15 places to visit in Rishikesh by bike

A working list, roughly ordered by distance from our shop, of what's actually worth the ride — not a padded top-30 with filler.

In and around town

1. Laxman Jhula bridge — 0 minutes, you're already here. Best early morning before the crowds.

2. Triveni Ghat — 15 minutes, the main evening aarti spot in Rishikesh town, best at sunset.

3. Ram Jhula and Parmarth Niketan — 12 minutes, see our Ram Jhula page for the aarti timing detail.

4. Beatles Ashram (Chaurasi Kutia) — 12 minutes, park on the approach road and walk in. Full notes on our Swarg Ashram page.

5. Swarg Ashram ghats — 12 minutes, quieter than the bridge crowds, best early morning or sunset.

Short rides, under an hour

6. Neer Garh waterfall — 20 minutes, first stop on our waterfalls loop, best just after monsoon.

7. Garud Chatti waterfall — 25 minutes, second stop on the same loop, good for a swim.

8. Shivpuri — 30 minutes upriver, rafting base camp with a handful of good riverside cafés, best late morning.

9. Vashistha Gufa — 30 minutes, a meditation cave on the riverbank associated with the sage Vashistha, quiet and worth an hour.

Half-day rides

10. Neelkanth Mahadev — 1h15m, our most-ridden route, full detail on the Neelkanth page.

11. Kunjapuri sunrise point — 1h30m, the pre-dawn ride, see our Kunjapuri page for the safety notes on leaving in the dark.

12. Patna waterfall — 30-40 minutes, weakest of the three falls outside monsoon, pair it with the other two rather than a dedicated trip.

Full-day extensions

13. Kaudiyala — around 1h15m downstream, a quieter rafting and riverside stretch than Shivpuri, good for an easy half-day out.

14. Tehri Lake — a natural extension past Kunjapuri if you've got the legs left in the day; ask us for the extension route when you collect the bike.

15. Rajaji buffer road — the forest stretch on the way to Neelkanth is worth riding for its own sake at a relaxed pace, daytime only — see our wildlife note on the Neelkanth page.

Worth the longer trip

If you've got a full day free, riding out to Haridwar for the evening Ganga Aarti at Har Ki Pauri is one of the best half-day extensions from Rishikesh — about 25km each way on easy road.

Planning it out

Days 1-2: town sights and the waterfalls loop, easy riding on an Activa or Jupiter. Day 3: Neelkanth or Kunjapuri on a Royal Enfield. Beyond that, you're into proper route territory — see our full route guides for Chopta, Kedarnath, Badrinath and Auli.