Indian Railway provides quite a few facilities to cater the needs of overseas tourists.  Apart from what railway offers to overseas guests we are also providing emergency helpline numbers for foreigners touring India.

If you are an NRI/ Foreigner looking to visit India, you will be glad to know that you can now book paperless train tickets online (hassle free) well in advance and plan your tour perfectly.


Here are some of the facilities/ services that Indian Railway provides to help out overseas friends:

foreign tourist help by Indian Railway



Online Train Booking for Overseas Tourists

We know that in past some of you had a very torturous experience while booking train tickets online in India. But trust us that the online railway booking site IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) is now completely revamped, with changes made specifically to help out foreign customers.

You can now book train tickets online with speed of a tiger.

tiger at ranthambore India
photo credit: incredibleindia.org


It is improved so much so that it's been referred to as "Next Generation eTicketing System". In past international customers had complained that find it difficult to complete the online train booking process since it required mandatory Indian mobile/phone number.

A separate foreign tourist quota is allocated for almost every train which makes it easier, and almost guarantees to get confirmed berth.

Well, now the website allow entering international phone numbers. You just need to mention your ISD code along with mobile number and you should be able to get train tickets online easily.

To book your tickets register yourselves as international customers of IRCTC. More details here.

International Tourist Bureau

Indian Railways has set up  tourist bureaus at various important cities all over India. Some of the most popular destinations in India (for tourists in terms of exploring other parts of country) have them in place which works specifically to guide overseas travelers to help plan journeys by trains.

Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Secunderabad, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Varanasi, New Delhi, Agra Cantt,  Aurangabad, Mumbai, Rameshwaram, Vadodara, Vasco-DA-Gama have these desks active from more than 20 years. The staff is quite experienced and understand the requirements of overseas guests.

ghats of varansi (benaras)
holy ganges varanasi - rush in kumbh mela India


New Delhi, Varanasi, and Jodhpur offices are known as International Tourist Bureau. New Delhi based desk works from 08:00 hrs in morning to 20:00 hrs in evening, from Monday to Saturday, and from 8 am to 2 pm on Sunday.

Foreign tourists arriving in India and willing to travel across the country often find themselves in trouble due to lack of information. This International Tourist Bureau in the capital New Delhi helps them in getting basic information about the railway routes.

jal mahal jaipur
jaipur (capital of princely state of rajasthan)-India

A separate foreign tourist rail reservation counter is situated at Indira Gandhi International Airport at Arrival Lounge within DTDC (Delhi Tourism Development Corporation) section. These provide assistance to foreign tourists and NRIs regarding enquiries, booking, reservation and travel planning.

These bureaus also issue reserved tickets to the foreign tourists and NRIs holding valid passport against payment in US Dollars, Pounds, Sterling and in Rupees against encashment certificate.  

The rates /fare of Indrail pass is in US dollars. Important rules are printed on rail pass itself. These passes can also be purchased from general sales agents appointed abroad and railway agents appointed in India.

INDRAIL Pass for Overseas Tourists

Indrail passes which enable a tourist to travel wherever he likes, whenever he likes and in whichever train he likes within the validity period. 

To explore the splendor of multi-faceted India, Indrail passes provide excellent value and enhances the charm of holidays from abroad. These passes offer visitors on a budget, the facility of travel as they like, over the entire Indian Railways system, without any route restriction within the validity of the ticket.

These passes are exclusively for non-indian citizens, and may be purchased on payment of US Dollars, Pound Sterling, and other convertible foreign currencies. The pass holder is not required to pay any reservation fee, superfast charges or surcharge for the journey.

The indian railway passes can also be purchased for half day, two days, four days, thus making it appealing to transit and short stay visitors. If your plan is to short-stay in India and in between want to visit one or two connecting cities by train, this is good option. Buy one of these passes as your international flight lands at airport.

You can also purchase these passes from any of the Indian air lines and Air India outlets situated in different countries like Oman, Australia, Malaysia, UK, Germany, Finland, UAE, Bangladesh, South Africa, Kuwait, Bahrain, Thailand, Myanmar, Singapore, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

The rates /fare of Indrail pass is in US dollars. Important rules are printed on rail pass itself. These passes can also be purchased from general sales agents appointed abroad and railway agents appointed in India.

Luxury/ Heritage Train Packages

The IRCTC Tourism provide incredible packages for touring to most wanted/ best tourist destinations across India. Packages and touring itinerary is planned is such a way so that guests get a glimpse of rich cultural heritage of Incredible India which will leave them with fond memories of the train journey to be cherished forever.

The Maharaja Express Train is bestowed with the "World's Leading Luxury Train" award at the World Travel Awards for seven consecutive years from 2012 to 2018. You mus travel once in this train if you are touring India.

Majestic Tourist Train Tours cover destinations in the state of Rajasthan. The unique train tours provide on train accommodation, international meals, sight seeing with entrances. Read More.

Heritage train like steam express train has its own charm. Apart from it the "Bharat Darshan" train tours provide great opportunity for visitors to know regional culture of India from close quarters. These tourneys for these trains are designed to target specific regions and popular tourist circuits in India.


Help Line Numbers for Foreigners in Emergency

If as a foreign/ international tourist you find yourselves in emergency, you can call or contact at addresses and numbers provided below:


Tourist Helpline – 1363 or 1800 11 1363


List of emergency Helpline numbers All Over in India

  • 100 - Police
  • 101 - Fire
  • 102 - Ambulance
  • 1033 - Emergency Relief Centre on National Highways
  • 104 - Medical helpline Number
  • 1070 - Central Relief Commissioner for Natural Calamities
  • 1070 - Relief Commissioners of Central/State/Union territory
  • 1071 - Air Accident
  • 1072 - Train accident
  • 1073 - Road Accident
  • 1077 - Control room of District Collector/Magistrate
  • 108 - Disaster management
  • 1091 - Women in Distress
  • 1092 - Earth-quake Help line service
  • 1096 - Natural disaster control room
  • 1099 - Central Accident and Trauma Services
  • 112 - All in one Emergency Number
  • 1322 - Indian Railway Security Helpline
+91-8750871111 - Helpline number of foreign national

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