Tripura Travel Guide: Where to Go, When to Visit, How to Reach

Photo: Kingshuk Mondal, CC BY 4.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons

Tripura is a small, green state almost wrapped by Bangladesh, with Assam and Mizoram along its eastern edge. For centuries it was ruled by the Manikya kings, and their palaces, temples and lakes still shape the trip. Travellers come for Agartala's white palace, a summer palace in the middle of a lake, rock carvings in the forest at Unakoti, and the cool orange orchards of the Jampui Hills. Indian visitors need no permit.

Tripura's kings built a palace on a lake, and its forests hide gods carved in stone.

Where to go

• Agartala and Ujjayanta Palace: the gleaming white palace of the Manikya kings, named by Rabindranath Tagore, now holds the Tripura State Museum. The Jagannath temple stands in its grounds.
• Neermahal: a lake palace in the middle of Rudrasagar Lake at Melaghar, about 55 km from Agartala, built in 1930 by Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya as a summer home. Boats take you across, and migratory birds crowd the lake in winter.
• Unakoti: huge faces of Shiva and other gods cut into a forested hillside near Kailashahar, in the north. The name means one less than a crore, after a legend of gods turned to stone.
• Tripura Sundari Temple, Udaipur: the temple at Matabari, one of the 51 Shakti Peethas, the seats of the goddess. It draws the largest crowds at Diwali.
• Chabimura: panels of gods carved high on a cliff above the Gomati river near Amarpur, reached by boat.
• Jampui Hills: the state's highest range, on the Mizoram border, at about 3,000 feet. Mizo and Reang villages sit among orange gardens, and the views run into Mizoram and Bangladesh.
• Sepahijala Wildlife Sanctuary: about 30 km from Agartala, home of the spectacled monkey, with a lake full of birds in winter.
• Pilak: old Buddhist and Hindu stone images scattered across the fields in the south, near Belonia.

For how the state divides, see Tripura's districts, from Agartala to Unakoti.

Main cities

Agartala is the capital and the only large city. It holds the airport, the main railway station, the palace museum and most places to stay, and it is the base for Neermahal and Sepahijala. The other towns are small and serve as bases for the sights around them.

• Udaipur: the old royal capital in the south, for the Tripura Sundari temple and its large old tanks.
• Melaghar: the small town on Rudrasagar Lake, for Neermahal.
• Amarpur: the base for the boat trip to Chabimura.
• Belonia: a southern town on the Bangladesh border, near Pilak.
• Sabroom: the southern tip of the state, where the Maitri Setu bridge crosses the Feni river to Bangladesh.
• Dharmanagar: the northern railway town, a gateway to the Jampui Hills.
• Kailashahar: the northern town nearest Unakoti.
• Ambassa: the hill town at the centre of the state, a stop on the way north.

Festivals

• Garia Puja (April): a seven-day festival of the Tripuri people, beginning on the seventh day of the Bengali month of Baisakh.
• Kharchi Puja (July): seven days of worship and a fair at the temple of the Fourteen Gods at Khayerpur, in Old Agartala. In 2026 it ran from 22 to 28 July.
• Neermahal Water Festival (August, and again in December): boat races and swimming on Rudrasagar Lake, with music in the evenings.
• Durga Puja (September or October): Agartala's pandals and the Durga Bari temple draw crowds for days.
• Diwali at Matabari (October or November): a great fair at the Tripura Sundari temple in Udaipur.

Festival dates follow the lunar calendar and can shift by a day or two; check before you go.

Food to try

• Mui borok: traditional Tripuri cooking, built around berma, a dried and fermented fish.
• Chakhwi: a thick stew of bamboo shoot with pork or vegetables.
• Wahan mosdeng: a spicy dish of pork with onion and green chilli.
• Gudok: vegetables and berma pounded together, sometimes cooked inside a bamboo tube.
• Maachher jhol: the Bengali fish curry of Agartala's kitchens, eaten with rice.
• Queen pineapple: small, sweet and sold everywhere in summer.

Stories from Tripura

• Tripura Travel by District: Agartala, Neermahal and Unakoti
• Cities and Towns in Tripura: Agartala, Udaipur, Dharmanagar

Plan your visit

Best season	October to March is dry and mild. The monsoon, roughly June to September, is hot, humid and wet, though July brings Kharchi Puja and August the Neermahal Water Festival.
How to reach	Fly to Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport, 12 km north-west of Agartala, with flights from Kolkata, Guwahati, Delhi and other cities. Agartala railway station, at Badharghat, is the state's main station, with trains from Guwahati, Sealdah (Kolkata) and Anand Vihar (Delhi), including the Tripura Sundari Express. By road, Agartala is reached through Assam.
Getting around	Local trains link Agartala with Udaipur in the south and Dharmanagar in the north. Buses and shared taxis serve the towns. Hire a car with a driver for Neermahal, Chabimura, Unakoti and Jampui.
Where to stay	Central Agartala, near Ujjayanta Palace; Udaipur for Matabari; Melaghar for Neermahal; Kailashahar or Dharmanagar for Unakoti; village homestays at Vanghmun on the Jampui Hills.
How long to spend	Four to six days: two in and around Agartala, one for Udaipur and Neermahal, and two for Unakoti and the Jampui Hills.
Permits	None for Indian visitors. Tripura is not under the Protected Area regime, so foreign visitors need only a valid Indian visa; carry your passport, as there are checkpoints near the Bangladesh border.

Open Tripura, India in Google Maps

Questions people ask

Do I need a permit to visit Tripura?

No. Unlike Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland, Tripura has no Inner Line Permit, and foreign visitors with a valid visa need no special permit.

What is the best time to visit Tripura?

October to March, when it is dry and mild. Come in July for Kharchi Puja in Old Agartala, or in August for boat races at Neermahal.

How do I reach Unakoti from Agartala?

Unakoti is in the far north, near Kailashahar. Take a train north towards Dharmanagar or hire a car for the long drive, and stay a night in Kailashahar or Dharmanagar.

How many days do I need for Tripura?

Four to six days covers Agartala, Neermahal, Udaipur and Unakoti; add a night or two for the Jampui Hills.

When is Kharchi Puja?

Every July, for seven days, at the temple of the Fourteen Gods at Khayerpur in Old Agartala. In 2026 it ran from 22 to 28 July.

Written by Muthu, editor of Aura of India. Sources: Government of Tripura: places of interest, Tripura Tourism: how to reach Tripura, Department of Information and Cultural Affairs, Tripura: fairs and festivals, Ministry of Home Affairs: FAQs on Protected and Restricted Area Permits. Last verified: 13 October 2026.

Your turn: Have you crossed Rudrasagar Lake to Neermahal? Did you go by day or stay for the evening light?