From Chennai Airport
Taxi
The nearest international airport is Chennai (Madras) Airport (MAA). If it is your first time in India and you are arriving directly from Chennai airport to Sadhana Forest in India it may be easier for you to take a taxi to Sadhana Forest for approximately ₹ 3000, or ₹ 3500 from anywhere else inside the city. Please contact Sadhana Forest to recommend a reliable and helpful taxi driver. Finding your own taxi at the airport might come with the risk that the driver is unlikely to know the way, it could take a very long time for him to find Sadhana Forest, and it will be more expensive. Please plan your trip so that you arrive at Sadhana Forest on any day between 9 am and 5 pm.
Bus
You can also reach us from the airport by bus, but this requires making a few transfers and is not recommended at night or if you are new to India. Exit the airport on foot, cross the street, and take a bus heading for Perengalathur (10km). (You can also take a taxi or rickshaw from the airport directly there). From Perengalathur, ask for a bus to Pondicherry. Be sure to confirm that it will pass through Tindivanam (110km) and ask to be dropped at the Morattandi Toll Gate 9km before Pondicherry. Total bus charges are about 150 INR. Please phone Sadhana Forest from the Morattandi toll gate to be picked up (for free) on a motorbike. You may also be able to take an auto rickshaw from the toll gate to Sadhana Forest for about 100 Rs. These are the Sadhana Forest phone numbers: +91-413-2677682 or +91-413-2677683.
From Chennai Central Train Station
Taxi
The easiest and quickest, but not the cheapest way to reach Sadhana Forest in India is with a taxi from Chennai Central Train Station. Please contact Sadhana Forest to recommend a reliable and helpful taxi driver. Finding your own taxi at the train station might come with the risk that the driver is unlikely to know the way, it could take a very long time for him to find Sadhana Forest, and it will be more expensive. Please plan your trip so that you arrive at Sadhana Forest on any day between 9 am and 5 pm.
Bus
The cheapest way is with a bus. You will need to reach the Koyambedu bus terminus in Chennai, from here buses depart to Pondicherry which pass next to Sadhana Forest in India. There are a few options to reach the Koyambedu bus terminus:
Bus No. 15B – Exit the train station, cross the main road and ask where you can take bus No. 15B to Koyambedu bus terminus (or just say “Koyambedu”). The bus fare should be around 10-15 Rs (about 0.20 USD) and takes between 30-50 minutes to reach Koyambedu.
Taxi – You can get a taxi outside of the train station to Koyambedu bus terminus. If you choose this option it is important to find the “Pre-paid Taxi Counter” so you can be sure you are getting a fair price. The prices at the prepaid taxi counter are fixed government rates. Just say you need to reach the Koyambedu bus terminus.
Rickshaw – Another option is to take an auto-rickshaw to Koyambedu bus terminus. Richshaws in Chennai are known to be difficult to haggle with but if you are experienced with auto-richshaws in India you can try to get a fair price.
From Koyambedu Bus Terminus
When you reach the Koyambedu bus terminus you have to take the bus to Pondicherry. Go inside the main building and ask where the buses to Pondicherry depart from. There are 2 bus routes to Pondicherry from Chennai Koyambedu bus terminus.
Choose the bus through the Chennai – Tindivanam – Pondicherry Highway!
Do not take the bus from Chennai to Pondicherry through the East Coast Road (ECR). This will make your trip more complicated and much more expensive!
Make sure you take an Express bus THROUGH TINDIVANAM, they might be a bit more expensive but it’s worth it because you save at least an hour. The bus ride should take about 3 – 4 hours and should cost around 100 rupees (under 2 USD). Please repeat “Chennai – Pondi (Pondicherry) Highway, NOT ECR” when you ask which bus to get on. You can also ask “Morattandi tollgate” (this is where you will need to get off). You don’t want to find out on the way that you took the ECR bus.
When you are on the bus you will pass through a few tollgates, about 2.5 – 3.5 hours into the trip you should reach the Morattandi tollgate. This is where you get off. Ask the conductor to let you know when you reach the Morattandi tollgate. The tollgate is not an official stop but the bus slows down and stops for a few seconds to pay the toll.
You should get ready just before the bus reaches the Morattandi tollgate to get off. Once you get off the bus, give Sadhana Forest a call (you can ask people at the tollgate for a local call) and they will send someone to pick you up from the tollgate.
The Sadhana Forest phone numbers are +91-413-2677682 or +91-413-2677683.
From Pondicherry (Puducherry)
The cheapest and easiest way to reach Sadhana Forest in India from Pondicherry is to get a bus from Pondicherry to Tindivanam or to Sedarapet, and get off at a village named Morattandi (about 4 km drive from Pondicherry). Please phone Sadhana Forest from Morattandi to be picked up. These are the Sadhana Forest phone numbers: +91-413-2677682 or +91-413-2677683.
Buses that go to Chennai through the Chennai – Pondicherry Highway also pass through Morattandi. Make sure you get off at the Morattandi Tollgate on the Highway.
Taking a rickshaw from Pondicherry to Morattandi is also an option (maximum price 250 Rupees). If you take a rickshaw please ask the driver to go to Sadhana Forest. Most drivers in Pondicherry know where Sadhana Forest is. If your driver doesn’t know where Sadhana Forest is please ask him to call Sadhana Forest.
