Also Read: North Sikkim Trip Report Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3(Links open in new window)
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| Siliguri Share-Taxi Stand for Gangtok |
Private Taxi From Bagdogra Airport
A private taxi for Gangtok can be hired outside the airport itself. Cost of a one-way ride on a private taxi varies from Rs. 1500/- for a small non-AC car to Rs. 2500/- for a luxury car like Toyota Innova. There is no booking counter outside the airport. Instead, incoming passengers are mobbed by local goons offering taxi rides to Gangtok or Darjeeling. Tourists never get to speak to a driver or see which car will take them to their destination. A car is offered at a particular price and its a "Take It or Leave It deal". The goons get a commission of about Rs. 400-500 from the driver who waits in the taxi stand which is just a few steps away and quite easy to reach for a passenger directly. But that is not the way things work in Bagdogra. The goons stand like a wall between the taxi and the passenger. After a deal is reached with the goons, the passengers are escorted to their taxi parked in the taxi stand. The drivers are mostly Nepali boys from Sikkim and are usually nice, way more civilised than the goons in Bagdogra. The ride normally takes about 5 hours but actual time can be longer due to traffic jams, land slides, breakdowns, etc. First 88 km of this journey will be in West Bengal after which one enters Sikkim through Rangpo Check Post.
Rangpo Check Post, East Sikkim
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| Rangpo Tourist Lodge East Sikkim |
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| Registration Post for Foreign Tourists Entering Sikkim at Rangpo |
Shared Taxi From Siliguri
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| Shared Taxi From Siliguri To Gangtok |
Shared taxi is not available from Bagdogra. One needs to get to Siliguri first which costs about Rs. 350 by a local taxi if hired outside the airport. There is a prepaid taxi counter inside the airport from where a taxi can be hired for Siliguri, may be at a little higher cost but without the hassle of bargaining. Paying Rs. 350/- and getting to Siliguri is the easiest part of the journey. Shared taxi is a Tata Sumo type of non-AC vehicle in to which 11 passengers are stuffed. Luggage is tied with ropes on the carrier on top of the vehicle. The shared taxxi will not move untill all 11 passengers are in. The wait may last for hours on a day when there are not many passengers headed to Gangtok. Cost of this ride is not fixed. There is a counter at the taxi stand where their normal strategy is to first scare the passengers by telling them that there is no taxi available. But when they see a good number of anxious passengers waiting around, a guy appears from somewhere and discreetly starts offering seats on his taxi if he would be paid extra. He promises to take only 8 passengers in return for extra cash. Ofcourse, its a false promise and no taxi will leave without 11 humans on board. Including extras, the cost per head is not more than Rs. 250/-. Its a very uncomfortable ride and during summer months, the ride up to Rangpo is really tortuous.
Shared Taxi's Tea Break at Kirney
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| Stop For Tea / Snacks At Kirney On The Way To Gangtok |
On the way to Gangtok, shared taxis stop at Kirney for tea / snacks, etc. There are hardly any tourist facilities here, though water bottles can be purchased. This is a 15-30 minute stop depending on the mood of the driver. Rangpo is another 8 km from Kirney. After crossing Rangpo, the weather becomes cooler, some local passengers alight making space in the vehicle and the tourists for the first time in the day begin to enjoy their road trip to Sikkim.
After the shared taxi drop off in Sikkim, one needs to hire a local cab which would cost around Rs. 100 max to one's hotel. Local cabs operate usually on a point to point basis with a per head fare of Rs.10 - Rs.20 depending on the distance. If a local cab is hired for a particular place not on the normal route, its called a "Reserve" booking for which the price is negotiable. These cabs are Maruti Omni, Wagon-R type of vehicles and are very clean and comfortable.
Bus from Siliguri
Bus to Gangtok from Siliguri can be taken from the bus stop which is right behind the share-taxi stand. One needs to be really lucky to find a bus at the time one arrives there that too with empty seats. Buses are non-AC but still much more comfortable than shared cabs. Cost of bus ticket should be around Rs. 100/-. So if there is a bus available, never choose shared taxi.
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