Bihar Tour Packages

Bihar carries more historical weight than almost any other Indian state. This is where Buddha sat under a tree in Bodh Gaya and found enlightenment, where the ancient world's largest university once taught thousands of monks at Nalanda, and where Emperor Ashoka's edicts were first carved into stone. 

In fact, the state recorded more than 6.62 crore tourist visits in 2025, ranking 9th nationally for international arrivals. The right Bihar tour packages let you walk through layers of Buddhist, Jain and Mauryan heritage that most travellers only ever read about in textbooks. Read on to know more!

Why Visit Bihar?

For most travellers, Bihar is simply one of the places for Buddhist pilgrimage in india. But Bihar holds significant history within a manageable travel circuit. 

Here's why Bihar tour packages deserve a spot on your travel plans:

The Birthplace of Buddhism as a Living Faith

Bodh Gaya's Mahabodhi Temple marks the spot where Siddhartha Gautama is believed to have attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. The temple complex has held UNESCO World Heritage status since 2002. Unlike many heritage sites that function purely as monuments, this one remains an active place of worship, drawing monks and pilgrims from Thailand, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Japan throughout the year.

Home to the World's Earliest Residential University

Nalanda Mahavihara operated as a centre of Buddhist learning from the 5th century CE, housing thousands of monks and scholars centuries before Oxford or Bologna existed. The site earned UNESCO recognition in 2016, and its brick ruins, still standing several storeys high in places, are unusually well preserved for a structure this old.

India's Oldest Rock-Cut Caves

The Barabar Caves, carved into granite hills, date to the Maurya Empire between 322 and 185 BCE and carry inscriptions from Emperor Ashoka himself. Their polished interior walls, cut with a precision that still puzzles engineers, predate the more famous Ajanta and Ellora caves by several centuries.

A Gateway Into Deeper Eastern India Travel

Patna connects easily onward to Varanasi, roughly five hours by road or a short flight, letting travellers combine Bihar's Buddhist circuit with the Ganga ghats and temples of neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. Many pilgrimage itineraries pair Bihar with wider Varanasi tour packages rather than treating either as a standalone trip.

What Makes Bihar Special

Beyond the headline sites, Bihar has some specific qualities that set it apart from other heritage destinations in India. Here are a few that define what a Bihar trip actually feels like, as opposed to what it looks like on a map:

A Stupa Taller Than Borobudur

Kesariya Stupa, in the state's East Champaran district, stands around 104 feet tall with a circumference of nearly 400 feet, marginally taller than Indonesia's famous Borobudur. Built from the 3rd century BCE onward and expanded through the Gupta period, it marks the spot where Buddha is believed to have given away his alms bowl on his final journey. It was only properly excavated in 1998, which explains why it remains one of Bihar's least crowded major sites despite its scale.

A Living Folk Art Tradition

Madhubani, in the state's north, has produced the intricate line-and-colour paintings that share its name for generations, traditionally created by women on mud walls before moving onto paper and canvas. The art form now carries a GI (Geographical Indication) tag, and workshops around Madhubani town let visitors watch the technique firsthand, one of the most beloved activities in Bihar.

The City of Three Religions 

Within roughly an hour of each other sit Bodh Gaya's Buddhist temples, Vaishali's Jain sites linked to Mahavira's birthplace, and Patna Sahib's gurudwara marking the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh. Few Indian states pack this much multi-faith significance into such a compact radius, which makes Bihar tour packages unusually efficient for travellers interested in comparative religious history.

The Gangetic Plain with A Very Different Landscape 

Bihar is flat, riverine, and agricultural, different from what most Indian travellers picture when they plan a heritage trip. The Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, and Son rivers all run through the state, and the riverside character of towns like Patna, Hajipur, and Sultanganj adds a different kind of experience to the heritage circuit.

Experience Bihar: Top Places to Visit

Bihar's main sites spread across four zones: the Gaya-Bodh Gaya belt, the Nalanda-Rajgir corridor, the Patna-Vaishali stretch along the Ganga, and the West Champaran district near Nepal. Here are the destinations covered by most Bihar tour packages:

Bodh Gaya

The Mahabodhi Temple Complex is one of the top places to visit in Bihar. The Bodhi Tree, a direct descendant of the original under which the Buddha attained enlightenment, sits behind the main temple, with monks and pilgrims from onThailand, Japan, Sri Lanka and Bhutan often meditating beneath it simultaneously. 

Circle the temple at least once during the evening lamp-lighting hour. Arrive before 5 AM on any day and set aside a full day here alone.

Nalanda

The remains of Nalanda University today are roughly a tenth of what archaeologists believe once stood. The route through the excavated monastic blocks takes 90 minutes if you move steadily and longer if you stop to look at the carved panels at close range. The Xuanzang Memorial Hall,  built in honour of the Chinese scholar who studied here in the 7th century and left the most detailed account of the university's operation,  is a short walk from the main entrance. 

Patna

Patna, ancient Pataliputra, capital of both the Maurya and Gupta Empires, deserves more than a transit night. The Patna Museum on Buddha Marg holds the Didarganj Yakshi, a 3rd-century BCE polished sandstone figure. 

The Golghar (1786 granary, climbable to the top), Har Mandir Takht (one of Sikhism's five Takhts), and Kumhrar excavations (Mauryan palace remains with a hundred-pillared hall) complete the city circuit.

Rajgir

Once the capital of the Magadha empire, Rajgir today mixes ancient sites with newer, more commercial attractions. Griddhakuta Hill, where the Buddha is said to have delivered several key sermons, requires a moderate uphill walk or a chairlift ride, and the summit's quiet stupa feels worlds away from the town below.

Vaishali

Often skipped by travellers short on time, Vaishali is where the Buddha delivered his last sermon, and where the Licchavi republic is widely credited as one of the world's earliest experiments in democratic governance. The Ashokan Pillar here, capped with a single lion facing north, stands in better-preserved condition than several of its more famous counterparts elsewhere in India. The relic stupa nearby is where a portion of the Buddha's ashes were reportedly enshrined.

Barabar Caves

India's oldest surviving rock-cut caves sit roughly 25 kilometres from Gaya, carved from solid granite during Ashoka's reign in the 3rd century BC. The Lomas Rishi Cave's carved entrance, shaped to mimic timber construction, remains one of the earliest examples of the chaitya arch found anywhere in Indian architecture, a design that later spread to famous sites like Ajanta.

Sasaram

Roughly midway between Gaya and Varanasi, Sasaram holds the mausoleum of Sher Shah Suri, the Afghan ruler who briefly unseated the Mughals and rebuilt much of the Grand Trunk Road still in use today. The tomb sits in the middle of an artificial lake, its red sandstone dome influencing tomb architecture that would later define the Mughal era, including the Taj Mahal itself.

Practical Guide: Planning Your Bihar Trip

Here’s a quick guide on how to get started with your Bihar trip: 

How to Reach Bihar

Here’s a quick look at the different modes to reach Bihar:

• By air: Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport (PAT) has direct flights from Delhi (1 hr 45 min), Mumbai (2 hr 30 min), Kolkata (1 hr), Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. Gaya Airport (GAY) has daily flights from Delhi (IndiGo, Air India, approximately 1 hr 50 min). Flying to Gaya rather than Patna removes a 2.5-hour road journey if Bodh Gaya is your primary destination. Compare fares across all carriers before booking your flights to Bihar.
• By train: Patna Junction (PNBE) sits on the Delhi-Howrah main line. Rajdhani Express from Delhi takes 10–12 hours. The Mahabodhi Express runs Delhi to Gaya directly.
• By road: NH-19 (Delhi-Kolkata highway) passes through Bihar. The Patna–Bodh Gaya road (NH-83, 116 km) is well-maintained and takes 2.5 hours. 

What It Costs 

What to Carry

• Comfortable, slip-on footwear, since shoes come off frequently at religious sites
• A light shawl or scarf for both sun protection and modest dress at temples
• Cash in smaller denominations, since digital payments remain inconsistent outside Patna and Bodh Gaya's tourist core
• Mosquito repellent, particularly if travelling during the humid pre-monsoon months
• A basic first-aid kit, given that pharmacies thin out considerably beyond the main towns

Things to Buy in Bihar

Bihar's craft traditions rarely get the national attention of, say, Rajasthan's textiles, but the state has some special souvenirs:

• Madhubani paintings, the folk art style native to the Mithila region, sold both as finished canvases and on paper
• Sujuni embroidery, a running-stitch craft traditionally practised by women's cooperatives in Muzaffarpur
• Bhagalpuri silk, known locally as Tussar silk, woven in the Bhagalpur district for generations. 
• Wooden and lac-work toys from the Patna region
• Buddhist prayer flags, singing bowls and thangka-style prints sold near the monasteries in Bodh Gaya

Food to Eat in Bihar

Bihari food leans on simplicity and roasting rather than heavy gravies.

• Litti chokha, roasted wheat balls stuffed with sattu, served with mashed spiced vegetables
• Sattu paratha, a protein-dense flatbread filled with roasted gram flour
• Thekua, a jaggery-sweetened, deep-fried snack traditionally made during Chhath Puja, one of the most popular festivals of Bihar
• Khaja, a flaky, syrup-soaked sweet particularly associated with Silao near Nalanda
• Chana ghugni, a spiced chickpea dish sold at roadside stalls across the state

Best Time to Visit Bihar

Most travellers plan their solo tour packages to Bihar during October through February for comfortable travel. It also lines up with the main pilgrim season around Bodh Gaya, so book accommodation early if visiting during Buddha Purnima or the winter monastic gatherings. 

Here’s a quick overview of the best time to visit the city: 

Things to Know Before You Go

Before you book your trip to Bihar, make sure to remember the following things:

• Remove footwear before entering temple and monastery interiors. 
• Ask before photographing monks in prayer, a courtesy that is more strictly expected here than at many of India's other pilgrimage circuits.
• Carry a printed hotel confirmation and ID at all times; smaller towns outside Patna and Bodh Gaya still expect physical documentation over digital bookings.
• Avoid travelling between Bihar's smaller towns after dark, since street lighting and road quality drop noticeably once you leave the main highways.
• Book family retreat holiday packages if you are travelling with children to cover Rajgir Nature Safari (jeep forest safari), Buddha Smriti Park in Patna, and Sonepur Mela in November.

Set Out on Your Trip to Bihar with EaseMyTrip

Most heritage destinations ask you to imagine the past. Bihar simply keeps living inside it, whether you are sitting near the Bodhi Tree at 5 AM with monks from six countries around you or watching the Chhath Puja ritual at the Ganga riverbank as millions of people face the rising sun. 

The best Bihar tour packages do not try to modernise that feeling; they just get you there and step back. At EaseMyTrip Holidays, we help you book flights, trains and accommodations in one place, with zero convenience fees.