Live Like a Local: three days in Rishikesh.
Overview
The longest plan we offer: all the signature moments plus real unstructured hours to just be here, not touring it. Kunjapuri at sunrise and Kyarki at sunset, rafting and a secret waterfall, the Beatles Ashram, and the café culture and live-music evenings most visitors never slow down enough to find.
- River Rafting & Secret Waterfall
- Kunjapuri Sunrise & Kyarki Sunset
- Beatles Ashram & Bhootnath Temple
- Café Culture & Live-Music Evenings
Your days, hour by hour
Three days across Rishikesh, from Kunjapuri sunrise to Kyarki sunset. The map shows where they go; tap the meeting point for the exact start.
- 1Beatles AshramStart
- 2Bhootnath Temple
- 3Tapovan
- 4Parmarth Niketan (Ganga Aarti)
- 5Sai Ghat
- 6Kunjapuri Shakti Peeth
- 7Secret Waterfall
- 8Kyarki Viewpoint
- 9Freedom Ghat
- 10Shivpuri (rafting start)End
Day 1 · Arrival to aartiArrive, and be in it by the afternoon.
Check in from 2:00 PM and you are at the Beatles Ashram by half past, Bhootnath before the light goes, the aarti at dusk, and a guided meditation to close.
- On pickup Included
Hotel Pickup & QR Check-In
Your guide (host) meets you at your hotel, checks you in on your arrival card, and the day begins. From here the logistics are theirs to carry, not yours.
- 02:00 PMStay included Included
Check-In
Settle into your stay in Tapovan. Arrive any time from 2:00 PM.
- 02:30 – 03:30 PMRishikesh moment Included
Beatles Ashram
Wander the graffiti-covered meditation halls where the White Album took shape. Your host comes with you. Entry is included for Indian guests. International guests pay Rs. 1,000 at the gate. Your host covers the rest.
- 03:30 – 04:30 PM Included
Bhootnath Temple
A scenic walk via Ram Jhula brings you to the storeyed Shiva temple for the best quiet view of the valley, with your host beside you.
- 04:30 – 05:30 PM Included
Local Market Walk
Tapovan's lanes on your way to the river: singing bowls, woollens, and small finds that end up meaning the most. Optional, book separately: Dry Cupping, Sound Healing, or a quick Ayurvedic Massage instead.
- 05:30 – 07:00 PMRishikesh moment Included
Ganga Aarti at Parmarth Niketan
Fire, song, and the river as the sun goes down at Parmarth Ghat, the evening's natural home after Bhootnath, and your host knows exactly where to sit. Optional, from 7:00 PM: Evening Satsang with Sadhvi Bhagawati at Parmarth Niketan.
- 07:15 to 08:00 PM Included
Guided Evening Meditation at Sai Ghat
The ghat empties, the lamps settle, and your host arranges a quiet guided meditation by the water to close your first day.
- 08:00 PM OnwardsOwn choice · host recommends the best spots
Cafe Culture Experience
Dinner is your own choice and your host points you to the right table, and then the evening is yours. Ask what's on: live music and café events pop up all over Tapovan, especially at weekends.
- End of the day Included
Host Sign-Off
Your guide (host) scans your arrival-card QR to close the day, and points you toward dinner if you would like.
Day 2 · The Big Day · Scooty DaySunrise, waterfall, village sunset.
The fullest day of the trip: your host collects you before dawn for Kunjapuri, a hidden waterfall fills the morning, the afternoon is yours, and a village sunset closes it. All scooty transport for the day is bundled into your price.
- On pickup Included
Hotel Pickup & QR Check-In
Your guide (host) meets you at your hotel, checks you in on your arrival card, and the day begins. From here the logistics are theirs to carry, not yours.
- 04:30 – 05:30 AM Included
Departure for Kunjapuri
Your host collects you in the dark and drives you up. Bring a layer. It is properly cold before the sun clears the ridge.
- 05:30 – 06:30 AMRishikesh moment Included
Kunjapuri Sunrise
The Himalaya come out one ridge at a time as the light arrives: Bandarpunch, Swargarohini, Gangotri on a clear morning. One of the two views people actually travel here for.
- 08:00 – 09:00 AMYour own time
Your Own Time
Back in Tapovan with the morning still ahead. Rest after the early start, or wander the lanes while they are quiet. Optional, book separately: a One-on-One Fitness Session, Journaling, or Sound Healing.
- 09:00 – 10:00 AMOwn choice · host recommends the best spots
Breakfast (Guest Choice)
Your own choice: your host points you to the best breakfast spots nearby, timed so you are fuelled before the walk in.
- 10:00 AM – 01:00 PMRishikesh moment Included
Secret Waterfall
Past the first fall, then the upper fall, to a quiet third most visitors never reach, everyone walking out together with your host.
- 01:00 – 02:00 PMOwn choice · host recommends the best spots
Lunch Break
Your own choice: your host recommends the cafés locals actually eat at.
- 02:00 – 05:00 PMYour own time
Your Own Time
The afternoon is yours after the early start: rest, swim, or drift through the cafés. Optional, book separately: an Ayurvedic Massage, Dry Cupping, a Private Yoga or Meditation Session, or a Ganga Puja.
- 05:00 – 06:30 PMRishikesh moment Included
Kyarki Village Sunset
A short ride up to a working hill village for the other view of the trip: terraced fields, the valley going gold, and almost nobody else there.
- 07:15 to 08:00 PM Included
Guided Evening Meditation
Back by the water, lamps low, your host arranges a quiet guided sit to close the longest day of the trip.
- 08:00 PM OnwardsOwn choice · host recommends the best spots
Dinner & Live Music
Your own choice, and your host knows which places have music on tonight. Tapovan's cafés run live sets most evenings, a good last night before the river in the morning.
- End of the day Included
Host Sign-Off
Your guide (host) scans your arrival-card QR to close the day, and points you toward dinner if you would like.
Day 3 · DepartureOne last river run.
Practice, a dip, breakfast, then straight onto the rapids, and checkout by 12:00 PM.
- On pickup Included
Hotel Pickup & QR Check-In
Your guide (host) meets you at your hotel, checks you in on your arrival card, and the day begins. From here the logistics are theirs to carry, not yours.
- 06:00 – 07:30 AM Included
Yoga & Breathwork at Sai Ghat
An all-levels practice as the river wakes up, near the Gangamata statue at Sai Ghat.
- 07:30 – 08:00 AM Included
Sacred Ganga Dip at Freedom Ghat
A five-minute walk across Laxman Jhula to Freedom Ghat for the dip: bracing, humbling, unforgettable, the river the way locals meet it.
- 08:00 – 09:00 AMOwn choice · host recommends the best spots
Breakfast (Guest Choice)
Your own choice: your host points you to the best breakfast spots nearby, timed so you're fuelled and ready before the river.
- 09:00 AM – 12:00 PMRishikesh moment Included
White Water River Rafting
A taxi picks you up to the start point and a professional crew runs the river. Cold spray, big laughs, the best kind of adrenaline to close the trip on.
- 12:00 PM Included
Checkout & Departure
Straight off the river and your host sees you off. Two days in, you stopped feeling like a visitor. Not done exploring? Most hotels in Tapovan will hold your luggage at reception for the day. Just ask your host.
- End of the day Included
Host Sign-Off
Your guide (host) scans your arrival-card QR to close the day, and points you toward dinner if you would like.
Meals are yours to choose, on purpose. Rishikesh's cafés are part of the experience, and locking you into a set breakfast, lunch and dinner would work against the very freedom this trip is selling. Tell your guide (host) the mood, and they'll walk you to the right spot. You pay only for what you order.
What's included
- Everything in the day plans above, white water rafting with a proper crew included
- Your guide (host) beside you at every far-off experience. Kunjapuri, the Beatles Ashram, the secret waterfall and Kyarki village
- Your room for the two nights, the one you choose at checkout. The hotels and rates are under Where you’ll stay
What's not included
- Your meals. You eat where you like, and your guide (host) will tell you where is good
- Beatles Ashram entry if you are visiting from abroad. Rs. 1,000 in cash at the gate. Indian guests are covered
- Getting yourself to Rishikesh. Say the word and your guide (host) arranges it, whether that is your airport pickup and drop or a pickup from Delhi, Haridwar or the railway station
- Shopping, and anything you add later like a massage, a trek or a ceremony
Other info
Getting here & around
On foot (the default)
- Sai Ghat & the evening Ganga Aarti
- Cafés & markets in Tapovan
By scooty
- Secret Waterfall visit
- Beatles Ashram
- Kyarki Village sunset
By taxi (out of town only)
- Kunjapuri sunrise
- White Water Rafting pickup
- Airport transfers
Make it yours
The itinerary gives you the structure. The open spaces are yours.
- Dry Cupping Session · On request
- One-on-One Fitness Session · On request
- Sound Healing · On request
Worth knowing before you book
- A hostel bed for the two nights is already inside this price; choose any other room and we take that bed off the total first.
- The plan flexes around your arrival and departure, spread across the days at a comfortable pace; timings are indicative and shift with weather, traffic and river conditions.
- The rafting or the Secret Waterfall is your choice, and both depend on safe river conditions.
- Beatles Ashram entry is included for Indian guests; foreign visitors pay Rs. 1,000 in cash at the gate.
Who it's for
What to wear
- Comfortable clothes you can move in
- Modest cover for the temples and the ashram
- A warm layer for the Kunjapuri sunrise and the Kyarki sunset
- Quick-dry clothes and a change for the rafting or the waterfall
What to bring
- Water bottle, sun cap and sunscreen
- A towel and a change of clothes for the river
- Some cash for meals, the market and any offerings
- Phone, a small dry bag for the rafting, and any personal medicines
- Beatles Ashram entry for foreign visitors (Rs. 1,000 cash at the gate)
Accessibility & pace
Three easy-paced days, but with early starts, walking, steps at the temples and ghats, uneven riverside and village ground, and time in the vehicle for the sunrise and sunset. If you have mobility needs, tell us before booking so we can shape the days around you.
Season & weather
Winter mornings and the sunrise/sunset drives are cold, so bring a warm layer. Summers are hot, so carry water and sun protection. In monsoon the rafting, waterfall and hill roads depend on conditions, and your host may adjust the flow for safety.
Questions, answered
Is the stay included?
Yes, a hostel bed for the two nights is in the price. Choose any other room and we take that bed off the total first, so you only pay the difference.
Do I choose the rafting or the waterfall?
Yes. You pick the rafting run or the Secret Waterfall when you book. Both are included; you simply choose one.
Is the Beatles Ashram entry included?
Included for Indian guests. Foreign visitors pay Rs. 1,000 in cash at the gate, and your host sorts the rest.
Are meals included?
No. Meals and snacks are at your own expense, with your host's recommendations, though a few local food moments are part of the plan.
How early are the starts?
The Kunjapuri sunrise is an early, pre-dawn start; the rest of the days are relaxed. Your host confirms the exact times.
Do I need to be fit or experienced?
No. The yoga is all levels, and the rafting and waterfall are guided. Come as you are.
Real trips, real words.
My first trip to India could have felt overwhelming, but Book My Rishikesh made Rishikesh feel completely comfortable. Everything was well organised without making the trip feel organised around a schedule. I loved that I could slow down, change plans and simply ask my host what was worth doing that day. The little local recommendations ended up being some of my favourite memories.
From Google review
Charlotte · 25 · UK
Live Like a Local · July 2026
I came looking for yoga, nature and a little peace and somehow found all three. What I loved most was the personal touch. They didn’t just give me an itinerary and disappear. My host checked in, helped me plan my days and showed me a side of Rishikesh that felt much more local. Sitting by the Ganga at sunrise was something I’ll never forget.
From Google review
Michael · 27 · US
Live Like a Local · July 2026
I wanted a mix of adventure and the real Rishikesh — not just the usual tourist checklist. Book My Rishikesh got that balance exactly right. I could go rafting and explore the town during the day, then end the evening by the Ganga. Everything was smooth, but there was still enough freedom to make the trip feel like my own. Great team and a genuinely personal experience.
From Google review
James · 30 · London, UK
Live Like a Local · July 2026
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