IRCTC Ramayan Yatra kicks off: What is 18 days, 17 nights pilgrimage package all about

New Delhi: The IRCTC on Friday launched its much-touted ‘Shri Ramayan Yatra’, designed & tailored to give Lord Ram devotees a unique chance to visit all the holy places, linked to him.

As the name suggests, the ‘Shri Ramayan Yatra’ will take the devotees & religious tourists on an unprecedented & unexplored trip to most popular Lord Ram temples across the country, while providing a comfortable journey, relaxed stays & home-cooked food.

Shri Ramayana Yatra, a theme based pilgrimage tour, will cover the ‘Ramayana circuit’ which includes all the sacred places associated with the life of Lord Rama.

Itinerary of Shri Ramayan Yatra

Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist train today took off from Safdarjung railway station and will return to the capital after 18 days trip to many holy cities.

The Deluxe train will cover places like Ayodhya, Janakpur, Sitamadhi, Varanasi, Manikpur Jn, Rameshwaram, Bhadrachalam Road, Nagpur before heading back to Delhi. There are also spots apart from Safdarjung , where people can board train like Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Tundla, Kanpur & Lucknow. Also, the pilgrims will have an option to extend the pilgrimage to Sri Lanka.

The IRCTC special plan comes as government’s ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ initiative to promote special interest in domestic tourism.

Cost for 18 day Ramayan trip:

Under the Shri Ramayan Yatra, the pilgrims will get 18 days & 17 nights package. It will cover all costs of the trip including travel, lodging & travel insurance.

The package has provision for 120 pilgrims, as per train’s seating capacity. Out of 120 seats, 24 seats are in AC I Couple , 48 each in AC 1 Cabin & AC II coach.

1 AC Couple is available on sharing basis & will cost ₹1,68,950/. 1AC Cabin offers single, double & triple sharing and the cost will vary accordingly. It varies from Rs. 1,61,645 to ₹1,35,500 depending on your ticket booking. For 2AC (48 Seats), the prices range between ₹1,29,165 to ₹1,03,020.

For children between 5-11 years, ticket price stands at ₹1,35,500 for 1AC Cabin and Rs. 1,03,020 for 2AC.
How tourists can take a trip to Sri Lanka

After the Southern leg, the pilgrims will be taken back to Delhi, however, if some are eager& willing to join Ramayana trail of Sri Lanka, they can join the next part of Ramayan Yatra i.e. Sri Lanka.

This religious trip will culminate at Nagpur Railway station on April 23, however, tourists will have a facility to avail 5 nights/6 days package for next phase of pilgrimage to Sri Lanka. Tourists will take a flight from Nagpur International Airport to Colombo and will see Lord Rama temples in Colombo, Dambulla, Trincomalee, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya.

Food & meal of the tourists will be taken care of by the IRCTC. A total of 40 pilgrims can avail the facility at one go.