SIGCOMM 2010

AUGUST 30-SEPTEMBER 3

NEW DELHI, INDIA

Getting to New Delhi

Delhi, the capital of India is easily reachable from anywhere across the world. Foreign tourists also have the privilege of getting to Delhi as there are many airlines flying directly to Delhi. Tourism in Delhi is growing like never before and the city is witnessing a large number of visitors from across the world. Being the national capital of India, Delhi has more than one advantage and innumerable reasons as to why tourists must visit the place.

Delhi is well connected by Road, Air and Rail Network. Most of the major airlines from across the world operate their services to and from Delhi. So, reaching Delhi is very convenient with so many options available. Once you are in Delhi, you will find innumerable transport options to choose from. You can hire a personal cab, an auto rickshaw or avail the bus service of DTC. Metro Rail Service within Delhi is well connected to most parts of the city, which makes commuting an easy ride for passengers and tourists.

By Flight – Indira Gandhi International Airport, located in the west of the city is the only international airport and arrival point for many visitors to New Delhi. The domestic terminals are near each other.

Airport to Hotel:

  1. The most convenient, easiest and safest way to get to your hotel is to arrange transfer from your hotel itself while doing reservation for your room. Generally, all good category hotels provide this facility free of cost whereas some hotels in the category of 3* to 4* charge a nominal amount.
  2. Alternatively, you can pay for a taxi at the prepaid taxi booths or take private cabs in the international terminal itself (it is advised that you check your change). Taxi booths are visible as soon as you exit customs. The one on the left is managed by the Delhi Police for Pre-paid Taxi. To the right of the exit door are private taxi operators. Private Taxi Operators like Easy Cabs or Meru Cabs have good cars and are more recommended.


Prepaid Taxi - This service is provided by Government and managed by Delhi Police. In pre paid service, you pay the fare in advance depending on the distance and luggage you have. The number of the taxi assigned to you will be on the receipt given at the time of booking the pre-paid Taxi. Please keep the receipt with yourself until you get to the destination as this is what they are paid on. There is no practice of tipping taxi drivers anywhere in India. There is a problem with this as there is a checkpoint manned by the traffic police just as your taxi moves away, you will have to show the receipt to the police who will record the number and return it to you. Keep the receipt with you.


EasyCabs

Private Taxi - Private Taxi operators have desk inside the airport terminal and are generally more preferred. At Rs.15/km, most of the Cab Services operate with all good vehicles and comfortable ride with trustworthy and verified drivers and can be dialed 24 hours a day. You can inform about your destination at the desk itself and this way, you will have no issues about the driver misguiding or taking longer routes.

Few of them are listed here:


By Train - Trains arrive at one of four main stations: Delhi Junction, also called Old Delhi or Purani Dilli; the second at New Delhi which lies in Central Delhi; Hazrat Nizamuddin a few kilometers to the south; and a a very newly developed Anand Vihar station to the east. (A very few trains use Delhi Sarai Rohilla or Delhi Cantt stations.) Delhi Junction and New Delhi Railway Station are now conveniently connected by Metro Line 2, just minutes apart, while Anand Vihar is served by Line 3. It will take about 40 minutes to an hour to travel from the New Delhi Railway Station to the airport by car, depending on traffic.

Local Transportation in Delhi

The local transportation is the lifeline of the capital city of New Delhi. More than half of the population in Delhi is dependent on local transport for commuting purposes. The means & modes of transport in New Delhi are many, ranging from the cheapest metro, buses, taxis to private cabs. Read on this Delhi public transportation guide to get more information about traveling in the capital city.

By Metro - Three lines of the new Delhi Metro are now open and provide a cheap, quick, hassle-free and air-conditioned way of zipping around the city. As of 2009, the following lines are open:

Line 1 (Red Line): Dilshad Garden-Kashmiri Gate-Rithala
Line 2 (Yellow Line): Jahangirpuri-Kashmiri Gate-Connaught Place-Central Secretariat
Line 3 (Blue Line): Noida-Connaught Place-Dwarka Sector 9

Fares range from Rs. 8 to 30, just buy a token, change lines as necessary, and deposit the token in the slot as you exit. If you're planning on sticking around for a while, you can buy a "Smart Card" for Rs. 100, which is worth Rs. 50 and includes a Rs. 50 deposit, lets you avoid the queues.

Beware: All Metro stations use the new, official, Indianized names, so Connaught Place is "Rajiv Chowk", Old Delhi Railway Station is "Chandni Chowk" and ISBT is "Kashmiri Gate".


DelhiMetro    DelhiMetro



DelhiAuto

By Auto Rickshaws - Auto rickshaws (also called three-wheeled scooters or simply autos) are good for shorter trips. Always in a distinctive yellow-and-green livery, auto rickshaws are three-wheeled partially enclosed contraptions (no doors!) that run on CNG and can seat three people in the back. In general, they are much cheaper than taxis and can be hailed from the street. Although by law the rickshaw drivers should charge according to the meter in their vehicle (Rs. 10 for the first km, 4.50 rupees per km after), this rate is unrealistically low and they will almost always try to haggle for price; some locals go so far as to say that you should not use the meter, because it means that either the meter is rigged, or the driver will take you the long way around! As rules of thumb, even the shortest journey costs Rs. 20, but you should not need to pay over Rs. 100 for any trip within the city.


Questions?

Contact SIGCOMM Local Chairs at: sigcomm2010local AT acm.org