GOING HOME

HOW TO GET TO KOLKATA TEMPLE

In most cases, devotees travel through Kolkata as it is the nearest city to Sri Nabadwip. Make sure you have let us know the date and approximate time when you are coming to make sure the manager is there to welcome you. You can let us know by sending an email at or use other means you are comfortable with.

Here are the guidelines how to find our Kolkata Temple:

• If you are not carrying any rupees with you, you need to change some money at the airport. Just after you leave the plane, there is an exchange booth just before the immigration control. (There are some ATMs at the exit of the airport, but they are known to give problems.) You should have about Rs 1800 + change to get to the Nabadwip temple (Rs 800 + change, if you decide to go by train). If you do not want to worry about changing money later, change extra. Remember that you will need to have the same minimum sum to get from Nabadwip back to Kolkata.


• Take a pre-paid taxi at the airport. There are no jump-in/bargain taxis outside the airport anymore, there are no buses anywhere close to the airport. You must book a taxi, and it is simple.
  
  
  
  • After you collect your luggage and exit through the customs, you will find two pre-paid taxi booths: a private (the first one you see, at the corner) and a government one (further down the hall). The private one is A/C, comfortable car, and slightly more expensive. The other one is cheaper and a simpler car, but there is usually a bit longer queue to get it. Both go by meter, you do not need to bargain. The charge comes to about Rs 100-150. It is good to have some change with you because the drivers mostly do not give it to you.
  
  
  • When booking a pre-paid taxi, you need to tell them your name (devotional, passport, or just any name, it does not matter) and the address: "Dum Dum Park, 491" (they do not need to know the exact address, you will tell it later to the driver). Take the booking slip and come outside the airport.
  
  
  • Outside the airport, come to a taxi booking booth in the middle (you will notice it by the crowd) and show your slip to any taxi driver you find around. They will show you to your car. Usually it takes seconds—as soon as you come out, before you know it you will be seated in a car. If the slip has the car number, check it against the number plate before getting in.
  
  
• In the car. The most responsible part is to tell the driver where you need to get to. Key words: "Dum Dum Park, Jessore Road, Tank number three." They do not know the number of the buildings, and the driver may not know our temple, or even "Tank number three". If you see the driver looks confused, you will need to help him with the road.
  
  
  • Do not be afraid, it is very easy to get to the temple and it is only a 10-15 minutes' drive, and you only need to know where to turn off Jessore Road. You can try showing the driver the maps we have below.
  
  
  • After about 5-7 minutes of driving, passing some markets and forever busy streets, taking a rather narrow flyover, you will come to another busy road (continuation of Jessore Road after the flyover), watch for a bright and fancy Diamond Plaza shopping mall on your left. When you see it, it means you are near. Shortly, again on your left you will see a very small vegetable market, you need to turn left and off Jessore Road right after it. There will be a small bridge over a river ahead, after the bridge starts Bangur Avenue, you need to turn left just before the bridge (see the map to get a visual idea).
    
    
  • After turning off Jessore Road, drive down the street for less than a minute and take first turn right just before a pond. Our temple will be on your right, and as you turn right round the corner, pass the temple folding palms and bowing to the Deities. The pond should be now on your left (this is that Tank number three). Stop the driver when the car reaches the next corner of the pond, just a few houses down the street, before the street turns left. You will see the gates of our Sevak Bhavan on your right.
  
  
• Once you stop at Sevak Bhavan, pay the driver according to the meter. If you do not have the exact amount, you will have to most likely just pay over with what you have and forget the change. If, however, you pay the exact amount, the driver may sweetly ask you to give him more—do not pay attention to that, you can say, "No, thank you," and walk away without further talking, it is normal. Having finished with the driver, come on in. We are happy to see you at last.


• At Sevak Bhavan, the manager's name is Ramanuja Prabhu (he speaks English and Spanish). Please coordinate with him your further travelling.


• If you did not change enough money at the airport, you can find many ATMs (cash machines) not very far from our Dum Dum Park temple. The close-up map below has one of the nearest ATMs marked. If you are carrying cash, the exchange office is in downtown Kolkata, quite far out from the temple, so if you do not have a credit card, change enough at the airport. (There is an exchange office near our Nabadwip temple, but you need sufficient funds to get from Kolkata to Nabadwip!)

The road is straight. After passing Nagerbazar Flyover,
watch for the Diamond Plaza as the next landmark:

After you pass the Diamond Plaza, watch for a turn to Shyamnagar Road,
pass it, then tell the driver to turn left after the market (right before the bridge).

After you turn off Jessore Road, make sure you turn right before the pond.
Sevak Bhavan is a few houses past the temple.

Our Sevak Bhavan, Dum Dum Park, 491.
Welcome.

GOING HOME:

• Introduction
• Visa, documents
• Packing
• Travelling to:
  ◊ Kolkata