Delhi to Barkot Taxi Service

Delhi to Barkot taxi covers about 364 km from Delhi by road, and the drive takes around 8-8.5 hours.

The road from Delhi to Barkot

Barkot is about 364 km from Delhi by road, and a Delhi to Barkot taxi takes around 8-8.5 hours. The drive runs in two legs our drivers run every week: Delhi to Dehradun is about 229 km, around 3.5 hours on the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, and Dehradun to Barkot is about 141 km further up the Yamunotri road via Mussoorie. Barkot sits on the Yamuna in Uttarkashi district, at about 1,200 m, and it is the last proper town on the Yamunotri road before the climb to Hanuman Chatti and Janki Chatti. From Barkot, Janki Chatti is about 45-50 km further, roughly 1.5-2 hours on the hill road, and from Janki Chatti the Yamunotri temple is a roughly 5-6 km trek. So the whole Delhi to Yamunotri trip runs through Barkot. It is not a detour, it is the road itself. Because the drive is long and the last stretch is a hill road, nobody should plan to drive from Delhi to Barkot and then straight on to Yamunotri in one day. The overnight halt at Barkot is part of the plan, not a delay in it. For the Barkot run, the car collects you from your Delhi address at whatever hour suits you.

The drive has two very different halves. The first half is the expressway: leave Delhi early, join the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway via Baghpat and Saharanpur, and reach Dehradun in around 3.5 hours. It is the fast, flat part of the trip, toll plazas on the way, and the Rajaji forest section and the hill descent into the Doon Valley at the end of it. After Dehradun, the road becomes a hill road. The taxi takes the Mussoorie road out of the city, then the Nainbagh road towards Naugaon and Barkot. This is the slow half: winding, climbing, and narrower than the expressway, with the Yamuna valley opening out as you go. The Dehradun to Barkot leg takes around 5 hours, and the time depends on the day's traffic out of Dehradun and the road conditions after Nainbagh.

Leave Delhi at 5-6 am for the best start. That puts you in Dehradun by late morning, gives you the afternoon for the hill climb in daylight, and gets you to Barkot by evening, in time to eat, rest, and be ready for the early start the next morning. Leaving Delhi after 8 am means the hill stretch runs into the dark, and our drivers do not take the Barkot hill road after dark.

Barkot, the Yamunotri base town

Barkot is a small town on the banks of the Yamuna, and it exists for the yatra. Hotels, dharamshalas and guest houses line the main road, and most Yamunotri pilgrims stop here for the night before the climb. There are food stalls and small shops for yatra supplies, and the town is the last place on the road with a proper choice of places to stay and eat.

The town itself is quiet outside the yatra season. In season, the evenings are busy, pilgrims arriving from Dehradun and Delhi, groups sorting out ponies and palanquins for the next morning, and the road filling up before dawn. Staying at Barkot rather than pushing on to Janki Chatti means a proper bed, a proper meal, and a fresh start for the trek, which is exactly what the Yamunotri darshan needs.

Barkot is also the point where the road starts to climb in earnest. Below Barkot the road follows the Yamuna valley; above it, the road climbs through Hanuman Chatti to Janki Chatti, the end of the motor road. The car goes no further than Janki Chatti. From there it is the trek to the temple, or a pony or palanquin.

Which car to take on a Delhi to Barkot taxi

This is a long, two-day hill trip to Barkot, so the car matters more than it does on a short run. For two or three people with light bags, a sedan works for the Delhi to Barkot run, though its low stance is a drawback on the last rough kilometres above Barkot. A family of four or five going to Barkot will find the Ertiga roomy and economical, with more room, a higher stance and space for luggage on the climb. Five or six people with luggage, long hill days, or elderly passengers who want the most comfortable ride over two days of driving should take the Innova or Innova Crysta. Groups of nine or more travelling to Barkot can ask on call about a Tempo Traveller; on some upper stretches a 12-seater is the realistic limit.

On this Barkot route you book the whole car, not a seat, and we agree the price on call before pickup. What you pay depends on your dates, the car you choose, and how many nights the car stays with you. A two-day trip with a halt at Barkot and a night halt charge for the driver is priced differently from a one-way drop. Expressway tolls, state permits, parking and any night halt charge are charged extra at actuals, with nothing added afterwards.

For the exact fare on your Barkot dates, use the booking box on this page and share your dates. Barkot has hotels and dharamshalas across budgets, and in May and June they fill up. Book your stay before you leave Delhi, not on arrival. In September and October you will usually find a room on the day, but booking ahead still saves the evening's hunt. Ask your hotel whether it has parking for the taxi, because the car stays with you and the driver needs somewhere to halt for the night.

Pack light for the Yamunotri trek from Janki Chatti: a small day bag with water, a rain shell and a warm layer, even in May and June. Yamunotri sits at about 3,293 m and the morning at Janki Chatti is cold. And shoes with grip for the 5-6 km climb. Ponies and palanquins are available at Janki Chatti for those who need them; arrange them through the driver or at the roadhead on the morning itself.

Carry cash with you. ATMs are limited in the towns on the Yamunotri road, and the small shops at Barkot and Janki Chatti take cash only. Fill fuel at Dehradun before the hill climb. There are fewer fuel stops after Nainbagh, and the taxi carries enough for the run, but it is good practice all the same.

Booking a Delhi to Barkot taxi with the Yamunotri halt

To book your Barkot taxi, call or WhatsApp 7830211223 and give your date, Delhi pickup time and address, the number of people and bags, and whether you want the two-day plan with the halt at Barkot or the three-day plan with a relaxed return. Tell us if anyone in the group needs a pony or palanquin at Janki Chatti, and whether you want to combine Yamunotri with Gangotri. The two are often done together as a Do Dham trip from Delhi.

From a driver's point of view, allow two days at minimum for Barkot, three if you want the return to be comfortable. Day one: leave Delhi at 5-6 am, drive the expressway to Dehradun, then the hill road to Barkot. Reach Barkot by evening, check into your hotel, and rest. This is the long driving day, about 8-8.5 hours on the road. Day two: leave Barkot early, around 5-6 am, and drive the 45-50 km to Janki Chatti. From Janki Chatti, trek the roughly 5-6 km to the Yamunotri temple, take darshan, bathe at the Surya Kund hot spring, and come back down to Janki Chatti the same day. Most pilgrims return to Barkot for the night rather than driving back to Dehradun the same evening. Day three (recommended): drive back from Barkot to Delhi, again about 8-8.5 hours, leaving early so the hill stretch is done in daylight. If you are short on days, the return can be done on day two after the darshan, but it makes for a very long day, an early trek, a climb down, and then a full drive to Delhi.

May and June are the best months for the Delhi to Barkot trip, when the Yamunotri season is running and the road is at its busiest but also at its best maintained; September and October are the other good window, when the crowds thin out and the weather is clear and cool. September is the quietest month on this road. The monsoon has gone, the valley is green, and Barkot's hotels have rooms to spare.

July to mid-September is the monsoon, and it is the one season to plan around rather than through. The Yamunotri road is prone to landslides and road blocks in heavy rain, especially the hill stretches after Nainbagh and above Barkot, and a drive that takes 8-8.5 hours in good weather can take much longer, or stop altogether for a day. If you travel in the monsoon, keep a spare day on the return and check the road the evening before you leave.

Winter is not a yatra season for Yamunotri. The temple closes for the winter and the upper road is not in regular use. Barkot itself stays open through the year, but the trip described here is a yatra-season trip, and the dates of the season change every year, so confirm them on call before you fix your dates.

For the full Yamunotri plan, which leg first, what to carry for the trek, and how the return pickup works, see our Dehradun to Yamunotri taxi. If you are combining Yamunotri with Gangotri, see our Dehradun to Gangotri taxi too. In May and June, when the yatra season is at its peak, book a few days ahead, because the good cars for Barkot go first. Before your Barkot trip you will have the driver's name and number, and that same driver stays with you for the whole run, the expressway, the hill road, the halt at Barkot, and the drive back.