Best route of Char Dham Yatra in 2024
As suggested above, Haridwar and Dehradun should be your first stops. Rest for a day & then start your 9 to 10-day Char Dham Yatra.
And the main cities where you will stay on the Yatra, or where you need to book your stay, are: Barkot, Uttarkashi, Guptkashi/Sitapur/Sonprayag, Pipalkoti, and Rudraprayag/Karanprayag.
From Haridwar, the Char Dham route first takes you to Barkot, which is a 175 km drive.
You will stay here for 2 nights, as it serves as the starting point for Yamunotri Dham.
Below, we have provided a SHORT ITINERARY of the Char Dham Yatra, followed by a DETAILED VERSION OF THE YATRA, including a list of hotels, on-route places, and additional information.
Lets start with
Starting point of Char Dham Yatra
Haridwar & Dehradun
Haridwar is the ideal starting point for travelers arriving by train or road. Haridwar is just a 4-hour drive from Delhi, and its railway station is well-connected to all major cities in India.
For travelers planning to catch a flight to reach Uttarakhand, Dehradun is the best starting point for the Char Dham Yatra, as it is the capital of the state and has a well-connected airport (Jolly Grant Airport).
Upon your arrival, you can rest for the day and begin the yatra on the following day, marking the start of your Char Dham Yatra as Day 1.
This is our
Short Itinerary of Char Dham Yatra route map
To make this a 9 days Yatra, you can reach Badrinath town on day 7, and on day 9, reach Haridwar from Rudraprayag, saving 1 night stay at Pipalkoti on day 7.
And this is our
Complete detailed Itinerary of Char Dham Yatra route map
1. Yamunotri Dham Route Map
Location: Yamunotri District Nearest Town: Barkot Distance from Barkot: 50 km
On day 1, you can start your Char Dham Yatra from Haridwar, Rishikesh or Dehradun, though Haridwar is most popular starting point.
From Haridwar you will drive towards Barkot which will be the 1st base point of your Yatra. Here you will stay for 2 nights.
On-route you can visit sites of Dehradun & Mussoorie like Kemty fall, Company garden etc.
On day 2, you will leave for Janki Chatti which is 45 km drive from Barkot.
From here you can walk for 5 km to reach Yamunotri Temple (1st Dham), or take horse ride.
Later after the darshan, you will come back (trek/ walk) to Janki Chatti, and then drive back to Barkot, spending day 2 night at same place.
And with this your trip of 1st Dham will be completed. Now you will leave Gangotri Dham on day 3.
2. Gangotri Dham Route Map
Location: Uttarkashi District Nearest Town: Gangotri Distance from Gangotri: 300 mtr
On day 3, you will depart from Barkot for Uttarkashi, which is an 80 km drive.
Upon reaching Uttarkashi, you will spend the night here and explore the local markets & visit Vishwanath Temple.
On day 4, you will journey to Gangotri Temple, a 3-hour/100 km drive.
There isn’t much trekking involved, and by late night, you will return to your hotel in Uttarkashi, completing your visit to the 2nd Dham.
On the next day (day 5), you will embark on the Kedarnath Dham Yatra.
Location: Rudraprayag District Nearest Town: Sonprayag Distance from Sonprayag: 18 km
On day 5, you will depart for Guptkashi, which is a 200 km drive from Uttarkashi and takes approximately 7-8 hours to reach. Your night stay will be in Guptkashi.
On day 6, you will first reach Sonprayag, a 30 km drive from Guptkashi. Upon arrival, you can choose to trek, take a horse ride, or opt for a helicopter ride to Kedarnath Temple.
Today, you will have the opportunity to visit the most popular Dham of the Yatra, the Kedarnath Dham Temple.
Your night stay will be in the Kedarnath Dham area.
On day 7, you will return to Sonprayag via Gaurikund, from where you will drive towards Pipalkoti, a 150 km drive from Sonprayag.
You will stay here for the night, completing your Kedarnath Dham Yatra.
4. Badrinath Dham Route Map
Location: Chamoli District Nearest Town: Badrinath Distance from Badrinath: 450 mtr
On day 8, we will drive towards Badrinath Dham, which is a 75 km drive from Pipalkoti.
Please note that you can also plan your stay in Badrinath town, and even same 1 night stay by skipping Pipalkoti.
Upon reaching the Badrinath Temple, you will first have the darshan of the Badri Dham and rest here for the night.
On day 9, we will leave from Badrinath Dham and first return to Rudraprayag.
You will stay here for the night and on the next day (day 10) return to Haridwar.
With this, you will have completed the Badrinath Dham visit and the entire Char Dham Yatra from Haridwar, which we suggest completing in 10 days but can be done in 9 days as well.
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Places to visit in route to Char Dham Yatra temples
1. Chopta
Chopta is a beautiful village near Rudraprayag, around 20-25 km and you can stay 1 day extra to visit the village famous for the Tungnath Temple.
The temple is dedicated to Shiva and is also the of the Panch Kedar temple.
2. Auli
Auli is 42 km drive from Pipalkoti, and 50-55 km drive from Badrinath Dham.
It is a famous hill station in Uttarakhand which is also one of very few Ski destination in India.
It has a rope way which for ski lovers and is one of the biggest one in whole world.
3. Mussoorie
Mussoorie is a popular hill station which most Yatri’s of Char Dham yatra visit after the Yatra.
Its close from Haridwar & Dehradun and you can easily spend 1-2 nights here, along with visit to nearby sites like Dhanaulti, Kanatal etc.
For more details on places to visit in Uttarakhand, contact me at 8209351141/ 9928399846.
Related Information
To know before planning a Char Dham Yatra
List of hotels for Char Dham Yatra
Hotels in Haridwar: Le ROI Haridwar Hotel, Regenta Orko’s Hotel, The URMI Hotel, as good mid-budget hotels. Plus you can also stay in a luxury hotel in Haridwar like Radisson Blu, Fortune Park, The Fern Residency etc.
Hotels in Barkot: Hotel Devbhoomi, Hotel Shiva Barkot.
Hotels in Uttarkashi: Hotel Himalayan Inn, Shivlinga Resort, Hotel KNB Heritage, Hotel Akash Ganga.
Hotels in Guptkashi: GMVN Guptkashi, Triveni Hotel, Devdarshan hotel.
Hotels in Pipalkoti: Hotel Comfort Inn, Hotel Kushal Palace, Hotel Sudarshan Palace, Hotel Ajay Palace.
Hotels in Rudraprayag: Blue Orchid Hotel, Hotel Mandakini, Hotel Srishty Choice.
Opening dates of temples
10 May for Yamunotri & Gangotri Dham, 14 & 16 May for Kedarnath and Badrinath Dham. And please note that every year these dates gets changed.
Click below to view live GPS location of complete Char Dham Yatra route map from Haridwar.
Registration for Char Dham Yatra, especially for Kedarnath & Badrinath Temple is very important. And you can do it your self in 5 minutes. Just follow our guide on Char Dham Yatra Registration, to know whole process.
Apart from the Char Dham Temples, you will visit many temples, sites & towns. To know all about them, view our latest guide on Char Dham Yatra places.
Kedarnath Dham is one of the most visited temples in whole India, and also has the toughest trekking of 16 km. So if you are planning to visit Uttarakhand just to visit Kedarnath them then view our Kedarnath Yatra Route Map guide.