Nothing I had read prepared me for Varanasi, and I had read a lot.
One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on earth, older than Rome, Hinduism’s holiest city, where pilgrims come to bathe in the Ganges at dawn and the devout come, quite openly, to die, because dying here is believed to free the soul from the cycle of rebirth. Varanasi does not perform its spirituality for visitors. It simply carries on, and lets you watch.
Dawn on the river
Every morning before sunrise, rowboats push off from the ghats, the great stone staircases that step down into the river for several kilometers. I paid a boatman a few hundred rupees and drifted as the sun came up, and what unfolded along the bank was everything at once: pilgrims immersing themselves in prayer, laundry men slapping sheets against stones, yoga classes, cricket games, priests, barbers, buffalo. Life and death sharing the same staircase, entirely unbothered by each other.
The boat ride at dawn is the essential Varanasi experience. Do it your first morning, jet lag makes early starts easy anyway.
The evening aarti
At sunset, Dashashwamedh Ghat holds the Ganga Aarti, a fire ceremony performed every single evening: young priests in gold silk moving in synchrony with tiered flame lamps, bells, drums, incense, and a crowd of thousands on the steps and in boats offshore. It is devotional and theatrical at once, and it has happened every night for longer than anyone can properly say. Arrive an hour early for a spot, or watch from a boat on the water, which is where I would go again.
Kashi, Benares, Varanasi: a little context
The city answers to three names. Kashi, the luminous one, is the ancient name from the scriptures; Benares is the colonial-era spelling that still hangs on shop signs and in the name of its famous silk; Varanasi is the official modern name, taken from the two rivers, the Varuna and the Assi, that bracket the long curve of ghats. This is held to be the city of Shiva, and everything about it leans toward the river: the temples face it, the lanes drain toward it, the day begins and ends on its steps. Knowing that much turns the riverbank from a spectacle into a system.
A few courtesies carry a long way. Dress modestly, shoulders and knees covered, and slip your shoes off at temple thresholds. Ask before photographing people, especially the sadhus, the orange-robed holy men, many of whom expect a small tip for a portrait and are entirely within their rights. Eat and hand things over with your right hand, keep public affection to a minimum, and remember that none of this is staged for visitors; you are a guest at something far older than tourism.
The burning ghats, and how to behave
Manikarnika and Harishchandra ghats are cremation grounds, and the fires burn around the clock. Visitors may watch quietly from a respectful distance. Photography is absolutely forbidden, and anyone who approaches offering to guide you closer “for the families” is running a hustle; decline politely and keep your distance. I stood back for a while, watched, and left quieter than I arrived. It is not morbid. It is the most matter-of-fact relationship with death I have ever seen, and it reframed some things for me that have stayed reframed.
Into the old city
Behind the ghats lies a medieval labyrinth of alleys too narrow for cars, shared by pilgrims, cows, motorbikes with strong opinions, silk merchants, and some of the best street snacks in India. Things worth surrendering a morning to:
- Kachori sabzi and jalebi for breakfast at a hole-in-the-wall, standing up, with locals nodding approval.
- Banarasi paan, the famous betel-leaf digestive, if you are feeling brave.
- Lassi at one of the ancient shops that serve it in clay cups with a slab of cream on top.
- Banarasi silk. Varanasi has woven silk for centuries; buy from a proper weaving house, not a commission-paying tout’s cousin’s shop.
- Sarnath, twenty minutes away, where the Buddha gave his first sermon. A calm green counterpoint to the city’s intensity.
Planning your visit
The kind months are October to March, when mornings are cool and the light on the river is gentle; aim squarely for that window if you can. Summer, April to June, is punishing heat, and during the monsoon the swollen river can climb the ghats and pause the boat rides altogether. If your dates are flexible, look up Dev Deepawali, the festival of lights held on the November full moon, when the ghats blaze with thousands of oil lamps; it is as extraordinary and as crowded as that sounds, so book far ahead.
Varanasi has an airport with good connections to Delhi and Mumbai, about an hour from the river by taxi, and the city is well served by trains. Stay close to the ghats if you can: simple guesthouses in the lanes run cheap, roughly $10 to 30 a night, while the heritage hotels above the river climb toward $60 to 150 and beyond, and buy you sunrise from your window. Dawn boat rides are negotiated on the spot; agree the price and duration before stepping in, and ask locally for current aarti timings, which drift with the sunset.
Honest notes
Varanasi is intense: crowded, loud, sometimes confronting, occasionally filthy, always alive. Some travelers bounce off it. Go with patience, keep your bag zipped, agree boat and rickshaw prices before setting off, and give it at least two nights so the initial overwhelm can settle into fascination. It did for me, somewhere in the middle of the second morning.
Insider tips
Start one morning at Assi Ghat, the southern end, where a daily sunrise program of chanting, music, and open-air yoga draws more locals than tourists, then walk the ghats end to end; it takes a couple of unhurried hours and is the best free museum in India. Take your chai in the little clay cups called kulhads, smashed after use as generations have smashed them, guilt-free. Retreat to a rooftop cafe in the flat light of midday, when the lanes are at their loudest, and remember that Varanasi is one of the great homes of Indian classical music; if an evening concert is advertised anywhere, go.
Coco stayed home for this leg of the trip with my family, which was the right call. Varanasi’s street dogs run a tight operation and were not hiring.
Quick answers
Is Varanasi safe for first-time visitors?
Generally yes, with ordinary city sense: watch your bag in crowds, agree prices before rides, and wave off anyone offering to guide you at the cremation ghats. Dressing modestly and keeping late evenings to busy areas smooths almost everything.
How many days do you need in Varanasi?
Two nights minimum, three ideally. The first day tends to overwhelm; the magic usually arrives on the second morning, once the rhythm of the ghats starts to make sense.
Can you take photos at the burning ghats?
No. Photography at Manikarnika and Harishchandra is strictly forbidden, out of respect for grieving families. Watch quietly from a distance and keep the camera down; the rest of the riverfront is fair game.
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— Lina
Planning your Varanasi mornings
Come between October and March, when dawn is cool and the river mist does its slow theatre. Stay as close to the ghats as you can – the old city’s guesthouses put you two minutes from the water, which matters when the day starts before six. Arrange your sunrise boat the evening before: agree the route and the fare clearly (rowing boats are priced by the hour; a shared boat costs less than a private one), and confirm you will be on the water before first light. The classic drift runs from Assi or Dashashwamedh along the crescent of ghats as the city wakes to bathe, pray and practise yoga facing the sun.
Meeting the ghats with respect
Varanasi asks more of a visitor than most places, and gives more back. Manikarnika and Harishchandra are cremation ghats, sacred and working – keep a respectful distance, keep cameras down there entirely, and let your boatman guide where pausing is appropriate. Elsewhere, ask before photographing people at prayer or bathing; a raised camera answered with a nod is a portrait, unanswered it is an intrusion. Dress modestly on the ghats, shoulders and knees covered, and step around, never over, anyone seated in devotion.
My insider notes
Do not leave without an evening at the Ganga aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat – fire, bells and chant in perfect choreography; arrive early or watch from a boat on the water, which might be the better seat. Get lost once in the galis, the old city’s tangled lanes, with a clay cup of chai in hand. And if you have half a day, Sarnath – where the Buddha gave his first teaching – is a short ride and a complete change of register: from the loudest holiness to the quietest.
Questions I am always asked
Is Varanasi overwhelming?
The first hour, yes – then the rhythm takes over. Go slowly, start with the river at dawn when the city is gentlest, and let it unfold at its own pace.
How do I arrange the sunrise boat?
Through your guesthouse or directly with a boatman at the ghats the evening before. Agree route, duration and price clearly up front, and be at the water while it is still dark.
What should I wear?
Light, modest clothing that covers shoulders and knees, and sandals you can slip off easily – you will be doing it often, and the ghat steps are worn smooth by centuries of feet.