By Air

The nearest international airports are:

• Bangalore (Bengaluru) – approx. 240km/150 miles
• Mangalore – approx. 180km /110 miles
• Calicut – approx. 220km/135 miles
• Goa – approx. 550km/340 miles
• Chennai – approx. 550km/340 miles

The nearest domestic airport is Mysore Airport (100km/60 miles from Bylakuppe), which recently re-opened in September 2015.  As of early November 2015, the only flights available are direct flights between Mysore and Bangalore on Air India.  Please be aware that domestic flights are often unpredictable in India and services may be added or cancelled on very short notice.

As most attendees who fly will travel via Bangalore Airport, here are some details concerning travel from Bangalore airport:

Taxi from Bangalore Airport: Approximately 6 hour drive to Bylakuppe. There is a pre-paid taxi desk inside the airport. For more information about taxis from Bangalore Airport see Bangalore Airport’s Tansport page.

24/7 Deluxe Shuttle Bus from Bangalore Airport: Services available to Bangalore city, railway stations, and bus stations from where you can take a bus directly to Bylakuppe/Kushalnagar (see “By Bus” section below). For more info about the Airport Shuttle Bus see Bangalore Airport’s Transport page.

Train from Bangalore Airport: There is currently no direct train service from the airport. You can travel via taxi or Shuttle Bus to Bangalore’s Central Railway Station (approximately 45min) to take a train to Mysore.

By Train

The nearest main railway station is Mysore (approx. 90km/55 miles), which is well connected with many trains to Bangalore and other cities.

PAPs

It is imperative that foreign guests have PAPs. In general this is not something Sera Je is too concerned with, but sometimes when there are big teaching events, especially with HHDL, the police become very interested! In addition, you will not be able to rent any rooms in Bylakuppe (or Mundgod, if you travel to Drepung) without a PAP. PAPs can take upward of 16 weeks to receive, apply early! It does not cost anything to apply for a PAP, so even if you are just thinking about maybe contemplating the idea of possibly coming, apply for one! All of the information needed about applying for a PAP is included in the attached files.