Banaras Wala Tours
Recommended by 97% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Varanasi, India
- 3 to 4 hours (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
See Varanasi through the eyes of an insider with this guided tour of the ancient city. Your guide, Vinay, will fully customize your tour to suit your personal interests, where you can immerse yourself in the spiritual and religious experiences for which the city is known. Visit Varanasi's famous ghats, cremation grounds, local markets to sample safe street food, and secret spots, and more that you won't find in any guidebook.
- See the sights of Varanasi with a guide who’s from the city
- Pick-up from select hotels is available
- Stay hydrated with free bottled water
- Private tour ensures individual attention from your guide
What's Included
- Bottled water
- Coffee and/or Tea
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
End point
- Dashashwamedh Ghat Rd, Ghats of Varanasi, Godowlia, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221001, India
Itinerary
1
Assi Ghat
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Tulsi Ghat
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Ganges River
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
4
Vishalakshi Temple
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Nepali Temple (Kathwala Temple)
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
6
Manikarnika Ghat
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 343 reviews
Jamie_D, Mar 2026
A very spiritual tour which we enjoyed. Our guide was very knowledgeable and we really liked the boat ride down the Ganges
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you very much for your kind words.
I’m really happy to hear that you enjoyed the spiritual experience of the tour. Varanasi has a very special energy, and it’s always a pleasure to share that with my guests.
I’m also glad you liked the boat ride on the Ganges—it’s truly one of the most peaceful and memorable parts of the visit.
Thank you as well for appreciating my knowledge. It was a pleasure guiding you, and I hope to welcome you again in the future.
Wishing you safe travels and wonderful memories from your time in Varanasi
Cengiz_Y, Mar 2026
It is good experience with Vinay for the Varanasi temples and exciting boat tour. Storngly recommended if you want to discover Varanasi
Zoe_P, Feb 2026
The tour was a feast for the eyes. We had close-up encounters with many Hindu rituals during the sunrise ceremony and throughout the morning. Vikash was very knowledgeable and answered all our questions. He provided a calm pace to the tour.
The cremation site was fascinating to see up close. Vikash brought a sense of humour to the narrative and gave us new insights into Hinduism. We highly recommend this tour. (Also, the chai was delicious).
Ana_F, Feb 2026
You should stop looking and book this tour. I did a lot of research myself and I wasn’t sure which tour was best for us, but we couldn’t have chosen better. The tour included all the must visit places, and Vinay’s explanations allowed us to have a better understanding of Indian culture and Varanasi’s history. Hope other people can also enjoy this experience as we did!
Jennifer_T, Oct 2025
Vinay is a great guide. Very helpful and knowledgeable. He explained everything clearly. Go to the sunrise Aarti and Assi Ghat it’s fantastic to watch as the sun rises over the Ganga
Response from Host, Oct 2025
I am grateful to share my knowledge with everyone all my guest visiting here as a Spritual cultural and tradition of our Varanasi
Melanie_C, Oct 2025
Vinay was prompt and an articulate host
This was a spendid way to spend an early morning in Varanasi, although not quite as described in the Viator listing.
The mornings activity overlaid with a highly informative narrative really brought what we were seeing to life. Would highly recommend.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you very much for your review and I look forward to continuing to do the same, so that my guests take home another great memory from Varanasi.
kntg4crnbz, Jul 2025
The experience was very good and Vinay was really good and pacient and insisted to explain us all very well .He was really good and we felt it was worth it
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Dear guest
Thank you for your recommendation
It is nice to read
Kind regards
Vinay +919628010421
Jennifer_S, Jun 2025
Learned and saw so much more about this city than I would have just walking around by myself. A great early morning activity.
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Namaste Jennifer
Thank you for being our guest here
We care all our visiter
We're really gald you like morning walking tour here and all the Activity boatride and all everything you visited
Kind regards 🙏🏼
Vinay Singh
+919628010421
Valerie_K, Jun 2025
Our tours with Vinay, a local guide in Varanasi, were fantastic - Vinay is friendly, knowledgeable and passionate. He gave us a customised tour that included hidden temples, the mesmerising Ganga Aarti and a peaceful sunrise boat ride on the Ganges. The next day he spontaneously organised a tour to Sanarth for us with an archaeological specialist. All in all, an unforgettable, very enriching experience! Many thanks Vinay!
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Thank you Valerrie for great review i am so glad to shared my knowledge about my
culture and religion which i really learning form my childhood about our tradition and religious people who being here in our holycitiy history of the city
We're really thanks full all each our guest who visit us
Kind regard 🙏🏼
Vinay singh
+919628010421
Jonathan_B, Mar 2025
Wow what an amazing tour!
Vinay is a great guide and very knowledgeable. Highly recommended.
Once again, thank you Vinay, you’re the best!
Response from Host, May 2025
Dear guest
Thank you very mcuh for giving your time to write review for our company
We're glad you have choose our product and satisfy with our Service i am happy to do my duty like often i do
You're often welcome to india our holy city Varanasi
Vinay Singh +919628010421
Best wishes for your other trips
Simon_W, Feb 2025
Vinay was an excellent tour guide —knowledgeable, professional, and friendly. Highly recommended for a great Varanasi experience!
Matthias_M, Feb 2025
I visited Varanasi for the 2nd time and wanted to know more about this very ancIent and fascinating city. The tour guide, Vinay is very knowledgeable and answered all my questions, very friendly! I did the tour in the morning. I highly recommend his tour to anyone who wants to discover the known and hidden side of Varanasi, including the holy temples.
Tore_F, Nov 2024
We had a great and immersive full morning with Vinay! We sampled delicious local chai varieties, saw the morning ganga aarti, had a lovely dawn boat ride up the Ganga, explored the ancient city alleys, and saw many memorable sights. Vinay gave the right amount of information not to be confusing, but could dive deeper on a topic of interest if asked.
He also never watched the clock, and allowed us to take our time in places that we were interested in. A terrific morning and very much recommended!
Jen_S, Oct 2024
Vinay was a great guide. I'm not usually a tour person, but just walking around Varanasi alone, as a visitor, means missing out on the significance of much of what's happening around you. I highly recommend booking this tour (I did the morning version, which took advantage of the much cooler conditions).
Garima_B, Sep 2024
Many Thanks to Vinay for all his kind support and the valuable information he shared. Would definitely recommend others.
Brixit_L, Aug 2024
We had the worst experience. Vinay pick up us in our hostel and didnt said a word in 20 minutes, then left us alone in the ceremony ( only explanation was: this is a ceremony), and then we went on a public boat that was crowded. He was so serious and vibes were not good. Then we were going through a very crowded street and he started walking so fast, I fell on the street and he didnt even notice... At this point we said here that 1) we were not feeling good, bf had stomach issues and 2) we were not happy at all about how things were going and wanted to stop the tour. We also asked for a refund, or at least only pay for the boat ( he really didnt explain nothing at all ) and he got SO angry, being extremelly rude. We were traveling for a month in india and never have a bad experience like this, he left me crying. I would not recommend, there are so incredible and welcoming people in this country to discover, dont waste your time, especially because it is not worthy but super overpriced as well.
Response from Host, Aug 2024
Hello Brixit_L,
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We are very sorry that the trip did not meet your expectations.
I am surprised to get this feedback about not being informative enough. Going forward I will make more of an effort to check in with guests during the tour to see if they would like more information. In some cases, like during a ceremony or while walking through the back alleyways of the old city it is nice to be present in the moment and take in what is around you. I do understand that some people do not want that and I will try to be mindful of that going forward.
I am sorry to hear that you were feeling sick during the tour. We generally recommend resting for a few days when you have food poisoning as our tour is done on foot and is hard to enjoy when you feel unwell.
We have a very generous cancellation policy but do not offer refunds for tours that have already begun. We understand that food poisoning happens, but we ask that you reach out to us and cancel before the tour has started if you would like a refund.
Thank you,
Vinay Singh
wlleee, Jul 2024
I booked my sunrise trip around 11pm the night before and was worried it will never get the notice of the operator, however Vinay showed up at 5:20 in the morning! He is a local king and knows all the hidden places in the town. Unlike some other guides I met in India, there was no nonsense, not taking me to shopping or other funny places. Absolutely a great great guide and great guy!
Heather_P, Jun 2024
Amazing tour of Varanasi with Vinay! We got to spend two days seeing various sights…would highly recommend him and this tour!
Zuzanna_S, Jun 2024
Very authentic experience. Cultural and spiritual insights into Varanasi. Temples, ashram, cremation ceremony, wrestling ground were part of the tour. Vinay is very knowledgeable and flexible. We had a great time!
Weam_H, Apr 2024
Vinay was very flexible and listened to what we wanted to see and talk about and he met our expectations well. He knows a lot about Varanasi and takes you to places you wouldn’t have known about or seen before. Great tour!
Spencer_M, Apr 2024
This was hands-down one of the best tours I’ve done! We did the sunrise boat and watched the sun come up from Assi Ghat. Vinay and his team offered a personalized view of their city and we felt completely immersed in the day-to-day life. Lots to learn about the temples and the ghats but his crew made us feel so welcome (including showing us local breakfast spots in the winding alleys). Would highly, highly recommend! Thanks!
Karl_H, Mar 2024
Fantastic walking and boat tour with interaction with the locals and exciting stories. Would highly recommend! We had a visit to a fabric shop as well which was nice.
Ernils_L, Mar 2024
This was a pleasant walk, and Vinay is an excellent guide. Varanasi can be difficult to get a grip on, so it helped to have a local guide. I would have appreciated if there was more room for conversation though. It's a quite costly tour, and given how much Vinay obviously knows it would have been great if he had been more willing to share. At times the walk felt a little rushed.
Still, it is a great way to get your first taste of Varanasi. I would not hesitate to recommend it to friends, I just think there is some potential for improvement.
Simone_I, Mar 2024
I really loved the tour with Vinay! We started the day watching the morning ceremony at Assi Ghat, had some Masala Chai and then took a boat to Manikarnika Ghat. Afterwards we did a walking tour and I learned a lot about different temples and the culture. Vinay is a great guide and knows the city in and out. He’ll make sure that you’ll get a full experience on life and the people in Varanasi!
Nicolas_R, Feb 2024
We very highly recommend booking a tour with Vinay, especially at the beginning of your trip so that you have a better sense of what Varanasi has to offer. We managed to discover places we never would have found by ourselves (temples, quieter bathing area) and walking through the narrow streets of Varanasi with someone who knows the city makes it a very smooth and enjoyable experience. Do not hesitate, it is worth it.
Diego_A, Jan 2024
Vinay its a great guide! Takes care of everything, super knowledgeable, speaks several languages. Must do!
Jelena_D, Dec 2023
Exploring Varanasi with Vinay was very comfortable, he showed us many hidden places in Varanasi that we would wouldn’t have thought of visiting ourselves. He is also very knowledgeable when it comes to different cultural traditions in Varanasi and India in general. Thank you Vinay for this wonderful tour!
Agar_F, Nov 2023
Rahul is an extremely knowledgeable individual. He took us to see the really unique parts of Varanasi and we got to truly understand the history of the city and the religion. Overall a wonderful experience!
Jerome_L, Nov 2023
Well-run, although fairly standard, walking tour of the old city, including a boat tour on the Ganges, that makes for a good introduction for first-time visitors. Vinay, our guide, did a good job of sharing his extensive knowledge of the city.
Rochelle_G, Aug 2023
We had a wonderful experience with Vinay as our tour guide, he spoke English very well and answered the many questions we had and took us to places we wouldn’t have found on our own.
He organised the sunrise boat ride at our request and everything ran very smoothly.
I would definitely recommend using Vinay, he has a great local knowledge of Varanasi and is full of personality!
From $25.00
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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