Most pilgrims base themselves in one of two zones. The Assi Ghat and Lanka/BHU area is closest to Sankat Mochan, with a good spread of guesthouses, budget hotels, and homestays within a couple of kilometres, and a quieter, student-and-pilgrim feel. For those who also want the ghats and Kashi Vishwanath, the Godowlia and old-city area offers dharamshalas and hotels but heavier crowds and narrow lanes. Cantonment (near Varanasi Junction) holds the mid-range and business hotels for travellers arriving by train. Book well ahead around Hanuman Jayanti, the April music festival, and major Kashi festival dates, when the whole city fills up.
The most convenient base is the Assi Ghat and Lanka/BHU zone, a couple of kilometres from the temple, which has a wide spread of guesthouses, budget hotels, and homestays and a calmer, more residential feel than the old city. It suits pilgrims who want to reach Sankat Mochan quickly and still stroll to Assi Ghat for the morning aarti and sunrise boat rides.
If your trip is built around the ghats and Kashi Vishwanath, the Godowlia and old-city area puts you in the thick of it, with dharamshalas and hotels of every grade, at the cost of dense crowds and lanes too narrow for cars. Travellers arriving by train often prefer the Cantonment area near Varanasi Junction, where most mid-range and business hotels cluster.
Whichever zone you pick, book well ahead for Hanuman Jayanti, the April music festival, and major Kashi festival dates, when rooms across the city vanish and rates climb. Distances between these zones and the temple are modest but city traffic can make short hops slow.
← Back to the full Sankat Mochan Hanuman darshan guideCompiled from public sources including Wikipedia: Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple · Wikipedia: Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport (Varanasi) · Wikimedia Commons pageimage (temple entrance photo). Timings and seasonal closures change; confirm with the temple trust before travelling.