Aurangabad
Introduction
Aurangabad is a city in Bihar, India, and serves as the administrative centre of its district. If you are travelling through this part of the state, expect a working government town rather than a tourist destination, with the everyday rhythm of a district headquarters.
The people of the region speak Magahi and Hindi, so a few words of either will serve you well in shops and on the street. The source material for this guide is limited, so treat what follows as a starting point rather than a complete picture of the city.
Before you go
Aurangabad rewards travellers who arrive knowing a little of its story. The city was founded in 1610 by Malik Ambar, then known as Fatehpura, and later became the Deccan capital of Aurangzeb, a period when its culture, architecture and art flourished. The region's heritage reaches back much further: the viharas and paintings of Ajanta were carved and made in the 2nd century BCE, and the Ellora carvings track Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism across the 5th to 10th centuries CE. The fort at Devagiri, renamed Daulatabad, still stands, and the Bibi-ka-Maqbara, a replica of the Taj Mahal built in tribute to Begam Rabia Durani, is considered a masterpiece of Mughal architecture in the Deccan. Note that the city was officially renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2022, so you may see both names in use.
Plan your timing around the seasons. Summer, from March to May, is hot, though nights are usually pleasant and cooler. Winter, from November to February, is the most comfortable time to visit, with cool nights. The monsoon runs from June to October and brings moderate rainfall. Marathi is the local language, but Hindi, Urdu and English are also spoken widely, and people in service industries generally speak fairly good English. The city is fairly safe, and local buses are considered safe for women even late at night; if you are a woman travelling alone on an overnight bus, request a 'ladies-seat' when booking. Walking on the streets is usually safe for women until a certain hour in the evening, but avoid small lanes after dark and do not wear jewellery while walking. Do not display large currency notes in public, and beware of pick-pockets at crowded places such as railway stations, bus stations and bazaars.
Getting there
Aurangabad sits centrally in Maharashtra, with good air, rail and road links to the rest of the country. By plane, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Airport (IXU) — still widely called Aurangabad Airport — lies on Jalna Road at Chikalthana, about 4 km east of the city centre and a short walk from Chikalthana Railway Station. Air India flies from Mumbai and Delhi, while Indigo serves Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad.
By train, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar station (code CPSN), still known as Aurangabad Railway Station, has direct services from Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Amritsar, Hyderabad and Pune. The station has information and booking counters, waiting and rest rooms, book stalls and a canteen, and wheelchairs can be requested from the Station Master's office on Platform 1; there are no trolleys, but porters can be hired. Manmad is the nearest junction on the Central Railway, reachable by a good train connection or by road in 2–2½ hours — if you are connecting, leave at least two hours between arrival and departure, and if a late train makes you miss the connection you can claim a full refund at the connecting or destination station. By bus, the Central Bus Stand near Siddharth Garden and Zoo has services from Mumbai (via Pune or Nasik), Pune's Shivajinagar Bus Stand, Nasik, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Solapur, Kolhapur, Goa, Ahmedabad and Indore, as well as tourist places such as Lonar Crater, Shirdi and Shanishignapur. MSRTC's 'Red Buses' run at regular intervals to nearby destinations including Grishneshwar Temple, Bibi ka Makbara, Panchakki, Daulatabad Fort, Kultabad and Paithan, with tickets issued on the bus and no advance booking needed. The CIDCO Bus Stand is the MSRTC depot for city and long-route services, and private operators run from a depot near DMart at Dargah — their services are often delayed, so state-owned buses are the better bet for punctuality on shorter rides. By car, good highways connect Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune and Nasik, and make trips to Ajanta and Ellora comfortable; the Hindu Hridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg passes through Aurangabad, speeding access to Nagpur and Pune, and several car rental companies operate in the city.
Getting around
For short hops within the city, metered auto-rickshaws are the most convenient option: they are easy to find at almost any hour and affordable, with the fare read off the meter alongside the driver's tariff card. Always make sure the driver starts the meter when you set off, and keep in mind that the fare from midnight to 5AM is higher than the regular rate. Chauffeur-driven taxis and tourist taxis are the better choice for day trips to Ajanta, Ellora and Daulatabad, and can be booked through travel agents or the taxi counter at your hotel; check that the vehicle has a tourist permit, identifiable by its yellow number plate, rather than being a private car. Ola and Uber also run normal cab services, with good coverage in the city centre.
City buses are the cheapest way to get around. AMT (Aurangabad Municipal Transport) buses, owned by the municipal corporation but privately operated, ply throughout the city and its outskirts and connect the different neighbourhoods and adjoining suburbs, though they get crowded during the morning and evening rush hours. Smart City buses, offered by municipal bodies at subsidised rates, are substantially less crowded and better equipped, and are readily available in most parts of the city. For sightseeing further afield, MSRTC and ITDC run daily conducted tours by semi-luxury bus to Ellora, Ajanta and Daulatabad, with stops at city sights such as Bibi-Ka-Muqbara and Pan-Chakki; these can be booked at the Central Bus Stand and suit you if you are short of time, though the schedule is tight and you will not be able to linger at each place.
Where to stay
Aurangabad has hotels across every budget, so you can pick your base to suit both your spending and how you plan to get around. Budget hotels cluster near the Aurangabad Railway Station and the City Center, which puts you within walking distance of trains and buses; among them you'll find lodges on Station Road and Adalat Road, a government-run MTDC Holiday Resort on Station Road, and dorm beds at a backpacker hostel near Kranti Chowk. Mid-range hotels are spread across the city, with several along Jalna Road and in the CIDCO area of New Aurangabad, convenient if your business is at the new High Court or you're heading out toward the airport.
For the top end of the range, the four- and five-star properties sit near Chikalthana Airport, including options on Airport Road and Jalna Road in CIDCO. A few resorts lie further out, such as on Ellora Road near Daultabad Lake and Fort, and out along the Nashik Mumbai Highway — worth considering if you have your own transport and prefer quieter surroundings. Wherever you stay, booking ahead is sensible since the city draws tourists year-round.
Food & drink
Aurangabad eats well across the price range, and the city's signature meal is the thaali — a complete plate of assorted Indian breads, rice, vegetables, dals, kadhi, a traditional cold drink and dessert, with the contents changing daily. Bhoj, near Varad Ganesh Mandir, is one of the oldest thaali restaurants in town and is recommended even for foreign visitors; the food is neither spicy nor very oily. Indrali at Aurangpura is a good budget option, Naivedya on Jalna Road suits those staying near the airport, and Swad at Osmanpura is another solid choice. Thaat-Baat, off Adalat Road, serves a similar thaali in traditional Indian silver pottery. Vegetarian à-la-carte restaurants are scattered through Nirala Bazaar, Jalna Road, Adalat Road, Sutgirni Chowk and Cidco, and Kake di Hatti in Cidco turns out Punjabi food. Non-vegetarian restaurants and bar-restaurants cluster along Jalna Road and in Nirala Bazaar, with Mughal Darbar at Juna Bazaar and kat kat gate among the options. On the city's outskirts, open-air and semi-open dhabas on Nasik Road, the Beed Highway and the Daultabad road serve good food and liquor and make an easy family getaway.
For lighter fare, Baker's Lounge at Osmanpura and Cidco is known for pastries, cakes and veg savouries, while Smile in Nirala Bazaar and Laadli on Jalna Road serve good south Indian vegetarian snacks. Roadside eating is cheap and the food comes hot, but choose carefully: Bikaner Bhujiyawalla at Kranti Chowk fries up kachoris, samosas, bhajjiyas and dhoklas, and Gayatri Chaat Bhandaar in Gulmandi, with another unit at Kranti Chowk, prepares deep-fried snacks in front of you on a clay chulha — though it is not very hygienic. Omkar Pav Bhaji at Kranti Chowk does a good pav bhaji, grilled chicken tikka, tandoori and kebabs are sold at Connaught Gardens in Cidco, and vada paav, the Maharashtrian burger, is fairly good almost everywhere — insist on it hot. Street food also gathers near Sutgirni Chowk in Garkheda. If you try roadside food, make sure it is hot and fried in front of you, skip non-vegetarian roadside items, chutneys, juices and ice candy, and drink mineral water rather than regular water. Finish with paan at Tara Paan Centre in Osmanpura, a local tradition, where mouth-melting paans come with exquisite presentation. For a drink, good hotels keep in-house bars, alongside places such as Angeethi and Atithi-Rooftop at Seven Hills, City Spice in Cannought Gardens, Gharonda and Kohinoor Plaza in Nirala Bazaar, and the semi-open Garden Bar at the Taj Residency; avoid the very cheap-looking bars, which can be unsafe.
What to see and do
Start with the caves: the Aurangabad Caves lie just outside the city and are thought to have been excavated between the 2nd and 6th centuries, with nine caves in all, most of them viharas. The 4th cave stands on twelve columns carved with scenes from the Jataka tales, while the 7th is embedded with carvings of women adorned with jewels; the main attraction is a sculpture of a Bodhisatva praying for deliverance. Northwest of the city, Bibi ka Maqbara is a replica of the Taj Mahal and the only example of Mughal architecture of its kind on the Deccan plateau, built in 1679 by Aurangzeb's son in tribute to his mother, Begum Rabia Durani. Pan Chakki is a 17th-century water mill whose name comes from the mill that crushed grain for pilgrims; its garden holds fish tanks and the memorial of a Sufi saint.
For museums, head to the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University campus, where the History Museum displays ancient Indian paintings, coins, fabrics, arms and artifacts, along with fine sculptures from excavations at Bhokardan, and Soneri Mahal, an old monument converted into a museum, houses pottery, dresses, remains of local palaces, antiques of daily use and sculptures and reliefs from local excavations. The Shrimant Chatrapati Shivaji Raje Museum is dedicated to the warrior Shivaji Maharaj and displays exhibits associated with him. To relax, Siddharth Garden next to the Central Bus Station is a landscaped garden with a variety of trees and shrubs, a small aquarium and a zoo with lions, white and Bengal tigers, leopards, crocodiles, a snake house, civet cats, hyena, fox, porcupine, emu and deer, plus lawns for a picnic.
When to go
Aurangabad has a temperate climate with three main seasons, and winter is the most comfortable time to visit. Days are mild and humidity is low, and nights cool off, so you can spend long days at outdoor sights without battling the heat.
Summer days are hot and humidity stays very low, but nights are usually pleasant and cooler throughout the season, making evenings the easier time to be out. The monsoon brings moderate rainfall over these months and humidity rises, with wet conditions that can affect outdoor sightseeing, so plan around the weather if you visit then.
Three days in Aurangabad
Day one begins in Aurangabad itself, getting your bearings in a city whose character shifts from street to street. Begin with the Bibi Maqbara, the tomb of Begam Rabia Durani, often compared to the Taj Mahal and a good introduction to the Mughal presence in the Deccan. Continue on foot through the older quarters, where the everyday life of the city is on show, and keep an eye out for the legacy of Malik Ambar, whose mark on the region is felt across Aurangabad. In the evening, settle into the rhythm of the city and its food.
Day two takes you out to Ellora, where the rock-cut caves bring together Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism in one place. Give yourself time to move slowly between the caves rather than rushing. On the way back, stop at Daulatabad, the fortress city once known as Devagiri, and climb among its walls and passages. Return to Aurangabad in the evening, tired and dusty.
Day three is for Ajanta, the painted caves that reward an early start and a patient eye. The drive takes you out of the city and into quieter country, and the caves themselves ask for unhurried attention. Back in Aurangabad, spend what remains of the day walking and eating, and plan your departure. Summer, from March to May, is hot, so pace yourself; winter, from November to February, is the kinder season for long days of sightseeing.