Varanasi Full-day Tour with Guide & Boat Ride

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. 5:30 AM - Pickup from Hotel/Airport/Train Station In Varanasi After early morning pickup at 5:30am from your hotel, take a sunrise boat ride on the sacred Ganges River. Witness morning rituals performed at the riverside.

   1 h

2. Afterward, follow your guide on a short walking tour of the old city's alleyways and catch sight of the Kashi Vishwanath, one of the holiest Hindu temples.

   1 h

3. Stop for breakfast (own expense), then head to Banaras Hindu University at 10am. Established in 1916, BHU is the largest university campus in Asia.

   1 h

4. Tour the campus and see the Bharat Kala Bhavan museum and the new Vishwanath Temple (Birla Temple), which is an exact replica of the original Vishwanath Temple.

   1 h

5. Continue to Mother India Temple, built in 1918 and housing an unusual marble relief map of the Indian subcontinent.

   30 min

6. At 12:30pm, learn about the silk weaving traditions of Varanasi, then take a break for lunch (own expense). Afterward, drive about eight miles (13 km) to Sarnath to take in Dhamekh Stupa, known as the place where the Buddha gave his first sermon.

   2 h

7. You'll also visit the Archaeological Museum, which features treasures that date to the 3rd-century BC (closed  Fridays).

   1 h

8. Nestled on the banks of the sacred Ganges River in the ancient city of Varanasi, the Ganga Aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat is a mesmerizing ritual that draws pilgrims, tourists, and spiritual seekers from around the world. It's not just a religious ceremony — it's a powerful visual and emotional experience that leaves a lasting impression on everyone who witnesses it.

   45 min

9. Your tour ends with return to your hotel around 8pm.

   1 h

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Know before you go

How it compares in Varanasi

• Its from-price is 31% below the median of the 494 experiences we list in Varanasi.
• It is longer than most of them.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Varanasi

Varanasi, on the Ganges in Uttar Pradesh, is one of the oldest living cities in the world, a sacred place of river steps, temples and silk looms.

Varanasi, also called Benares or Kashi, has been a place of pilgrimage for thousands of years, and Hindus come to bathe in the Ganges, to pray, and to die. Along the west bank, about eighty ghats, broad stone stairways, descend to the water, among them Dashashwamedh Ghat, where lamps and chanting mark the evening aarti ceremony. The Kashi Vishwanath Temple, dedicated to Shiva, stands in the old city's maze of narrow lanes.

Top-ranked sights in Varanasi: Manikarnika Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat, Ganges River (Ganga).

See all 494 experiences in Varanasi