Transport from the airport in India
Delhi T3 is 16 km from Connaught Place and the Airport Express metro is the daytime answer - about 20 minutes and roughly 60 INR. After the metro stops, use only the prepaid taxi counters inside arrivals, and never hand the driver your paper ticket before you get there. In Mumbai the prepaid taxi to Colaba is a fixed 700 to 900 INR.
- Delhi's Airport Express metro is the daytime answer - about 20 minutes to New Delhi Railway Station for roughly 60 INR, with luggage racks and air conditioning. A smart card takes 10 % off.
- It runs from about 05:20 until 23:30, every 10 to 15 minutes, from the level below T3 arrivals.
- After that, use only the prepaid taxi counters inside the arrivals hall - about 400 to 500 INR to Connaught Place, with a 25 % surcharge between 23:00 and 05:00.
- Never hand the driver your prepaid paper ticket before you arrive. It is his payment voucher; give it up early and you have no leverage left.
- Uber and Ola pick up from the multi-level car park opposite T3, lanes 4 to 6 - 300 to 500 INR, plus airport entry and city toll charges added at the end.
- In Mumbai the MIAL prepaid taxi to Colaba is a fixed 700 to 900 INR and takes 45 to 70 minutes, with a 25 % night surcharge.
- Mumbai auto-rickshaws cannot legally enter the southern half of the city, so they are only useful for the northern suburbs.
- In the monsoon, take the fixed-price prepaid taxi in Mumbai, not an app - flooding sends app pricing through the roof.
Indira Gandhi Airport, Delhi (DEL)
Terminal 3 is about 16 km southwest of Connaught Place.
- Airport Express metro (Orange Line) - the daytime choice. The station is on the level below T3 arrivals, and trains run non-stop to New Delhi Railway Station, where you can change to the Yellow Line. About 20 minutes, and the fare is around 60 INR - the Airport Express has its own fare table, separate from the rest of the network, and it rose slightly in the August 2025 revision. A smart card takes 10 % off. Trains run roughly 05:20 to 23:30, every 10 to 15 minutes, air-conditioned and with proper luggage racks.
- Government prepaid taxi - the choice once the metro stops. The counters are inside the arrivals hall, before you leave the building, run by the Delhi Traffic Police and licensed operators. You pay at the counter by destination zone and get a paper ticket with the assigned vehicle's number. 400 to 500 INR to Connaught Place or Paharganj, 500 to 700 INR to the southern neighbourhoods such as Hauz Khas, plus a 25 % surcharge between 23:00 and 05:00. Do not hand the paper ticket to the driver until you have arrived. It is his voucher for payment from the authority - hand it over at the start and nothing holds him to the destination.
- Uber and Ola - the pickup zone is the ground level of the multi-level car park opposite T3, lanes 4 to 6. 300 to 500 INR into the centre, but airport entry and city toll charges are added at the end, on top of the fare the app quoted. Note that the cheapest category cars in Delhi often run on CNG with the tank in the boot, which leaves room for about one large suitcase.
- DTC air-conditioned buses - routes serve Connaught Place and Kashmiri Gate for 50 to 150 INR, roughly 05:00 to 23:00. Schedules are unreliable, the traffic is the traffic, and there is almost no luggage space. Not a sensible first-arrival option.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Airport, Mumbai (BOM)
International flights use Terminal 2, about 30 km north of Colaba and South Mumbai.
- MIAL prepaid taxi - the counter is in the arrivals hall. A fixed 700 to 900 INR to Colaba, Nariman Point or CST, taking 45 to 70 minutes depending on traffic; 300 to 450 INR to Bandra or the BKC business district. A 25 % night surcharge applies overnight. You pay first, get a slip with the driver's name and vehicle number, and board the assigned car.
- Uber and Ola - the pickup zone is signposted immediately outside T2 arrivals. From about 500 to 800 INR to Colaba, but surge multipliers of 1.5x to 3x apply through the morning and evening peaks, and the Bandra-Worli Sea Link toll is added at the end.
- In the monsoon, June to September, use the prepaid taxi. When the city floods, app prices go somewhere the fixed fare cannot follow.
- Auto-rickshaws are legally barred from the southern half of Mumbai, south of Bandra. They are fine for Andheri or Juhu at 150 to 250 INR, and useless with large luggage.
Recommendations by traveler type
Uber and Ola both work but need an Indian number for the OTP. Uber Auto books a rickshaw, which is the fastest thing across short distances in traffic. In Delhi the Airport Express metro handles a solo arrival; a family with luggage should book a transfer rather than split across two small CNG cabs.
- Solo with light luggage in Delhi: the Airport Express metro, about 20 minutes and roughly 60 INR.
- Family with children and heavy suitcases: book a transfer in advance. The cheapest app cars are CNG-converted with almost no boot, so a family ends up in two vehicles.
- Arriving late: use the prepaid taxi counters inside the terminal, never a driver who approaches you outside.
- Lowest budget in Mumbai: a prepaid black-and-yellow Kaali-Peeli, roughly 650 to 900 INR into South Mumbai.
- Uber and Ola need an Indian number to receive the sign-in OTP - one more reason to sort a local SIM or eSIM early.
- Uber Auto orders a rickshaw through the app, which beats a car across short distances in traffic and removes the fare argument.
- Solo traveller with light luggage - in Delhi, the Airport Express metro: about 20 minutes, roughly 60 INR, and immune to the traffic. In Mumbai, an app car outside the rush hours, or a rickshaw if you are heading to the northern suburbs.
- Family with children and heavy suitcases - book a transfer in advance rather than working it out in the pickup zone. The cheapest app categories in Delhi are CNG conversions with the tank in the boot, so four people with suitcases means two cars and a luggage shuffle.
- Arriving late at night - the prepaid taxi counters inside the terminal building, and nothing else. The counter fixes the price and records the vehicle; a driver who approaches you on the forecourt does neither.
- Lowest budget - in Delhi the metro at roughly 60 INR; in Mumbai a prepaid black-and-yellow Kaali-Peeli without air conditioning, roughly 650 to 900 INR into South Mumbai.
Two things about the apps
- Uber and Ola both need an Indian phone number to receive the one-time password at sign-in. Set up connectivity before you rely on either.
- Uber Auto books an auto-rickshaw through the app. Across short distances in Indian city traffic a rickshaw beats a car, and ordering it in the app removes the negotiation entirely.
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