Nearest airport: Mangaluru International (IXE), about 60 km south. Nearest railway station: Udupi (UD), on the Konkan line, 3 km from the town centre. By road: NH 66 runs through Udupi along the coast.
For most people flying in, the answer is Mangaluru airport plus an hour-and-a-quarter drive. For anyone coming from Mumbai, Goa or Kerala, the Konkan Railway is better than the road.
Which is the nearest railway station to Udupi?
Udupi railway station, station code UD, on the Konkan Railway line. It is about 3 km from the town centre at Indrali, and roughly 4 km from Manipal.
What to know before you book it:
Two working platforms, not well sheltered, which matters in monsoon
Around 66 to 74 trains halt here, but none originate here. Everything is a long-distance service passing through, so timings are set by where the train started, not by local convenience
Electrified, Konkan Railway zone, Karwar division
Autos and taxis wait outside. Ten to fifteen minutes into town
Malpe Jetty, for the St Mary's Island ferry, is about 10 km away
Alternatives if your train does not stop at UD:
Barkur (BKJ) About 16 km north. Use it when your train has no halt at UD.
Kundapura (KUDA) About 35 km north. This is the usual choice for Kollur Mookambika and Maravanthe.
Mangaluru Central (MAQ) 68 km south. Far more services and all classes.
Does Vande Bharat go to Udupi?
Yes. Udupi is one of only two intermediate halts on the Mangaluru Central to Madgaon Vande Bharat Express.
Train numbers: 20645 and 20646
Route: Mangaluru Central, Udupi, Karwar, Madgaon Junction
Frequency: six days a week, no service on Thursdays
Classes: AC Chair Car and AC Executive Chair Car only. No sleeper
Started: inaugurated 30 December 2023, commercial service from 31 December 2023
Typical timings at Udupi:
Northbound to Madgaon (20646): departs around 09:50, arrives Madgaon around 13:10
Southbound to Mangaluru Central (20645): departs around 21:14, arrives around 22:45
Check the day's timetable rather than assuming. Konkan Railway switches to a separate monsoon schedule roughly from mid June to around 20 October, and timings move.
No Vande Bharat connects Udupi directly to Bengaluru.
How do I get from Bangalore to Udupi?
This is the route most people take, and the honest ranking is: overnight bus if you want to save a day, flight if you want to save time, train only if the journey is the point.
Udupi is about 400 to 420 km from Bengaluru. There is no fast link. Every option involves either crossing the Western Ghats or flying over them.
Overnight bus, the default and usually the right call
Sleeper and semi-sleeper buses leave Bengaluru in the evening and reach Udupi around 7:30 in the morning. KSRTC runs Airavat Club Class Volvo multi-axle services, and there is a large private operator market alongside them.
Why this is the sensible pick: you leave after work on Friday, sleep through the drive, and your first day in Udupi starts at breakfast rather than in a car. For a two-day trip that is a full extra day of holiday.
One thing to spend money on. The route crosses Shiradi Ghat, a 60 to 70 km ghat section after Sakleshpur where the surface is frequently poor, particularly after heavy rain. Every bus slows here. On a Volvo or Scania multi-axle you will usually sleep through it. On a cheaper non-AC sleeper you will not. This is one of the few times where the fare difference genuinely buys you something.
Flight, if the weekend is short
Fly Bengaluru (BLR) to Mangaluru (IXE), then drive 60 km north.
Flight time: 55 minutes to 1 hour 5 minutes
Frequency: around 35 flights a week, roughly five a day. IndiGo and Air India Express operate the nonstop
Departures spread from about 06:10 to 21:30, so a same-day return is possible
From IXE to Udupi: about 60 km, an hour to an hour and a half by cab
Door to door: roughly 3.5 to 4 hours. This is the fastest option by a wide margin.
Train, and why it is the weakest option
There is no Vande Bharat between Bengaluru and Mangaluru. People search for this and assume it exists. It does not. The Vande Bharat that stops at Udupi runs Mangaluru Central to Madgaon, which does not help you from Bengaluru.
The relevant service is the 16515 Yesvantpur to Karwar Express, which halts at Udupi.
Departs Yesvantpur Junction at 7:00 AM, reaches Karwar at 10:30 PM the same day, with Udupi in the evening
Covers 610 km in about 15 hours 30 minutes, at an average speed of 39 km/h
The return working is 16516, departing Karwar at 5:30 AM
It carries two Vistadome coaches, which is the one real argument for taking it. The Ghat descent in a glass-roofed coach is genuinely worth doing once
It was converted to a day train as of January 2026, and frequency has changed more than once. Check current running days before planning around it
Otherwise, rail from Bengaluru means routing via Mangaluru or Hassan and it is slower than the bus for no gain.
Driving
About 400 to 420 km, 8 to 9 hours on NH 75 via Hassan and Sakleshpur, then NH 66 north from Mangalore. Three route options with different trade-offs are covered in which route is best further down this page.
Do not attempt Shiradi or Agumbe ghat at night, and check for landslide closures between June and September.
Which to pick
Two-day trip: overnight bus both ways. You get two full days on the coast
Three-day trip with a young family: fly, and skip the ghat entirely
You want the journey to be part of it: 16515 with a Vistadome seat, one way, bus back
Driving anyway and want the scenery: Agumbe Ghat route, but only in daylight and not in peak monsoon
How far is Udupi from Mangalore?
About 56 to 58 km by road on NH 66, and 68 km by rail on the Konkan line.
Car or bus: 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes. Traffic through Surathkal and Mulki is the variable
Train: about 1 hour 15 minutes
Mangaluru International Airport (IXE) at Bajpe to Udupi: about 60 km, 1 to 1.5 hours
Straight line it is roughly 49 km. Udupi sits due north of Mangalore on the same coastal highway, which is why the two are usually planned as one trip. More on that in Udupi or Mangalore.
How far is Udupi from Goa?
Around 300 to 320 km by road to Panaji, up NH 66. Straight line it is about 228 km.
By road: realistically 6 to 7 hours rather than the 4.5 hours mapping apps quote. NH 66 through Kumta, Honnavar and Karwar has town stretches and heavy truck traffic.
By train, which is the better option: the Konkan line runs the whole way. Vande Bharat 20646 covers Udupi to Madgaon in about 3 hours 20 minutes over roughly 250 km of track. Netravati Express and a long list of others run the same route.
Practical note: Madgaon is the station you want, not Vasco. From Madgaon you are close to the South Goa beaches and about 35 km from Panaji. If Panaji is your base, Karmali is the closer railhead.
How do I go to Udupi from Hyderabad?
There is no fast direct link. You are choosing between one very long train, a flight with a road leg, or a long drive.
Fastest: fly to Mangalore, then drive
IndiGo runs nonstop Hyderabad (HYD) to Mangaluru (IXE) in about 1 hour 45 minutes, roughly 10 to 15 departures a week. That is one to two a day rather than hourly, so it needs planning. Distance is about 610 to 630 km. Economy only on the nonstop.
Other carriers appear on this pairing through connections via Bengaluru or Chennai, adding roughly 1.5 to 2 hours.
From IXE, Udupi is about 60 km, an hour to an hour and a half by cab. Door to door: around 5 to 6 hours.
The only direct train, and why it takes 30 hours
12789 Kacheguda to Murdeshwar SF Express. Leaves Kacheguda at 06:05 on Tuesdays and Fridays and reaches Udupi around 11:40 the next day. Return working is 12790.
Two things people get wrong about it:
It does not start at Secunderabad Junction. It starts at Kacheguda, about 8 km away. If you are searching "train from Secunderabad to Udupi" and finding nothing, this is why.
It takes 29 to 30 hours because of the routing, not the distance. The train does not head southwest. It runs south through Kurnool, Renigunta, Katpadi, Salem, Erode and Coimbatore, crosses at Shoranur, then comes back up the Kerala and Karnataka coast through Kannur, Kasaragod and Mangaluru Central. That is around 1,690 km of track for a journey of roughly 750 km by road.
By road
About 750 to 775 km depending on route. Straight line it is roughly 600 km. Driving time is 12 to 14 hours realistically, though mapping apps quote closer to 10. Most people split it with an overnight stop around Hubballi or Chitradurga. Sleeper buses run and take around 16 hours.
Recommendation
Fly to Mangalore. The train only makes sense if you actively want a 30-hour rail journey, and some people do.
An alternative worth knowing: take any Secunderabad train to Mangaluru Central and connect north on the Konkan line. More flexible than waiting for the twice-weekly direct.
Which route is best for Udupi by road?
Depends where you are driving from. Three routes matter.
From Bengaluru, about 400 to 420 km
NH 75 via Hassan, Sakleshpur and Mangalore, then NH 66 north. Fastest and best surfaced, around 8 to 9 hours. Shiradi Ghat is the pinch point.
NH 206 and Agumbe Ghat via Shivamogga and Thirthahalli. Slower and far more scenic, with tight hairpins on the descent. Not a night drive and not a monsoon drive.
NH 169 via Karkala and Kudremukh. Beautiful, narrow, and hard work if you are not used to ghat roads.
From Mumbai, Goa or Kerala
NH 66 along the coast, straightforward the whole way.
If you are not driving
Konkan Railway is the better route from Mumbai, Goa and Kerala. From Bengaluru, rail means going via Mangalore or Hassan and is slower than the overnight bus.
Monsoon caveat
Shiradi and Agumbe ghats both see landslide closures between June and September. Check before committing to either. Full seasonal detail in our best time to visit Udupi guide.
Getting around once you arrive
Udupi town, Malpe, Manipal and Santhekatte all sit within about 15 km of each other.
Autos are the default in town and to Malpe
Buses run frequently on the Udupi to Malpe and Udupi to Manipal routes
Rented two-wheelers are widely available in Manipal and make sense for a two or three day stay
A car with driver is worth it if you are doing Kollur, Agumbe or Maravanthe
Where you base yourself changes how much of this you need. See where to stay in Udupi.
Frequently asked questions
What is the nearest airport to Udupi? Mangaluru International Airport (IXE) at Bajpe, about 60 km south, an hour to an hour and a half by road.
Is there a direct flight to Udupi? No. Udupi has no airport. All flights go to Mangaluru (IXE).
Does Vande Bharat stop at Udupi? Yes, on the Mangaluru Central to Madgaon service, trains 20645 and 20646, six days a week with no Thursday service.
How do I get from Bangalore to Udupi? Overnight bus is the default, arriving around 7:30 am. Fastest is a flight to Mangaluru (IXE), about an hour, then 60 km by road. Driving is 400 to 420 km and 8 to 9 hours on NH 75 via Hassan.
Is there a direct train from Bangalore to Udupi? Yes, the 16515 Yesvantpur to Karwar Express halts at Udupi. It takes around 15 hours 30 minutes for 610 km, so it is slower than the bus. Its two Vistadome coaches are the main reason to choose it. Check current running days.
Is there a Vande Bharat from Bangalore to Udupi or Mangalore? No. The Vande Bharat that stops at Udupi runs between Mangaluru Central and Madgaon. Nothing connects Bengaluru to the coast on that service.
How long is the overnight bus from Bangalore to Udupi? Evening departure, arrival around 7:30 am. Take a Volvo or Scania multi-axle. Shiradi Ghat is rough and the cheaper buses are hard to sleep through.
Is there a train from Secunderabad to Udupi? Not from Secunderabad Junction itself. The only direct service from the Hyderabad area starts at Kacheguda, about 8 km away: 12789 Kacheguda to Murdeshwar, Tuesdays and Fridays, roughly 29 to 30 hours.
How far is Udupi railway station from the town? About 3 km, at Indrali. Ten to fifteen minutes by auto.
Which station should I use for Kollur Mookambika? Kundapura (KUDA), about 35 km north of Udupi.
Sources and references
Train timings and flight frequencies change. This page was last checked on 6 August 2026. Confirm on the operator's site before travelling, particularly during the Konkan Railway monsoon timetable from mid-June to around 20 October.