Are you planning for a Trip to Jowai, Meghalaya from Guwahati, Shillong, or Silchar? Even if you are not planning, Jowai is one of the popular destinations in Meghalaya. It is filled with beautiful waterfalls and clouds and mist everywhere. It is one of the best places to hide from the summer heat. You have come to the perfect place. In this post, you will know how to reach Jowai from Shillong, Guwahati, or Silchar, how many days at Jowai is perfect for you, which part, which waterfall to visit in Jowai, where to stay in Jowai, etc. Everything is covered in this post. Keep reading till the end to know the full details.
How to reach Jowai from Guwahati?
The best way to reach Jowai from Guwahati is by renting a bike or a car. Zoomcar is available in Guwahati. Various bike renting businesses are available in Guwahati. Once you get the car or bike, start driving towards Guwahati-Shillong road. Google map is very accurate and the roads are really good in the curly hillside scenic beauty. You can just enter Jowai in Google Maps and follow the lead.
If you are a bike rental business owner and want your business listed here, contact our team by using the contact form.
Please note that there are two ways you can reach Jowai, one is via Shillong and another one is without reaching Shillong. Which road to take depends on your plan. If you are planning only for Jowai, you can come directly. If you are planning 2 days in Jowai, then another 2 days in Dawki, then another 2 days on Cherrapunji, and finally another 2 days on Shillong, coming directly to Jowai will be a better option. The number of places and number of days depends on your plan but do not make it less than 2 days.
If you are coming outside of Monsoon season, the roads are very good and there is no risk. However, if you are coming during the Monsson season, then make sure you follow local news and social media page for any road blockage due to floods and landslides.
How to reach Jowai from Shillong?
If you are starting your journey from Shillong, it is better if you rent a bike or a car. You can find bike and car rental services in Shillong if you ask your taxi guy or the hotel help desk. You can follow the lead from Google Maps. As I have said above, plan accordingly based on your trip destination and the number of days available for your vacation.
How to reach Jowai from Silchar?
First things first, you have to rent a bike or a car before heading out to Jowai from Silchar. You can opt for the Badarpur/Pamchagram route or the Behara route. Both roads are in good condition. It will converge after around an hour’s drive and you will have a single route to Jowai.
In all three conditions, it is best if you start your journey early morning at around 5-6 am. During this time, you won’t need to face traffic jams. If you start a little late, many trucks and cars will be there. The last time I went, there was a huge jam of around 10+ km and we were lucky that we chose bikes.
Are you traveling during the Monsoon season on a bike? If yes, it is best you carry a portable shovel. This will help a lot. With this, you can just side the rocks and make a path for your bike. It is portable and it can be kept just the side of your bike. Don’t choose a cheap one as it may not last long. A hybrid shovel, spade like this one is a good choice. It is a little pricy but a good quality one is good rather than a cheap broken one.
Make sure you clean your face every time you stop or you cover it with helmets because the dirt and dust will form a layer on your face.
Where to stay in Jowai? Jowai Homestay, Guest House, Hotels in Jowai.
First, let me tell you that, there is no cheap place to stay in Jowai. The prices are average to high. The place of your stay is dependent on your travel plan. Most of the Guest houses, hotels, and homestays are located along the way to Tyrshi Falls. I would suggest you ask multiple guest houses and choose the best one before sticking to one.
I stayed at the GHM Guest House. The cheapest rooms were 2.2K per night which is scary but we arrived late and pretty tired so we decided to settle on that one. While going to Tyrshi Falls, we saw many, many hotels and guest houses. That is why starting your journey early is always good.
There are three types of rooms: dormitory, single rooms, and deluxe rooms. We stayed in single rooms. There are no complimentary services except the room and soap.
If you are on a budget to travel with friends, the best place to stay in Jowai is to stay in a dormitory, provided the whole dormitory is filled with your friends. Even if the prices are high, there are no empty rooms, that is why the prices are high.
How to plan your stay in Jowai? 2 nights 3 days.
Your plan to stay in Jowai should be planned accordingly as to your next plan. The most popular option for most of the tourists visiting Jowai is visiting Jowai after they visited Shillong. In this case, I suggest you stay 2 nights and 3 days. On the last day, you can head out to Dawki after visiting popular spots along the route to Dawki. Let’s see how it works.
Day 1: From Shillong to Jowai
Since you are starting early in the morning from Shillong and the journey time is only around 2 hours and 30 minutes. This means you have plenty of time to watch popular tourist spots around the route to Jowai.
Some of the popular spots are the Tyrshi falls, Nartiang Monoliths, Meghalayaage Hot air balloon, etc.
If you are searching for a full waterfall view with clear water, Tyrshi Falls is one of them. The entry fee is around Rs. 40 per person (may have changed) and keep in mind that to reach the bottom of the fall, you need to do a downward track for around 5-7 minutes. The track is moderately difficult but the track is a well-built staircase and railings to help you. You can rest as much as you want. You can ride to the entry gate. Allocate at least 1 hour on this spot. This includes rides from the main road, tracking, resting, photo session, and other things.
The Meghalaya Hot Air Ballon was closed when we visited Jowai. You can book and enjoy the skyline view of Jowai and Meghalaya. It is also a popular tourist place.
The Nartiang Monolith is the biggest monolith in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills. It marks the victory of the Jaintia Kings between 1500 AD and 1835 AD. You will find peace in your mind and remember the great worriers in the past. It is an important place for the people of Meghalaya. This is located a little off track to Jowai if you are coming from Shillong. So, plan accordingly.
Plan to reach your hotel stay early so that you have enough time to search multiple options and choose the best one for you.
With this, you can wrap up day 1 of your Jowai Trip and settle for the day in your hotel or homestay. All homestays or hotels will provide breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You can choose to have outside also. You can also enjoy the night in a bar, do not worry Meghalaya is not a dry state.
One thing you must consider is if your hotel or homestay provides a washing machine or dryer. Chances are high that your clothes are all wet or at least need another washing and due to rain and clouds, there is no chance your clothes will be dried in the morning.
Day 2: Enjoy the Jowai town and around it.
When it comes to day 2, it is your choice, there are so many waterfalls some may be big or some may be small. You can even select one or two places and organize a picnic and rest. For day 2, I won’t mention anything specific so that you have the freedom to plan as per your choice. But, I will say one thing, if you are planning to head to Dawki on Day 3, do not plan to visit the spots near along the road from Jowai to Dawki.
Also, note that you won’t be able to visit all the spots along the way so you can plan to visit one or two and keep others for the next day.
Day 3: From Jowai to Dawki
On Day 3, I am assuming you are heading towards Dawki and on this way, you will find beautiful curly hilly roads with clouds and mists and waterfalls. You can see a teaser of the journey in the below reel. A like won’t hurt my heart though.
You can start early morning and start your plan with the nearest tourist attractions in Jowai and then the next place as per the route. The major attractions are Phe Phe falls, Thlu Amwi Falls, Krangshuri Falls, etc.
If you are traveling without a raincoat and your camera or mobile is not waterproof, it is best you buy one. You can buy a cheap one from Amazon or Decathlon.
When traveling to Phe Phe falls, you have to take a small boat ride for 5 mins and you will be charged a crazy amount for that price. If you don’t like it, avoid going there but there is no other way without that ride to visit Phe Phe falls. The other road is very bad and long.
If you like adventure you can check it but it will be a time taking one. Anyway, you will feel the fresh nature on the road.
If you reach Krangshuri Falls, you are halfway to Dawki from Jowai. The Krangshuri falls is a big one and you will need at least 25-30 mins one-way downward tracking to reach the bottom. We didn’t go down the last step but we did try :). But, you don’t need to worry as the staircase is well built and also it is very safe. All you need is support from your feet.
As you can see below, the river is well below and you will still need another 20-25 mins of the track. You don’t need to worry about your bike or car as tickets will be issued at around Rs. 40 per bike.
Once you finish this, you can directly head towards Dawki. On the way, you can visit other tourist attractions. You can enjoy more photos below.
Is Jowai worth visiting?
Yes, you can enjoy your stay away from city life, and cool weather and you will have peace of mind while traveling to Jowai.
If you are a business owner in Jowai like a hotel, homestay owner, or restaurant owner, and want to be featured in this post, you can shoot an email on the contact page.
Are you a traveler who recently visited Jowai and you want your amazing photos posted here? PM me or contact me by email.
You can check other popular posts below:
