New Delhi: 900 inr
- Terminal 2/3 - Red Fort: 1 100 inr
- Terminal 1 - Red Fort: 950 inr
Buses to the city centre
The last option for getting to downtown Delhi is the special Airport Express bus service. Sometimes this line is also referred to as "EXP-4".
The buses run from Terminals 1 and 3 and make more than 40 stops during their journey. The journey to the city centre is significantly slower than the metro, but on the other hand it is cheaper than a taxi and offers a direct, non-stop journey to more destinations than the metro.
Airport Express Line 4 runs to Central Bus Station Kashmere Gate or one of Delhi's main landmarks, the Red Fort.
The timetable can be found at dtc.delhi.gov.in under "IGI Airport Bus Service".
- Price: 100 inr (payable in cash to the driver or conductor)
- Travel time: 100 minutes
- Frequency: 30-40 minutes
Tickets for buses in Delhi can also be purchased through the Chartr mobile app (available on: Google Play / App Store).
Other bus routes run only to the surrounding neighborhoods and are mostly used by airport employees, but can also be used for transport to very cheap hotels in the area. However, finding out information about a particular line's route or timetables is quite difficult.
Rickshaw
Rickshaws, the most typical means of transport in Indian cities, are a very authentic mode of transport.
Rickshaws are not allowed to go directly to the terminals. The stop is at the so-called "PTC - Public Transport Center", which can be reached from all terminals by a free shuttle bus that has an interval of 20-30 minutes.
Rickshaw transport is only suitable if you do not have large luggage (only a backpack is ideal).
The price is determined by negotiation only. A trip to central Delhi should cost no more than 500-600 rupees, which is roughly half the price of a taxi or Uber.
Airport shuttle buses
Take advantage of the free shuttle buses running between all terminals 24 hours a day.
Buses run at intervals of 5-10 minutes during the day and 15-20 minutes at night. Follow the signs "Shuttle Bus".
The bus is only free if you pick up a paper coupon at the bus stop in the waiting area of Bus Waiting Lounge. This is obtained by presenting your boarding pass with your connecting flight from the relevant terminal. Otherwise, the bus ticket costs 20 inr and is payable to the conductor inside the car (cash only).
There is a special bus service between Terminal 1 and Aerocity Metro Station from 6:00am to 8:00pm with a fare of 40 inr (journey time 15 minutes).
Any questions left?
If you have any questions or comments about the article...
4 comments
It's all Copperfield at the Airport Express subway ticket booths. You pay with a five-hundred because the ATM won't give you less, and the cashier recalculates the change several times without asking and then gives you a hundred less.
No. 4 is not the only bus from the airport to the city. You'll find information about the routes on the DTC website if you can even manage to get on it - not likely from abroad. Trying to take a bus to the airport is quite an adventure - you may not be able to find the right stop at all, the bus may not stop, it will probably be late. It's good to have enough time and money for at least a rickshaw (but it won't take you to the terminal and will only take you to the PTC (Public Transport Centre) near the Centaur Hotel. From there, there is a free shuttle bus to the terminals.
Otherwise, local buses from the airport are useful for getting to cheap hotels, of which there are many in the vicinity. There is a bus stop outside T3 on the left of the exit, but find it yourself, the taxi bus drivers will deny you.
I know, I've seen other lines, but I haven't been very successful in finding out where they actually go either.
The rickshaw service to PTC might be a useful thing, I actually forgot to add that. During Holi it was pretty much the only option for transport to the airport, but I eventually softened up and waited the 45 minutes for the nearest Uber, I had a pretty big luggage after all :D
The PTC has a regular waiting area with refreshment sales and TV with Indian blockbusters. So a bus came to pick us up and its mask was about to fall off, but it was good for free. 😆 Shuttle can be handy for getting to the Centaur hotel, which is about 4 times more expensive than the cheapest accommodation outside the airport, but probably more comfortable.
The link to the app leads to another DMRC app - for scooters, which also has a geolock. Correct link: https://play.google.com/store/ap...raoss.dmrc Ola Cabs doesn't know the Czech prefix. DMRC Momentum, on the other hand, specifically wants an Indian number for registration. Otherwise, Google Maps obviously doesn't have the correct bus departure information. For example, on PTC Shuttle, it shows up nicely.
For DMRC Momentum application - Indian number is required for registration.
I would add to the QR tickets for the metro that they are also needed for the exit.