Bodhgaya day trip from Varanasi: Mahabodhi Temple & Bodhi Tree

A morning at the holiest Buddhist pilgrimage site, without the queue at the gate

A same-day guided tour from Varanasi to Bodhgaya, the birthplace of Buddhism, with private transport and skip-the-line entry to the Mahabodhi Temple. You depart at 5 a.m. with packed breakfast, reach the temple complex by 10 a.m., and spend the morning and afternoon walking the sacred grounds where Prince Siddhartha became Buddha, visiting the Bodhi Tree, the 25-meter Great Buddha Statue, and several monasteries before returning to Varanasi in the evening.

Step-by-step itinerary

Guided Bodhgaya tour from Varanasi

• Take packed breakfast from hotel at 5 AM
• Drive to Bodhgaya
• Visit Maha Bodhi Temple Complex
• See the Bodhi Tree
• Visit the Great Buddha Statue
• Visit Vishupad Temple
• Visit Thai, Vietnamese, and Japanese Monasteries
• Optional Pind Daan rituals
• Drive back to Varanasi
• Transfer to hotel in Varanasi

The experience

The drive leaves Varanasi at 5 a.m. so you arrive in Bodhgaya around 10 a.m., giving you a full morning and afternoon at the temple complex before the return journey. Your guide speaks English and travels with you throughout the day, explaining the sites as you move through them. The Mahabodhi Temple itself is one of India's oldest brick structures and a UNESCO World Heritage site. It marks the exact spot where Buddha achieved enlightenment. You'll walk the perimeter in the clockwise direction pilgrims use, watching Tibetan monks perform prostrations on their prayer boards while maroon and yellow robes move through the compound.

After the main temple, you visit the Bodhi Tree (the actual fig tree under which Buddha sat), and then the Great Buddha Statue, a 25-meter-high Japanese-style sculpture unveiled by the Dalai Lama in 1989. The statue sits in a garden at the end of Temple Street and is surrounded by ten smaller Buddha sculptures. It's partially hollow and said to contain around 20,000 bronze Buddhas inside. You also see Vishupad Temple, which holds a 40-centimeter footprint of Lord Vishnu in a silver basin, and several monasteries including the Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese temples. If you wish to perform Pind Daan rituals for ancestors, your guide can arrange this with a local pundit for an additional fee paid directly.

Transport is by private air-conditioned vehicle throughout, and your entry to the temple complex skips the long lines at the gate. You return to Varanasi in the evening and are transferred back to your hotel. The tour runs 14 hours door-to-door, though most of that is travel time. You spend roughly five hours in Bodhgaya itself.

What’s included

• Professional English-speaking guide.
• private air-conditioned vehicle transport.
• hotel pickup and drop-off in Varanasi.
• skip-the-line entry to the Mahabodhi Temple.
• packed breakfast.
• all taxes, fees and handling charges.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 05:00

Book up to1d before

AgesAdult (18 to 80 years) · Under 18: can't be booked

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 25 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 9 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcomePublic transport nearbyNot recommended during pregnancyNot recommended with heart problemsNot recommended with back problems

Operated by Tour Varanasi

Is this one for you?The guide speaks English throughout, so you follow the commentary comfortably even if you don't know the Buddhist sites beforehand. The early 5 a.m. start and private vehicle mean you reach the temple before the largest crowds arrive, giving you a calmer morning at the Bodhi Tree and the main complex.

Traveler reviews

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Top questions

What exactly is the Bodhi Tree, and why is it so important to Buddhists?

The Bodhi Tree is the fig tree under which Prince Siddhartha sat and achieved enlightenment, becoming Buddha. It is the most sacred tree in Buddhism and stands in the temple complex at Bodhgaya. You visit it as part of the tour and can walk around it as pilgrims do.

How much time do I actually spend in Bodhgaya, and what can I see in that time?

You spend roughly five hours in Bodhgaya itself, arriving around 10 a.m. and departing mid-afternoon. In that time you visit the Mahabodhi Temple, the Bodhi Tree, the Great Buddha Statue, Vishupad Temple, and several monasteries including the Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese temples.

Will I have to wait in long lines to enter the Mahabodhi Temple?

No. Your tour includes skip-the-line entry to the temple complex, so you walk past the queue at the gate and go straight in.

What is included in the price, and what costs extra?

The tour includes private air-conditioned transport from your hotel in Varanasi, a professional English-speaking guide, all entry fees, taxes and handling charges, and your packed breakfast. If you choose to perform Pind Daan rituals for ancestors, you pay the pundit directly at the temple.

What time does the tour start, and when will I be back at my hotel?

Pickup is at 5 a.m. from your Varanasi hotel with packed breakfast. You return to Varanasi in the evening and are transferred back to your hotel. The full tour runs 14 hours.