Free and Paid Activities in Varanasi

October 18, 2026

Most of what a visitor does in Varanasi costs nothing, and the paid extras are optional. This page sorts the activities by what you pay, so you can see where money buys something and where it does not. Prices are in Indian rupees (INR; the rate is roughly 95 to the US dollar and moves), and each figure is a guide to confirm before you go. The usual India cautions apply: keep a hand on your bag in crowds and agree a price before you accept any service.

Free, and worth an early start

Subah-e-Banaras. This free dawn programme at Assi Ghat begins in the hour before sunrise, so the start time slides with the seasons. Expect about two hours of Vedic chanting, a morning aarti, a fire ritual, classical raga and yoga on the open steps. The programme’s own site describes the format.

Evening Ganga Aarti. Dashashwamedh Ghat stages a fire ceremony of about 45 minutes after sunset, organised by Ganga Seva Nidhi. Standing on the steps is free. Sources agree on roughly 5:45 pm from October to March and 6:45 pm from April to September, with small shifts from day to day. Arrive 30 to 45 minutes ahead, because the steps fill early. A smaller evening aarti runs at Assi Ghat, and none is held at Manikarnika.

Ghat steps at any hour. Walking the riverfront is free, and the light is best soon after dawn.

Free entry, optional tickets: Kashi Vishwanath

The temple opens from 03:00 to 23:00 and charges nothing for general entry. Several details matter before you queue:

Nothing electronic goes inside, and pens are barred too. The trust provides free lockers at Mandir Chowk and its help desk.
There is no formal dress code, but the trust asks for decent clothes, so cover shoulders and knees.
The Sugam Darshan queue-skip ticket is INR 300 per person and includes an escort near the sanctum, a prasad box and a locker. Buy it only on the trust’s own website or at its counters, because copycat booking sites exist.
Aarti tickets are INR 500 for Mangala (03:00 to 04:00, report by 02:30 at Gate 1) and INR 300 each for the Mid-day Bhog, Sapta Rishi and Shringar/Bhog aartis. They cannot be refunded. The trust’s pooja list carries current prices.
Foreign visitors with a valid passport can buy a darshan ticket at INR 600 from the help desk at the trust’s head office, bringing the original passport plus photocopies of the passport and visa. Prasad and a shawl come with it.

Who steps into the inner sanctum is decided by security staff on the day, so follow their instructions at the gate.

Paid and negotiated: the river

A rowboat along the Assi to Dashashwamedh stretch is the classic sunrise outing. Blogs quote private rowboats from a few hundred rupees to about INR 1,500 an hour, and operator packages start nearer INR 2,500; there is no official tariff. Before boarding, settle the total, whether it covers the boat or each person, the route and the duration.

Keep out of the Ganga and do not drink from it, since the water is polluted. Do not photograph the burning ghats you pass. Between July and September the river can rise past its warning mark, and the district then suspends every boat, as it did in September 2026. Check locally that boats are running before you plan around one. Browse Varanasi sunrise boat options to compare what packages include.

Eating and shopping

Breakfast in Kachori Gali means kachori with sabzi. Tamatar chaat, a spiced tomato snack, is a local favourite, and plain lassi is sold all over the old lanes. Malaiyo, a milk-foam sweet, is a winter treat from November to February.

Banarasi brocade is woven in Madanpura, Alaipura and Lallapura. Buy from a weaver you walk to yourself and not from a shop a driver steers you towards.

Places to leave alone

Manikarnika and Harishchandra are working cremation grounds with grieving families, and they burn wood pyres. Stay away, keep quiet and keep every camera down. Strangers who offer a rooftop view are after “wood money”, so decline them. Manikarnika is under a restoration project, and access and conditions there can change, so make no plans around it.

When to go

October to March is the comfortable season. April to June brings heat near 45 degrees C, so sightsee early and late. Dev Deepawali falls on 24 November 2026, and rooms fill well in advance.