Field guide · Meghalaya

Shillong travel guide

Meghalaya's hill capital: pine-covered slopes, a lake from 1894, loud markets, live music most nights and the best Khasi food stalls in the state.

  • About 1,500 mAltitude
  • About 100 km, 3 hoursFrom Guwahati
  • One or two nightsGood for

Shillong takes its name from Lei Shyllong, the deity of the peak above the city. The British made it a civil station in 1864 and the capital of Assam ten years later, and for almost a century the whole north-east was run from here. It became the capital of Meghalaya when the state was created in 1972.

Most travellers treat it as a place to change vehicles between Guwahati and Cherrapunji. It deserves a day and an evening of its own.

Researched and written October 2026Location photos are free-use images, not Charkadam trip photos

Overview

A capital that kept its hills

The city is spread over hills at roughly 1,500 m, with Shillong Peak above it at about 1,965 m. The colonial town was wrecked by the great earthquake of 12 June 1897 and rebuilt in the light timber-frame style you still see in older houses.

Police Bazaar, named after a colonial police outpost, is the commercial centre. Laitumkhrah is the student quarter, with cafes and bakeries. Bara Bazaar, or Iewduh, is the huge traditional market, run largely by Khasi women.

The music

Shillong calls itself India's rock capital, and it has earned it. Western music arrived with missionaries and schools, and the city has had working bands since the 1960s. Several cafes host live sets through the week.

Traffic

The one thing everyone complains about. Roads are narrow and jams are long, especially in the evening and around Police Bazaar. Stay within walking distance of where you want to eat.

Folded green ridges and valleys seen from Laitlum canyons near Shillong
Laitlum, 24 km from town

Food

Jadoh stalls and cafes

Shillong has two food cultures side by side: jadoh stalls serving Khasi food to office workers, and a cafe scene that grew up around the colleges. Use both. The names are ones that guides repeat. Check they are still open.

Eat in Shillong

  • Jadohred rice and pork

    The standard lunch. Guides point to a small stall near Glory's Plaza in Police Bazaar and to Jadoh in Laitumkhrah.

  • A Khasi thalieverything at once

    Trattoria, in Police Bazaar, is described as a no-frills local favourite for set plates with jadoh, dohneiiong, tungrymbai and salad.

  • Tungrymbaifermented soybean

    Sold at market stalls and jadoh shops. Strong, savoury and very local.

  • Momos and noodle soupstreet carts

    Shillong has a large Nepali and Tibetan presence, and evening carts in Police Bazaar sell pork momos and chow.

  • Pumaloi and teabreakfast

    Steamed rice cakes with red tea from small tea shops, often with a boiled egg.

  • Coffee and cakecafes

    Dylan's Cafe, a Bob Dylan tribute, and Cafe Shillong in Laitumkhrah are named for food with live music.

Jadoh stalls are busiest and freshest at lunch. Many shut by evening.

Things to do

A day and an evening

  1. Ward's Lake

    Centre · an hour

    A horseshoe lake in a garden, built in 1894 to a plan by the Chief Commissioner Sir William Ward. Locals call it Nan Polok. A footbridge crosses the middle, and there are paddle boats.

  2. Don Bosco Centre for Indigenous Cultures

    Mawlai · 2 hours

    Seven floors and 17 galleries on the peoples of north-east India, opened in 2003, with a skywalk on the roof. The best single introduction to the region. Published hours are 9:30 to 5:30, Tuesday to Saturday, so check before you go.

  3. Police Bazaar and Bara Bazaar

    On foot

    Police Bazaar for street food and shops. Bara Bazaar, a short walk on, for the real market: betel nut, dried fish, bamboo baskets, knives, vegetables you will not recognise. Go in the morning and keep your bag in front.

  4. Laitlum canyons

    24 km out · early morning

    A ridge above a deep valley near Smit. A stepped path leads down the escarpment for those who want more than the view. Cloud often fills the valley by mid-morning.

    Deep green valleys and ridges fading into haze at Laitlum
    Laitlum before the cloud comes in

  5. Elephant Falls

    About 12 km from the centre

    A three-step waterfall, which is what its Khasi name means, with stairs down each level. Easy, popular and at its best just after the rains.

  6. Mawphlang sacred forest

    About 25 to 27 km west

    A grove protected for centuries by Khasi religious custom, where nothing, not a leaf, may be taken out. You enter with a local guide who explains the plants and the monoliths. One of the most worthwhile half-days near Shillong.

  7. Live music after dark

    Cafes and bars

    Ask your host who is playing tonight. On most evenings somewhere has a band.

Hidden gems

What travellers pass on

These are not our discoveries. They are places and tips that other travellers keep passing on, in forum threads, Q&A answers and independent travel blogs. We have cross-checked each one against at least one more source, but small places change fast. Ask locally before you plan a day around any of them.

  • Smit village with Laitlum

    On the same road

    Travellers suggest stopping in Smit on the way back from Laitlum to see the Iing Sad, a traditional Khasi royal house built in the 1860s of timber joined with wooden pegs instead of nails.

    From Laitlum guides and a college field report

  • The long way down at Laitlum

    Towards Rasong village

    A steep stairway of nearly 3,000 steps drops to a village on the valley floor. Those who did it say few people go past the first viewpoint. It is a serious climb back.

    One travel guide, confirm locally

  • Laitumkhrah over Police Bazaar

    Evenings

    A common tip from repeat visitors: stay and eat in Laitumkhrah, which is calmer and has better cafes, and visit Police Bazaar only by day.

    From Shillong travel write-ups

  • A slow hour at a jadoh stall

    Any neighbourhood

    Food writers say the same thing: skip the hotel restaurant once and eat where the pots are on the counter. It is cheap, fast and the real food of the city.

    Agreed across food guides

Practical info

Before you go

Best time

October to May

October to February is dry and cool, with cold nights in December and January. March to May is mild with showers. June to September is the monsoon: green, wet and often foggy.

Getting there

From Guwahati

About 100 km and three hours by road from Guwahati, which has the nearest major airport and railway station. Shared taxis and buses run all day. Shillong's own airport at Umroi has limited flights.

Getting around

Shared black-and-yellow taxis

Local taxis run fixed routes and take several passengers. Tell the driver where you are going before you get in. For day trips, hire a car through your hotel. Guides note that the state banned self-drive rentals to tourists in June 2025, so check the current rule if you planned to ride.

Altitude

Comfortable

At about 1,500 m, altitude is not an issue. Bring a jacket for the evening.

Sundays

Things close

Meghalaya is largely Christian and Sunday is quiet. Many shops and some restaurants close, and markets are thin. Plan a day trip instead.

Build your packing list

Shillong is cool, not cold, and often wet. Tell the builder the month.

Open the Packing List Builder

Go with Charkadam

Shillong, with a group

Shillong is on both of our Meghalaya trips. The trip pages have the day-by-day plans.

See the departure calendarAll trips

* Indicative starting price. The trip page shows the price for each date.

Questions

Shillong, answered

One full day and an evening covers the lake, a market, the Don Bosco museum and dinner with music. A second day lets you add Laitlum and the Mawphlang sacred forest.

About 100 km by road, which takes around three hours depending on traffic.

Its hill-station setting, its music scene, colonial-era landmarks such as Ward's Lake, and Khasi food. It is also the gateway to Cherrapunji, Dawki and the rest of Meghalaya.

October to May. The monsoon months from June to September are very wet.

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