shadow ridge condos Of the four daily trains to Delhi, the Guwahati New Delhi Rajdhani (No 2423; 3AC/2AC 1995/2565, 27 h

Of the four daily trains to Delhi, the Guwahati New Delhi Rajdhani (No 2423; 3AC/2AC 1995/2565, 27 hours, 7.05am) is the fastest; others take over 42 hours. The best daily train to Kolkata (Howrah Junction) is the Saraighat Express (No 2346; sleeper/3AC/2AC 386/1012/1366, 16 hours, 12.45pm). For New Jalpaiguri (for Darjeeling and Sikkim) the best train is the Guwahati New Jalpaiguri Rajdhani (No 2423; 3AC/2AC/1AC 733/926/1522, six hours).

Tezpur, with its large Bangladeshi immigrant population, is probably Assam s most attractive city thanks to beautifully kept parks, attractive lakes and the enchanting views of the mighty Brahmaputra River as it laps the town s edge. The imaginatively named Internet Cafe (Main Rd; per hr 20; h9am-8pm) has, you guessed it, internet.

The best accommodation option here is Aagaam Hotel (%223640; Nehru Chowk; s/d from 400-500), which has rooms that could almost be called plush. The attached restaurant, Pizza Coffee Day (mains 80-100, pizzas 80-150) is the best place in town to eat and yes, it really does sell pizzas of a sort. Another option is the Hotel Holiday Cottage (%222463; Hospital Hill; r 400-600) southwest of the helipad. shadow ridge condos However, it s not a cottage and nor is it the sort of place you d really