India is a land of diversity. More than 20 official languages, multiple religions, variety of cuisines, tonnes of ancient monuments, royal palaces, beautiful landscape sceneries and what not. To truly experience breath of Indian culture and history travel is the key. It would take days, months and years to experience each aspect of India and still there would be some left for your next trip.
To travel within India there are multiple modes and one such mode is Railways (trains). The thrill of exploring India would be incomplete without having a knack of the third most biggest passenger rail network in the world after United States and China.
Let’s first understand how to access information pertaining to such busiest network.
Railways in India also offer luxury experience by the mode of luxury trains ( ) to get you through a Maharaja experience. Read above link to get complete idea on these luxury trains.
To help foreign tourists understand what Indian Railways have on plate for the foreign tourists read on.
Foreign tourists who visit India with a valid passport and tourist visa can book tickets either online from www.irctc.co.in or Offline through International Tourist Bureaus located at various cities. Indian Railways reserves small number of seats in certain trains for foreign tourists or NRI’s who visit India on tourist visa. These reserved number of seats are known as Foreign Tourist Quota (FTQ). This is granted on some of the trains and not all trains are allocated Foreign Tourist Quota. Given the long waiting numbers for a single berths in trains in India, this FTQ can provide some relief for foreign tourists. Passengers can book tickets under Foreign Tourist Quota online from the official booking website of the Indian Railways. Under Services tab on the irctc website there is an option to choose Foreign Tourist Quota Booking. There are some reserved seats under this quota for some of the trains whose allocation is done per coach as following:
So under Foreign Tourist Quota a user can book only in first ac (1A), second ac (2A) or executive class (EC) of travel. To avail tickets under this quota users will need to register themselves on irctc website using their international mobile number and valid email id. These details will be used to verify user via OTP on mobile number and email id provided by the individual. Passengers will need to enter their passport number to book e-tickets. Unlike domestic passengers for whom booking window opens 120 days in advance, foreign tourists can book tickets in FT quota upto 365 days in advance. Berth allocation in such cases are done when the booking period starts for the date of journey which is 120 days. Before that passenger can only book ticket and get themselves registered. Although they can also book under normal advance reservation period (of 120 days) and can book tatkal tickets too. An additional charge of Rs 200/- + Taxes per ticket is applicable for all the tickets booked under Foreign Tourist Quota. User can make payments through International Debit/Credit card either through AMEX (American Express International Cards) or ATOM (for all International Cards). After the ticket is booked, the same is communicated on the email id and phone number provided by the user at the time of registration.
If the berth is not allocated to FT Quota users for any reason, cancellation SMS/Email is sent to them communicating about the same. Refund in such case is sent back to the same account which was used at the time of booking.
In case a passenger wants to cancel their ticket booked under this quota, flat 50% of the fare is deducted in addition to the cancellation charges applicable while refunding the amount. If the time remains less than 4 hours of the scheduled departure of train and a passenger cancels their ticket booked under this quota, they don’t get any refund.
For booking ticket offline there are International Tourist Bureaus at various locations in India. They provide assistance to foreign tourists and NRIs regarding bookings, enquiries, reservation and travel planning. They remain open from 6:00 to 23:00. All Payments are generally accepted in US Dollars, Pounds, Sterling, Euro and Indian Rupees here.
International Tourist Bureaus also issue Indian Rail passes to the foreign tourists holding valid passport and visa. Just like in any other country these passes can be used to travel as the tourist likes in entire Indian Railways without any route restriction within the validity period of the pass. However, this pass does not guarantee reserved seats. It is highly recommended to do berth reservation early to avoid any last minute hassle. Indian trains are crowded most of the time and without reservation you might be forced to cancel your journey despite having a valid pass. IndRail Passes are very convenient for tourists and it provides flexibility to travel anywhere in India. IndRail Pass holder is not required to pay any reservation charges, superfast charges or any other additional charge applicable under general quota tickets. Even the catering service provided in Rajdhani, Shatabdi or other Express trains are covered in this pass and there is no additional charge for the same.
The Indian Rail passes can also be availed through General Sales Agents appointed abroad and Rail Travel Agents appointed in India. A tourist can obtain reservation against passes from any reservation office of the Indian Railways. To make a reservation in your preferred train and class you can ask your agency that got you the pass or you can make it yourself at stations. Tariff for Indian Rail Pass is listed below. This fare structure is in US DOLLARS:
