Itanagar is the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, at about 320 m in the foothills north of the Brahmaputra. It is about 320 km and 8 hours from Guwahati by road, with trains to nearby Naharlagun and flights to Donyi Polo Airport at Hollongi. Indians need an eILP, foreigners a PAP. Most travellers use it as the gateway to Ziro.
Itanagar is a working capital, stretched along a series of ridges and valleys with the twin town of Naharlagun a few kilometres away. It is not a place people usually travel to see, but it deserves a day: the city has the best state museum in Arunachal, a medieval brick fort and a forest lake, and it is where you get a first sense of how many communities make up the state.
The name comes from Ita Fort, a fort of bricks generally dated to the fourteenth or fifteenth century and linked to the Chutia kingdom. The Jawaharlal Nehru State Museum holds textiles, weapons, ornaments and craftwork from across Arunachal's tribes, and the Buddha Vihar on the hill above looks out over the city.
Since November 2022, Donyi Polo Airport at Hollongi has made Itanagar far easier to reach, and it is now the usual starting point for Ziro, about 115 km away.
What makes it worth the trip
Ita Fort
Remains of a brick fort of the fourteenth to fifteenth century that gave the city its name.
Ganga Lake (Gekar Sinyi)
A forest-fringed natural lake about 6 km from the centre, with boating and walking paths.
Jawaharlal Nehru State Museum
Arunachal's main museum, with galleries of tribal textiles, ornaments, weapons and crafts.
Buddha Vihar
A hilltop Buddhist temple above the museum, with views over the capital.
Gateway to Ziro
The easiest base for Ziro Valley, about 115 km and 3.5 to 4 hours away.
Mrkrish · Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Ganesh Mohan T · Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
AshLin · Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0Things to do
- Spend two hours in the Jawaharlal Nehru State Museum before heading into the hills
- Walk around the remains of Ita Fort
- Take a boat or a walk around Ganga Lake in the afternoon
- Watch sunset from the Buddha Vihar
- Browse local textiles and cane crafts in the city's markets and crafts emporium
- Try Nyishi and Adi dishes in local restaurants: smoked meat, bamboo shoot and rice
- Leave early the next morning for Ziro
Getting there
Donyi Polo Airport at Hollongi, about 14 km south of Itanagar, has had IndiGo flights to Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai and Alliance Air flights to Guwahati and Tezu. By train, Naharlagun station, about 15 km from Itanagar, has services to Guwahati, including the daily Donyi Polo Express and a Shatabdi, plus a direct train to New Delhi. By road, Guwahati is about 320 km and 8 hours via Banderdewa, where the eILP is checked. Shared Sumos and state buses run from Guwahati, Tezpur and North Lakhimpur. Check current status before you travel.
Where to stay
Itanagar has the widest choice of hotels in eastern Arunachal, from business hotels to simple lodges, spread between Itanagar proper and Naharlagun. For a night before Ziro, stay on the Naharlagun side or near the Ziro road to save time in the morning. For museum and city sightseeing, the central areas around Ganga Market and the Secretariat are more convenient. Mid-range hotels usually have generators, which matter during summer storms. Book ahead during state events and assembly sessions.
Local tips
- Carry printed eILP copies; they are checked at gates and sometimes at the airport
- Check the museum's opening days before planning your day around it
- Traffic between Naharlagun and Itanagar can be slow at rush hours
- Itanagar is the last big place to withdraw cash before Ziro; use the ATMs here
- Summers are hot and humid; carry light clothes and rain gear from April to September
- Road conditions on the Itanagar–Ziro highway vary; leave in the morning
Rain and weather
Source: IMD normals
October to March, when the air is dry and mild; April to September is hot, humid and wet.
