Mumbai Elephanta Caves Private Half-Day Tour including Guide

Exploring Elephanta caves

Very interesting tour. Our guides Sameer and Arpit were very good and explain the history of the caves They also had a lot of knowledge about shiva and the statues in the Elephanta Caves We visited the city and passed a good time

This was an incredible...

This was an incredible experience! Our guide lived on the island, was very knowledgeable, and helped us capture so many great photos along the way! Highly recommend!

Tour was canceled, but the back-up plan was excellent

Unfortunately, the tour to the Elephant Cave was cancelled, because the ferry was cancelled due to the visit of the President Modi to Mumbai, but this tour company offered an excellent back-up plan for me. They let me join the Dharavi slum tour, and I enjoyed it a lot.

Excellent tour, Mukesh was amazing and was the best driver i have seen in all of India

The whole tour was very good, Mukesh showed us all of the sights and knew a lot about everything . He spoke very good English and, as he was so good he made it the best tour I have ever been on. A big thank you to Mukesh for being such a good driver and for knowing so much about all of Mumbai

A Must See in Mumbai!

The caves are phenomenal. They are a must see in Mumbai. Sameer is a great guide and very knowledgeable. He takes great photos as well. I had a fabulous time! Note: There is a hand-off from the Mumbai side, and then you meet the guide on the island.

Amazing

I can’t say enough amazing things about this excursion. Raj our guide was the best. Very informative and helpful on top of being very personable and making us feel like part of the lifestyle. Thank you again for a wonderful day🙏🏻

Great day to Elephanta caves

What a great day to Elephanta caves with Raj our guide and Mukesh our driver. Both locals who could provide wonderful insight to the city and the people. It was wonderful socializing with others on the ferry. Keep in mind all the steps- but even if you can’t - locals will carry you up and down the steps for a small fee. Would recommend. Great lunch at local restaurant.

A great day to Elephanta caves

A great day seeing Elephanta caves. Our guide Raj was great. Mukesh our driver was wonderful - such a delight to talk to and be around. Both locals who know so much of the area. The ferry ride to and from was so enjoyable, socializing with Indian families. Keep in mind - a lot of stairs - but you can be carried up and down like a king or queen so no worries. Wonderful local lunch. Great day. Recommend highly

Magical Indeed!

This tour far exceeded my expectations. They don't call themselves Magical Mumbai for no reason, it was seriously magical. The boat ride with my guide Anthony was fun and entertaining and then comes the caves. My guide on the island was Haresh and WOW, his knowledge, enthusiasm and willingness to share phenomenal place was nothing short of miraculous. Do not miss this tour!

Totally worth the lost sleep, highly recommended!

This tour was amazing and I recommend it to everyone who wants to understand the organized chaos which makes Mumbai so special. Tvishi was one of the most informative and fun guides I have had. She made this early morning adventure a true cultural learning experience. It's worth getting up before the sun.

Elephant Caves Tour Rocks!

Awesome trip! Guides were very knowledgeable about the history and getting us around the area. Would highly recommend for a day trip.

This was on 18 February...

This was on 18 February 2023. I bought tour to Elefanta, private and in Spanish. They charged me USD 95 (a lot) for one person. When I had the tour, it was not a private tour, it was shared with other three people who paid for a better tour much more cheaper. Even worst, there was no guide speaking Spanish, so the tour was in English. I felt cheated. The guy in charge told me they solve the situation, however, nothing happend until now.

Excellent tour!

Many thanks to Dev for a wonderful day in Mumbai! He is so passionate about his interesting city and he made sure I saw some unique, intriguing sights. Dev communicated with me before and after the tour and made sure I was always comfortable. He shared great information so I learned quite a bit about the area. Sameer was a great local guide for the Elephanta caves and I enjoyed hearing about his life on the special island. Mukesh was an excellent driver in Mumbai and was always courteous about making sure I was safe getting in and out of the car.

Amazing day

This was a magical experience, with incredibly lovely and knowledgeable guidance from Mukesh. An absolute pleasure and would recommend to friends and family !

Excellent tour!

Sameer and Raj were excellent guides and made this experience super seamless and special. I highly recommend doing!

Wonderful time with guides Raj and Sameer at Elephanta Caves

My partner and I had a fantastic time with guides Raj and Sameer during our private half-day tour through Mystical Mumbai. Raj coordinated every part of the day seamlessly. He made the day easy for us, and answered all of our questions along the way. He was friendly, communicative, humorous, and immediately put us at ease. Sameer was generous with his impressive knowledge regarding the historical, social, and religious contexts of the Elephanta Caves and their surroundings. We learned a ton, and had a wonderful time with him. Overall, I would enthusiastically recommend this company (and these particular guides!) to anyone looking to explore Mumbai. We had a wonderful time, and will always remember this wonderful day from our time in India.

Book with Raj!

What an incredible and unforgettable experience! Raj is a wonderful guide and made the day feel absolutely effortless. His knowledge of Mumbai, charisma and connection with the locals made for the perfect travel experience where we felt safe and well informed. We are looking forward to hopefully another tour during our stay and feel lucky to not have to think about who we will book it with!

Beautiful day on Gharapuri!

Incredible day on the island! Toured the caves, shopped at the market stalls on the steps, met animals and new friends!

Great way to spend a day.

Great way to spend a day. There is a 60 min boat trip then a friendly and knowledgeable guide shows you around the caves which are remarkable and interesting.

:)

Great to get out of busy Mumbai. Caves were awesome with a lot to learn about each statue. If you get seasick, sit at the back of the ferry.

Worth it

Shailesh is very good tour guide, he has a good communication and knows very well the history and the way of telling it is very interesting

Great tour!

Our tour guides Chetan and Raj were great! They were very helpful in explaining the history of the elephant caves. Would recommend this tour!

Awesome

Very personable guide, once in a lifetime experience. Very educational, learned a lot about the history of the caves, India and the Hindu religion.

Great sights to see and great guides

I had a wonderful day going to Elephanta Caves with private tour guides, Raj was excellent company all the way to the island and took great care of me throughout. Sameer, an island local, was my tour guide on the island, he showed me the beautiful carvings in the caves and explained each scene in in detail. He even took some really creative pictures for me! I had a great experience overall, definitely recommend!!

Great

Great experience. We really enjoyed It and defently understand more about the situation on the área.

Highly recommend

Excellent service with good price to explore world heritage site elephanta cave tour with shailesh jethva Highly recommended

Great Caves

Loved learning about Hindu dirties and seeing the gorgeous statuary/caves and Taj Hotel. Ferry ride out—1 hr each way—is a bit of a haul.

A fascinating site

Very knowledgeable and helpful guide, he took excellent photographs for us. Very knowledgeable in Indian spirituality. There are no words to condemn the atrocities carried out on the beautiful sculptures by Portuguese soldiers. Despite the devastation suffered, the site exudes a deep spirituality, and the Trimurti is splendid.

Amazing architecture and sculptures, rich mythology

Magnificent caves, astounding 6th century architecture and artistry and statues with rich history and mythology. Great experience with knowledgeable guide brought up on the island.

Elefante island tour Mumbai

A very enjoyable and informative experience. From the start, being met at our hotel by Mukesh informing us in excellent English about the sites during our drive through the city to the port. The fun boat ride with delicious Chai tea to the actual tour of the island with Sameer who being born there, in his very sweet manner explained the whole history in detail took great photos. Skipping lines was a bonus too!

Definitely recommend! The easiest and most stress-free way to visit the Elephanta Caves

I really enjoyed this tour! The guide was a resident from the island so he knew all about the rich history of the Elephanta caves as well as the island itself. It was nice that the meeting point in Mumbai was easy to find, then the guide helps you get to the ferry because that would have been difficult and confusing to do alone.

Great local guides.

Skipped the lines with a wonderful guide who then transferred us to another guide who was born in Elephanta and knew all the history. He also took some amazing photos of the family, braving the crowds.

Excellent tour

Excellent knowledgeable guide who was prompt with fascinating local tales and experiences. We enjoyed our day a lot!

Very helpfull team. Kudos to Mr Sailesh for rescheduling the trip.

I appreciate the effort taken by the team. Who took real good care of our guest. He enjoyed the trip and has gone back to UK with beautiful memories t

Mystical Mumbai Tours Unreliable.

Tour guide kept delaying so we cancelled. We only had 3 days in Mumbai. Scheduled a 9 am tour with Mystical Mumbai Tours. Contacted company day before to confirm, and agreed to their request to move tour to 0930. We were contacted again to change tour time to 10 and we said no, because we had plans for afternoon. Arrived at mtg place and no guide. He kept texting 10 more minutes. When he said he’d probably be there at 10:20, we cancelled and headed off to ferry on our own. Requested company refund our 190 USD (very high amount compared to other tours and didn’t include standard hotel pick up/drop off) and owner did not agree to refund money until we threatened to contact our cc company to report him for fraud. Used Amaze Tours day prior for a city tour and had a perfect tour which included a guide and a driver for a lot less. Wrote review because had we known company lacked reliability, we would have booked with another company. Elephanta tour ended well for us, after we got off ferry we found a wonderful guide (Avi), an island resident, who gave us a tour for 50USD, so a savings of 140 USD.

Elephanta Island is a must-visit

Just off the coast of Mumbai, Elephanta Island shed a lot of light on both the Hindu religion and the impact of the Portuguese on this island in particular. The tour began with pickup from our hotel & a guide joined us on the 1 hour boat to get to Elephanta Island. When we arrived, a local guide showed us the caves and told us the important stories. (He’s also an expert photographer!) 90% of the jobs of the locals on the island are related to tourism, and 10% are fisher people, per our guide. Great tour, nice boat ride, and awesome way to experience a nearby part of Mumbai!

Highly recommend

This was a great experience. It is a 1 hour boat ride that can be out in the sun so bring your SPF. Sameer was our tour guide on the island and he is a native to the island. He was friendly, knowledgeable and took great photos of us. Anthony was our guide on the boat and he was friendly and knowledgeable about the city. Overall this was a great knowledgeable tour.

Fantastic experience

Interesting and positive experience, guided perfectly by Anthony and Krupesh that supported us on each step of the tour. Krupesh, local guide of the island, perfectly explained the details of each single cave with passion and kindness. The caves are wonderful and well maintained, on the island there is the possibility to buy local souvenir. Anthony guided us from the hotel up to the caves, giving us great explanation and suggestion!!!!! Thank you! Really suggested Ettore

The best tour and guides ever!

The best experience. Anthony was a superb guide and knows everything about Mumbai. Manoj was my guide on Elephant and he is full of wisdom and great stories. I could not have been in better hands. They took great care of me and I hope to see them both again next time I am in Mumbai. They are now family.

Wonderful & Fun experience

Wonderful tour and wonderful guides. I had a solo tour and it didn’t disappoint. Anthoni and Manoj lead the tour and both are very kind and take such great care of tourists. You want these guys to help you navigate and tell you about Mumbai and Elephanta. Great historical story tellers! Highly recommended. Dress comfortably and be prepared to sweat

If you’re thinking about going to see the Elephanta Caves book here!!

We booked the trip after seeing the reviews on Trip Advisor. If you’re looking to visit, we can’t recommend Mystical Mumbai highly enough! We were contacted the same day via WhatsApp by both the company and our tour guide Anthony. Anthony is just wonderful, he’s the Google of Mumbai! We learned so much about this wonderful city on the ferry journey to Elephanta. Once there we were greeted by Manoj who’s a third generation islander. Again, we were bowled over by Manoj’s detailed knowledge and excellent story telling. He also knows where to take the very best pics!! Manoj and Anthony took us for a fabulous lunch and the best shopping stalls following our tour of the caves. A truly wonderful and educational day out. Thank you Anthony and Manoj! 🙏☺️

Excellent Guides…Shady Owner/Operator

I booked and payed for the tour through Viator on Trip Advisor. I immediately received a phone call from India. When I returned the call, I reached someone who seemed to be affiliated with the tour company, Mystical Mumbai, but I couldn’t understand them. I later received a call from the UK, the man who is the owner operator. Very strange communications. Weird but not overly alarming at this point. About three weeks prior to the tour, I emailed the tour operator and asked the additional price to be picked up at my hotel and to also cover the cost of the entrance fees and boat ride to the island. He quoted 3400 rupees by email and I agreed. On the day of the tour, I was met at the hotel by the tour guide, Anthony. Anthony is an excellent tour guide and all of the travel logistics and entrance fees were navigated without incident. At the island, we met Manoj, the tour guide who escorted me through the caves. Manoj is a resident of the island and he also was an exceptional tour guide. All went well until we returned to board the boat and I was met by the brother-in-law, a person who I had never seen prior. He had a cell phone and told me the owner wanted to speak with me. The owner stated that I was to pay 6600 rupees. I told him that was not going to happen. He began posturing, making statements about how I had cancelled the tour and then he had to recruit tour guides on short notice. All lies! When it became clear to him that I was not going to give in to his scam, he suddenly became very concerned about the review that I might leave on Trip Advisor. It’s clear that this man will steal from you, given the opportunity. It’s a shame though, because the tour and the tour guides were excellent. Nevertheless, avoid Mystical Mumbai Tours. There are other more reputable companies.

Wonderful experience

The trip was good. Enjoyed the experience. Antony was very helpful. Had a very relaxed trip. Trip from my location to Elephanta and back was great. The guide was excellent, very polite, helpful and always eager to help us. Overall this trip was very good

Excellent experience at a short notice

My experience with get your guide was very good! I made the booking at a very short notice. Yet everything was planned very well - starting from ride from my hotel to gateway of India, taking the ferry boat to elephanta island with a trip representative called Dharmesh being there and taking care of things all the time. The local tour guide: Manoj in Elephanta island was also extremely good. He explained everything in a lot of detail. And also clicked really good pictures. He also was patient with me when I got tired while climbing the stairs to the cave. Overall, it was a very nice experience!

Fantastic experience

What a fantastic excursion! I give it 5 stars and two thumbs up! The friendly tour guide came to get me from the hotel. We travelled by car to the ferry and then on the ferry to Elephanta Island. A local tour guide met us at the ferry and gave me a private tour of the caves. I definitely recommend this trip! Very memorable!

Amazing

I loved the boat trip over to the island. Then the short train trip once we arrived on the island but this can be walked as well. Then seeing all the cute monkeys and meeting Sam who explained everything about their kind of living on the island and everything about the caves. He have so much knowledge, experience and there wasn't a question he couldn't answer. He also took so many pictures with us in them. Anthony guided us over to the island and Sam did the tour on the island. I would highly recommend you asking for them. One advise I would give is if anyone from the island offer that they will be in a photo then they do expect to get money and will not forget so make sure to have cash for this or else say no thanks for the offer.

Very educational and interesting day

My partner and I took this tour earlier this week. The tour company and tour coordinator, Anthony, were very communicative. Anthony met us at the hotel and ensured we go to the Elephanta Caves in a safe manner (taxi, ferry, train). His English was superb. At the Elephanta Caves, we met our tour guide (forget his name - something with an M). He was super knowledgeable and a great photographer! He told us everything and more about the caves. This tour is definitely an all-day event. We started our journey at 10am and reached back at the hotel around 5pm. Granted our hotel was about 45 minutes from the ferry port. We stayed in touch with Anthony throughout the rest of our visit and he genuinely wanted to ensure we had a good time in Mumbai and were safe. Highly recommend!

Trip to Elephant Caves

I’ll be honest, you don’t need to book a tour to visit the caves. You’ll also have to pay for the ferry ride and entrance separately so I do think it’s a bit expensive. That being said, Sameer and Anthony were brilliant, kind and just the best so if you do decide to go ahead and book a tour to the island, do go with them. Thank you both for being such good sports and kind people.

A guide made this a great tour

The guide is a native of Elephanta Island and was very knowledgeable. His explanation of the statues and their meanings made this a wonderful trip. Without him, I think we might have walked through in ten minutes and not gotten much out of it on our own. He spoke English well, patient with us older folks on the steps on a very hot day.

A must see site in Mumbai

The guide was very knowledgeable. It was easy to schedule and navigate. The caves are really must see. It’s was a hot day so dress comfortably