Two UNESCO World Heritage rock-cut cave temples and Bibi Ka Maqbara, driven as a private air-conditioned trip from Pune. The city sits230 to 250 kilometres away — about five to six hours via Ahmednagar — which is why this circuit is a night halt, not a same-day dash.
₹18,000 (2 Adults) · AC Dzire, 1 AC hotel room, toll, parking & driver allowance
They are both rock-cut, both UNESCO, and they sit in opposite directions from the city. Ajanta is a hundred-kilometre painted cliff. Ellora is a thirty-kilometre hillside of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain excavations. Plan them as two different days, and read the weekly closures before you pick dates.
Ajanta sits in a horseshoe ravine about 100 kilometres from Aurangabad city — a two to two-and-a-half-hour drive each way, which is why it occupies a full morning of Day 2 rather than being squeezed onto the Ellora afternoon. The caves are Buddhist rock-cut viharas and chaityas, famous for mural painting as much as for sculpture. They are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Ajanta is closed on Tuesdays. Do not plan this trip so that Day 2 falls on a Tuesday, or you will drive a hundred kilometres to a locked gate.
The caves follow a cliff path around the ravine. Expect a long walk on uneven stone, stairs between cave levels, and very little shade once the sun is up. Carry water, wear closed shoes with grip, and treat this as a half-day on your feet, not a drive-up viewpoint.
The main painted caves sit along a single cliff face. You walk from cave to cave rather than driving between them. Interiors can be dim; flash photography is typically restricted by ASI rules on site, which change, so follow the boards at the gate rather than anything written here.
The chaitya halls are the tallest interiors on the circuit and involve steps both into the halls and along the connecting path. Travellers with knee trouble, heart conditions or very young children should plan rest halts and should not assume every cave will be entered.
ASI entry tickets, camera fees and any licensed guide at Ajanta are paid at the gate and are not part of the cab package. We do not quote those ticket prices here because they are set by the Archaeological Survey of India and change.
Ellora sits about 30 kilometres from Aurangabad, close enough that it belongs on Day 1 after the Pune drive. Thirty-four rock-cut excavations run Buddhist, Hindu and Jain in sequence, with the monolithic Kailasa temple (Cave 16) as the one stop almost every first-time visitor wants. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it is a different kind of walking from Ajanta — more spread out, more sun, fewer cliff stairs.
Ellora has historically observed a Tuesday weekly closure as well. Confirm the current ASI weekly-off day before you lock travel dates. Do not assume Ellora is open on a Tuesday just because you have already skipped Ajanta.
The three religious groups sit apart on the same hillside. Getting between them is a mix of paths, steps and open ground with limited shade. Cave 16, the Kailasa, is the main climb. You will not cover all thirty-four caves in one afternoon; we plan Kailasa plus a representative Buddhist and Jain cave, and you choose what to skip.
A single-stone Hindu temple excavated downward from the hillside, which is why it reads as a free-standing building even though it is still a cave. This is the one Ellora stop that justifies the whole afternoon. The surrounding galleries and the courtyard involve stairs and uneven rock.
The Buddhist caves sit to one side of Kailasa and the Jain caves to the other. Covering both in the same afternoon is realistic if you keep the walking purposeful. Licensed guides, if you want one, are hired at the site and paid directly — they are not part of the vehicle package.
ASI entry tickets, camera fees and licensed guide charges at Ellora are paid at the gate. We do not invent or publish those ticket prices. Confirm the current weekly closure with ASI or our tours desk before you travel.
Three shorter stops that sit on the same two-day map. Grishneshwar pairs with Ellora. Bibi Ka Maqbara is the easy city halt. Daulatabad is the optional hard climb on the Ellora road.
In the cityThe late-seventeenth-century mausoleum commissioned for Dilras Banu Begum, often compared to the Taj Mahal because of its white marble dome and charbagh garden. It sits inside the city, so it is the easiest halt of the trip — level walking, no cliff path, and it fits after Ellora on Day 1 or as a last stop before the hotel. Monument tickets are collected at the gate and are not in the cab fare.
On the Ellora roadThe hill fort formerly known as Devagiri sits on the same road as Ellora, so it is a natural add-on rather than a separate excursion. The climb is steep, long and genuinely tiring — more demanding than either cave complex for anyone with knee or heart trouble. If your group includes elders, treat Daulatabad as optional and say so at booking, because it eats the Ellora afternoon.
Beside ElloraGrishneshwar, also called Ghrishneshwar, is traditionally counted among the twelve Jyotirlingas. The red-basalt temple at Verul stands barely a kilometre from Ellora, which is why it belongs on the same afternoon rather than as a separate day. Darshan here is a short walk from parking. Temple donations and any paid pooja are paid by you at the shrine; they are not part of the vehicle package.
Matching the Maharashtra hub duration. Timings are planning windows, not a guaranteed timetable. Cave walking, ticket queues and Ahmednagar traffic all move the clock.
230–250 km in the morning, then ~30 km to Ellora
The chauffeur collects you anywhere in Pune, PCMC or near Pune Airport (PNQ). A six-o'clock start is what makes Day 1 work: it puts you in Aurangabad around midday with a real afternoon left for Ellora, rather than arriving as the caves wind down.
Roughly 230 to 250 kilometres, five to six hours depending on the traffic you meet around Ahmednagar and on how many tea and washroom halts the group wants. This is the longest single driving block of the trip. The city is also called Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar; both names refer to the same place.
The ₹18,000 (2 Adults) package includes one air-conditioned hotel room for the night. We do not advertise a property name here — the actual hotel is confirmed to you in writing at booking, based on availability for your dates. Lunch is your own expense.
About 30 kilometres from the city. We plan Cave 16 (Kailasa) plus a representative Buddhist and Jain cave, then Grishneshwar a kilometre away. You will not see all thirty-four Ellora caves in this window, and we will not pretend otherwise. Daulatabad Fort, on the same road, is added only if you asked for it at booking and the group still has the legs for a steep climb.
Back in the city for the mausoleum and garden while the light is still usable, then return to the hotel. Monument tickets at Bibi Ka Maqbara are paid at the gate. The rest of the evening is free.
About 100 km to Ajanta, then 230–250 km back to Pune
Ajanta is about 100 kilometres from the city, a two to two-and-a-half-hour drive. Leaving before six is what gets you onto the cliff path before the midday heat and before the larger day-trip buses fill the walkway. Confirm the night before that Day 2 is not a Tuesday.
A straightforward morning run with one short halt. Carry water and a hat in the car; there is not much to buy usefully once you are on the cave path.
Four hours is a realistic window for the main painted caves and the ravine walk, including rest. It is not enough to enter every cave, and it should not be rushed. ASI tickets are paid at the gate. If anyone in the group cannot manage the stairs, they can wait at the approach with the chauffeur while the rest walk the cliff.
A simple meal near the parking area, paid by you. We do not build a restaurant stop into the package figure.
Ajanta back to Aurangabad, then the same 230 to 250 kilometres on to Pune, with one proper halt. Doorstep drop is typically between 19:30 and 21:00 depending on how long you stayed at the caves and on evening traffic around Ahmednagar. This is a long second day; that is the honest cost of fitting both UNESCO sites into two days from Pune.
Ajanta is closed on Tuesdays. Ellora has historically been closed on Tuesdays as well — confirm the current ASI weekly-off before you book. We will not dispatch a cave day that lands on a known weekly closure.
Ajanta is a hundred kilometres from the city and Ellora is thirty, in different directions. A same-day return from Pune cannot cover both complexes properly. The hub lists this trip as 2 Days / 1 Night for that reason.
Ellora has thirty-four excavations; Ajanta has dozens along the ravine. The itinerary is built around Kailasa, a sample of the other Ellora groups, and the main painted Ajanta caves. Anything beyond that is a bonus, not a promise.
It sits on the Ellora road, so the driving is easy. The climb is not. Ask for it at booking if the group wants it, and skip it without guilt if anyone would rather keep their legs for the two UNESCO sites.
The published 2 Adults package is ₹18,000 (2 Adults) for 2 Days / 1 Night in an AC Dzire, with one AC hotel room, toll, parking and driver allowance — the same line as ourMaharashtra tour packages hub. Extra passengers, a larger vehicle or a Tempo Traveller are billed on the KP Travels outstation card below. Driver allowance ₹500 per day, night halt ₹500 per night. Toll extra on per-kilometre trips.
UNESCO World Heritage rock-cut cave temples and Bibi Ka Maqbara. Includes AC Dzire, 1 AC hotel room, toll, parking and driver allowance. ASI tickets, meals and guide fees remain yours.
Dzire / Etios
The vehicle in the ₹18,000 (2 Adults) hub package, with one AC hotel room.
Maruti Ertiga
Six travellers who want extra legroom on two long highway days.
Luxury SUV
The usual upgrade when senior family members are on the Ajanta walk.
13–26 Seater
Extended families and group trips; quoted on the Tempo rate card, not the 2-adult package.
ASI tickets, meals and guide fees are never inside the cab figure. Extra hotel rooms or nights are added only if you ask.
Covered in the quoted figure
Paid directly by you
A Pune travel house that has been running the Ahmednagar–Aurangabad corridor for sixteen years, with a named human answering the phone on both days of the trip.
KP Travels has been sending vehicles out of Pune on the Ahmednagar corridor for sixteen years, with over 1,00,000 happy passengers on record.
The vehicle category and the ₹18,000 (2 Adults) package figure, or the per-kilometre alternative, go to you in writing before you pay. Weekends do not change the agreed number.
Chauffeurs who know the Ellora approach, the Ajanta parking pattern and how long the cliff walk actually takes, not first-time visitors reading a map.
A real Pune control room on +91 90116 16565 and a tours desk on +91 97650 66565, reachable through both days, not a chatbot queue.
The useful knowledge on this trip is practical: which day Ajanta is shut, how long the cliff walk actually takes in April heat, and whether Daulatabad will wreck the Ellora afternoon for your particular group. That is what a dedicated chauffeur and a Pune desk are for. Over 1,00,000 passengers have travelled with KP Travels, and the same office that quotes the fare is the one you can call from the Ajanta parking lot.
KP Travels · 89/300 Laxmi Nagar, Near Parvati Police Station, Pune 411009 · Dispatch +91 90116 16565 · Tours desk +91 97650 66565
Distance, Tuesday closures, walking, tickets and what the ₹18,000 figure actually covers.
Aurangabad — also called Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar — is roughly 230 to 250 kilometres from Pune. The drive takes about five to six hours each way, usually via Ahmednagar. Actual running time depends on traffic around Ahmednagar and on how many halts your group wants. That highway block is why this trip is listed as 2 Days / 1 Night rather than a same-day return.
The package is 2 Days / 1 Night at ₹18,000 (2 Adults), matching the Aurangabad (Ajanta & Ellora Caves) entry on our Maharashtra tour packages hub. That figure includes a private AC Swift Dzire, one AC hotel room, toll, parking and driver allowance. ASI monument tickets, meals, licensed guide fees and personal expenses are not included. Larger groups and other vehicle categories are quoted on the outstation per-kilometre card: Sedan ₹13/km, Ertiga ₹16/km, Innova Crysta ₹22/km (250 km/day minimum average) and Tempo Traveller ₹32/km (300 km/day minimum average), plus driver allowance ₹500/day, night halt ₹500/night, with toll extra on per-kilometre trips.
Yes. Ajanta Caves are closed on Tuesdays. Do not plan Day 2 of this itinerary on a Tuesday. Ellora has historically observed a Tuesday weekly closure as well; confirm the current ASI weekly-off for Ellora before you lock dates, rather than assuming it is open because you have already skipped Ajanta. Our tours desk will refuse a cave day that lands on a known weekly closure.
Not properly. Ellora is about 30 kilometres from Aurangabad city; Ajanta is about 100 kilometres in a different direction, and Pune itself is a five-to-six-hour drive from the city. A same-day return from Pune cannot give both complexes the walking time they need. The 2 Days / 1 Night plan puts Ellora, Grishneshwar and Bibi Ka Maqbara on Day 1 and Ajanta on Day 2, which is the minimum that actually works.
No. ASI monument entry tickets, camera fees and licensed guide charges at Ajanta, Ellora, Bibi Ka Maqbara and Daulatabad are paid directly at each gate. We do not publish those ticket prices because they are set by the authorities and change. Meals, tea and bottled water are your own expense. The ₹18,000 figure covers the vehicle, one AC hotel room, toll, parking and driver allowance as listed on the Maharashtra hub.
Ajanta is a long cliff-path walk with stairs between cave levels and little shade at midday. Ellora is more spread out on a hillside; Cave 16 (Kailasa) is the main climb, and you will not cover all thirty-four caves. Bibi Ka Maqbara is level garden walking. Grishneshwar is a short walk from parking. Daulatabad Fort is a steep, tiring climb and should be treated as optional if anyone in the group has limited mobility. Closed shoes with grip matter more than any other item you pack.
We do not advertise a hotel name here. The 2 Days / 1 Night package includes one air-conditioned room for two adults; the actual property is confirmed to you in writing once your dates are held. Extra rooms, extra nights, or a cab-only trip without hotel, are arranged only if you ask and are quoted separately. Meals at the hotel remain your own expense unless a meal plan is written into that quotation.
Call our 24/7 Pune dispatch team or message on WhatsApp for a confirmed quotation in under 15 minutes. Mention if Day 2 would fall on a Tuesday so we can shift Ajanta off the weekly closure.
