How to Reach

By Air

Touted to be the third busiest airports in India, Chennai International airport is just 7 kilometres away from the city. It has two terminals. Most of the international and domestic airline carriers have direct flights to the terminal called Anna International Airport in Chennai making the airport well-connected to most major airports in the world. Domestic airlines operate on a daily basis at the Kamaraj Domestic terminal (located near the international terminal, just 150 meters away from each other.)

There are pre-paid taxi booths outside the airport from where you can hire a taxi and reach your destination. Charges may vary as per the cab vendor. However if you are looking for a cheaper alternative, auto-rickshaws can take you to the city at a relatively low fare.

By Bus

Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminal (CMBT) is one of Asia's largest bus stations. Around seven state owned companies run buses to and from various destinations within South India. they connect cities like Tirupati, Pondicherry, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli and others. You can choose from deluxe, semi-deluxe, hi-tech, rajahamsa executive and sleeper buses while taking a route to any of the neighbouring cities. Also, there are various buses that connect major cities Bangalore and Calicut to Chennai.

By Train

Home to the headquarters of the Southern Railway, Chennai has three major railway stations namely Chennai Central (code MAS), Chennai Egmore which is just 2 kilometres from the city (code MS) and Tambaram which serves the suburban areas of Chennai. Many super-fast and express trains run on a daily basis and are well-connected to cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Cochin, Hyderabad, Kolkata and other Indian cities. Some of the popular trains are Chennai Mail, Guwahati Express, GT Express, Chennai Central and Andaman Express. Outside the station, you would find many prepaid taxis, cabs and auto-rickshaws that are available for hire.

Road/Self Drive

The road network in Chennai is excellent and is well-connected to most of the neighbouring towns. There are 5 national highways that navigate towards major Indian cities like Kolkata, Bengaluru (330 kms), Madurai (326 kms), Tiruvallur (47 kms), Nellore (181 kms), Vellore (136 kms) and Pondicherry (162 kms). Many cab vendors like Clear Car Rental, Avis and Carzonrent provide various cab rental facilities for tourists. The drive from Chennai to Pondicherry is indeed a scenic one backed by a good road network.