How to reach Matheran by road, train, car or bike

Matheran is a magical hill station near Pune and Mumbai. It is the only hill station in India where all motorised vehicles are completely banned. This is a detailed guide on how to reach Matheran from Pune or Mumbai, with your own vehicle as well as public transport.

• Mumbai to Matheran distance: 83 km or 2.5 hours
• Pune to Matheran distance: 123 km or 3 hours

In this other post, you can know more about places to visit in Matheran.

How to reach Matheran by Public transport

You need to first take a train to Neral station from Pune, Mumbai or any other place where you live. Neral is the nearest train station to Matheran.

Neral to Matheran Toy train

Matheran has a beautiful toy train that goes through the most scenic landscapes around Matheran. It starts from Neral at 6.40 am every morning and reaches the Matheran railway station at around 9.40 am. It goes slowly around a very scenic route with panoramic views.

After this the train stays up at Matheran and it keeps operating from Aman Lodge or Dasturi Naka to Matheran railway station every hour. At 3.30 pm everyday it goes down from Matheran back to Neral.

The train timings may vary as per the seasonal changes and other issues. But most of the times, it is in working condition. Sometimes during heavy monsoons the toy train is fully closed.

Shared Cab from Neral

If you come from Pune or other places chances are that you will be late for the toy train. So this is another way to go from Neral up to Matheran. There are several cabbies waiting outside the Neral railway station. They will charge Rs 80 to 120 per person inside a shared cab. The rates vary as per the seasons and crowds. The shared cabs take you till the Dasturi Naka. This is the place where you have to pay the tourism tax and enter Matheran.

From Dasturi Naka it is just a 15-30 min walk to the Matheran railway station. If you are in luck, you may catch the toy train that runs from the Dasturi Naka to Matheran railway station every hour.

Ride a horse

Another alternative is to hire horses or men driven passenger cabs. There are a lot of horses in Matheran. You will get the best ones near the Dasturi Naka. Most of the horses will be registered or having some type of numbering and a uniform. Go with these only. Dont go with horses which aren’t in this unifromed numbering or names, they are mostly the bad ones. I am speaking from experience.

Make sure to bargain. The horsemen have packages where they show five points or ten points. They ususally quote a high price so that the bragianed price will be fair for them. Make sure you are supporting the community without getting ripped off yourself.

You can ask them to show you one or two extra view points. And make sure you ask them to drop you at your hotel.

How to reach Matheran by your own vehicle

By your own vehicle also you must first reach Neral. From Neral you can take your bike or car up to the Dasturi Naka. But beware there are several steep twists and turns on this road. I would only recommend the experienced drivers to drive here.

After reaching the Dasturi Naka you have to park your vehicle in the parking area. Because no vehicles are allowed inside Matheran hill station. At Dasturi Naka you have to pay the tourism tax to enter Matheran. From Dasturi Naka it is the same thing. You can walk, take the toy train or hire a horse.

Transport within Matheran

The viewpoints in Matheran are quite farther from each other. And all motorised vehicles are banned inside Matheran. The question arises then how can we go from one place to another? The answer is simple. Ride a horse. I would suggest that you do a combination of both horse riding and walking. If you want you can walk everywhere to all the tourist viewpoints.