Ahmedabad by road: driving into India's first World Heritage city

How do you reach Ahmedabad by road, and what does the car cost?

Ahmedabad is often treated as a business stop, a place for meetings on SG Highway and a flight out the same evening. That is a pity, because the walled city on the east bank of the Sabarmati was, in 2017, declared India's first UNESCO World Heritage City, and it holds six centuries of mosques, Jain temples, carved wooden havelis and tightly knit neighbourhoods called pols. Add Gandhi's ashram, some of the finest stepwells in India within an hour's drive, and a food culture that runs from dawn fafda to midnight chocolate sandwiches, and you have a city that deserves two or three days.

Most visitors come by road from Vadodara, Mumbai, Udaipur or Rajkot, or fly into Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport and need a car for the sprawling city. This guide covers the drive, the sights, the seasons and festivals, and RutzIndia.com's fares for transfers, local days and excursions.

What to see in Ahmedabad

Sabarmati Ashram. Gandhi lived here from 1917 to 1930, and it was from here that he set out on the Dandi salt march in March 1930. His cottage, Hriday Kunj, the prayer ground by the river and the museum are simple and deeply affecting. See the Sabarmati Ashram overview before you visit, and go early, when the riverside is quiet.

The walled city. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation runs a morning heritage walk through the pols, starting from the Swaminarayan temple in Kalupur; details and any changes are on the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation site. Along the way you pass carved wooden house fronts, bird feeders called chabutras, secret passages between lanes and tiny neighbourhood temples. The walk ends near the Jama Masjid, built in the fifteenth century under Sultan Ahmed Shah, the city's founder.

Sidi Saiyyed mosque. Its stone lattice windows, with the intertwined trees known as the tree of life, are the city's emblem.

Bhadra Fort, Teen Darwaza and Manek Chowk. The old citadel, the triple gateway and the square that is a jewellery market by day and one of India's great street-food scenes by night.

Adalaj stepwell. About 18 km north, a five-storey stepwell completed at the end of the fifteenth century, with carved pillars and cool galleries descending to the water.

Sarkhej Roza, Hutheesing temple and the Calico Museum. A serene mosque and tomb complex on the city's south-western edge, a white-marble nineteenth-century Jain temple, and a textile museum whose guided visits are limited and need advance booking.

The Sabarmati Riverfront and Kankaria Lake. Modern promenades, the Atal footbridge and lakeside gardens for an evening stroll with children.

Gandhinagar. The planned state capital, about 25 km north, is home to the Akshardham temple complex with its evening water show, and is an easy add-on to the Adalaj stepwell on the same half day. GIFT City, the financial district on the way, is where many business visitors are headed.

Food is half the reason to stay: khaman and fafda with jalebi for breakfast, a Gujarati thali at lunch, and the late-night stalls of Manek Chowk and Law Garden. Gujarat has prohibition laws; if you need to know about visitor permits, ask your hotel.

The road into Ahmedabad

From Vadodara (about 110 km). The Ahmedabad–Vadodara Expressway is a fast, access-controlled road that bypasses the towns along the old highway; with a pickup in central Vadodara you are usually in Ahmedabad in under two hours. Tolls are collected at the expressway plazas and passed on at actual cost.

From Mumbai (about 530 km, 8 to 9 hours). NH 48 runs north through Vapi, Valsad, Surat and Bharuch to Vadodara, then onto the expressway. It is a busy freight corridor, so an early start from Mumbai beats the truck traffic around Surat. Segments of the new Mumbai–Vadodara expressway are opening in stages and your chauffeur will use them where they help. Mumbai travellers can check our taxi service in Mumbai for pickups anywhere in the city.

From Udaipur (about 260 km, 5 hours). South-west on NH 48 through Kherwara, Shamlaji and Himmatnagar, a good road that crosses the Aravalli foothills. Travellers often pair the two cities; see the Udaipur road trip guide and taxi service in Udaipur.

From Rajkot (about 215 km) and Surat (about 265 km), straightforward four- and six-lane highways.

Within the city, traffic is heavy in the old walled area and around the railway station at Kalupur, and parking inside the pols is impossible. Your driver drops you at a gate and waits outside; walking is the only way to see the old city properly.

Best time to visit Ahmedabad and festivals

November to February is the season to visit: dry, sunny days and cool evenings. From March to June Ahmedabad is extremely hot, often above 40°C by midday, so sightseeing must be crammed into early mornings. The monsoon, July to September, brings humid heat and short heavy downpours.

Two festivals define the city. Uttarayan, on 14 January, turns every rooftop into a kite-flying party, and the city hosts an international kite festival on the riverfront around the same time; hotel rooms and cars book out early. Navratri, in September or October, means nine nights of garba and dandiya, with huge organised venues on the city's outskirts and neighbourhood celebrations that run past midnight. The Rath Yatra from the Jagannath temple in June or July is another major event, with road closures across the old city. Diwali and the Gujarati New Year that follows are family time, and many shops close for several days.

RutzIndia.com services in and around Ahmedabad, with fares

We run transfers into Ahmedabad from Vadodara, Mumbai, Udaipur and Rajkot; airport pickups at SVPI with flight tracking; local days on the 8 hr / 80 km package; heritage excursions to Adalaj, Modhera and Patan; and wedding and corporate transport. Local and airport fares in Ahmedabad include a 0.95 city factor. For group travel, see Tempo Traveller hire in Ahmedabad; for longer bookings, car rental with driver in Ahmedabad.

Every fare shown is before 5% GST. Expressway and highway tolls, state permits where applicable, and parking are billed at actual cost. Outstation round trips are charged on at least 250 km per calendar day, and a driver staying overnight receives Rs 1,500 per night. We also run premium sedans at Rs 48 per km and Mercedes-Benz E-Class or BMW 5 Series cars at Rs 165.6 per km for executives and wedding couples; see wedding car rental in Ahmedabad. All vehicles are within four model years.

Airport pickups include a name board, flight tracking and 30 minutes of free waiting after a domestic landing or 60 minutes after an international one. Book online and pay by card or UPI; corporate accounts receive GST invoices. Cancelling more than 72 hours ahead costs nothing; inside 72 hours we retain 10%, inside 48 hours 50%, and inside 24 hours or on a no-show the whole fare, as the cancellation policy explains.

Book an Ahmedabad car with driver

Two days in Ahmedabad with a car

Day 1: The old city and the ashram (about 45 km). Pickup at 7.30 am for the 8 am heritage walk, breakfast of fafda and jalebi near Manek Chowk, then Sidi Saiyyed mosque and Bhadra Fort. Drive to Sabarmati Ashram before the midday heat, lunch on a Gujarati thali, rest through the afternoon, and finish at the riverfront and Atal bridge at sunset, with dinner at Manek Chowk after 9 pm.

Day 2: Stepwells and sun temple (about 260 km). Leave at 7 am for the Sun Temple at Modhera (about 100 km), continue to Rani ki Vav at Patan, the great stepwell on the UNESCO list, and see Patola weaving in the old town. Return via Adalaj in the late afternoon light. Bird lovers can swap Patan for Thol or Nal Sarovar lake in winter.

Going further. Ahmedabad is the natural gateway to Gujarat's big road trips: the Statue of Unity is about 200 km south-east, the white desert of Kutch about 400 km west, and the Saurashtra temple circuit of Dwarka and Somnath beyond that.

Practical tips for Ahmedabad by car

• Heat. From March to June, plan outdoor sightseeing before 11 am and after 5 pm; keep water in the car, which is air-conditioned throughout.
• Old-city access. Cars cannot enter most pols. Your driver will drop you at Kalupur, Teen Darwaza or Bhadra and collect you at an agreed spot.
• Dress. Cover shoulders and legs at mosques and Jain temples; leather items are not allowed inside many Jain temples.
• Festival traffic. During Navratri nights, expect traffic jams near the big garba grounds on SG Highway and SP Ring Road until the small hours; plan pickups accordingly.
• Calico Museum. Visits must be booked ahead and run only at set times; plan the day around your slot.
• Official information. The Ahmedabad district website carries notices on festival arrangements and road closures.

For business travellers who need a car every day, our taxi service in Ahmedabad page lists hourly and monthly options.