Ajanta & Ellora
The two greatest rock-cut cave complexes in India — Buddhist monasteries with 2,000-year-old paintings (Ajanta) and the impossible Kailasa temple carved top-down out of a single mountain (Ellora). Worth building the trip around.
Notes:
- Base: Aurangabad (officially renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar — you’ll see both names; trains and flights increasingly use the new one).
- Getting there from Mumbai: ~45-min flight, or an ~5h train), or a long drive. The train is the atmospheric choice; the flight buys you a day.
- Crucial closing days: Ajanta is closed Mondays. Ellora is closed Tuesdays. Plan around this first, everything else second.
- Distances: Ellora is
30 km from the city (easy half/full day), Ajanta is ~100 km (a full day with 2 h driving each way). Hire a car with driver through your hotel (₹2,500–4,000/day) — this is the standard, sensible way. - Tickets: foreigner tickets ~₹600 per site; buy online (ASI website) or at the gates
- En route add-ons: Daulatabad Fort (a hill fort with a genuinely fun dark spiral tunnel defense — 1.5 h, some climbing) and Bibi ka Maqbara (“mini Taj,” best at sunset, far better than its nickname suggests).
- Guides: licensed guides at both gates are worth it at Ellora especially (~₹1,500–2,000); at Ajanta a good audio-prep (podcast/YouTube the evening before) can substitute.