📍 India
Varanasi
Sacred city on the Ganges
No bookable tours in Varanasi yet
Our partners in India are still adding their Varanasi tours. Name your price and local partners send you offers within 48 hours, or browse hotels now.
Name Your Price → Browse hotelsAbout Varanasi
Varanasi, also called Benares or Kashi, is among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and is holy to Hindus. Pilgrims come to bathe in the Ganges and to perform rites along its stepped ghats. Nearby Sarnath is where the Buddha is traditionally held to have given his first sermon.
A practical first trip balances the must-sees with one unscheduled half-day.
Places worth building around
Your first short list in Varanasi.
Main ghat, famed for the nightly Ganga aarti ceremony.
Miles of stone steps along the Ganges, best seen at dawn.
Buddhist site with the Dhamek Stupa and monastery ruins.
The city's principal cremation ghat on the Ganges.
17th-century riverside fort across the Ganges.
Where to stay in Varanasi
Real hotels with live prices — pick your dates on the hotel page.
from$756
from$555
from$1,493
from$451
from$440
from$155
from$170
from$85
Want hotels and tours together? Name your price for a package →
Quick answers for Varanasi
How long should a first visit be?
Plan 2 nights for the highlights without rushing. Add a night or two for a nearby day trip or a slower pace.
When is the best time to go?
Varanasi is at its best in Oct–Mar, with comfortable weather and manageable crowds.
Can a local expert plan it for me?
Yes. Name your price and the local partners who cover Varanasi send you offers within 48 hours. Nothing is charged until you accept one.
Name your price
Your Varanasi trip, your budget.
Tell us what you want — a guide for a morning, a driver for a week, hotels and tours together — and what you'd like to spend. Local experts compete for it.