Places Near Ajanta Caves — Complete Guide to Nearby Attractions

Looking for the best places near Ajanta Caves to add to your itinerary? While Ajanta Caves themselves are the main draw for most visitors, several worthwhile places to visit near Ajanta Caves exist within a comfortable driving distance, from historic towns to natural viewpoints. This guide covers the best nearby attractions, their distances, and how to plan a well-rounded trip around your Ajanta Caves visit.

Tourist Places Near Ajanta Caves — Quick List

If you are searching for tourist places near Ajanta Caves, the short answer is that the area around the caves is quiet and rural, and most of the major sights are a longer drive away. The closest tourist places near Ajanta Caves are the viewpoints and natural spots around the gorge, followed by the town of Fardapur, Jalgaon, Ellora Caves, Aurangabad city and Lonar Crater Lake.

Note: Distances are approximate and vary by route and traffic.

For the scenic spots around the caves, see our Ajanta hills and Ajanta waterfall guides, and our Ajanta Caves review for the caves themselves.

Fardapur — The Gateway Town

Fardapur, the closest town to Ajanta Caves, serves as the mandatory stopping point where visitors park and board the eco-friendly shuttle bus that completes the final stretch to the cave entrance. While not a tourist destination in itself, Fardapur offers basic amenities, food stalls, and is worth knowing about as a practical waypoint among the places near Ajanta Caves that every visitor passes through.

Lonar Crater Lake

Among the more unique places to visit near Ajanta Caves, Lonar Crater Lake — a rare meteorite-impact crater lake — sits roughly 150 km away in Buldhana district. While it requires a dedicated side trip rather than a quick stop, its striking, otherworldly landscape makes it a worthwhile addition for travellers with extra time and interest in natural geological wonders beyond the region’s heritage caves.

Ellora Caves

Although not immediately adjacent, Ellora Caves — another UNESCO World Heritage rock-cut cave complex — is often paired with Ajanta as part of a broader Maharashtra heritage circuit, despite sitting roughly 100 km away via Aurangabad. Most travellers treat the two as separate day trips given the distance, but together they represent the two most significant cave complexes among all the places near Ajanta Caves worth visiting. See our Ellora to Ajanta Caves distance by road guide for exact travel details between the two sites.

Jalgaon

Jalgaon, roughly 60 km from Ajanta Caves, is a practical base for travellers arriving by train, given its good rail connectivity. Beyond serving as a transit point, Jalgaon itself offers a few local markets and is known regionally for banana cultivation, making it a modest but genuinely useful stop among the places near Ajanta Caves for those approaching from the north.

Aurangabad City Attractions

For visitors basing themselves in Aurangabad (roughly 100 km from Ajanta) rather than staying closer to the caves, the city itself offers Bibi Ka Maqbara, Daulatabad Fort, and Panchakki, all worth combining into a broader trip alongside your Ajanta Caves visit. See our places to visit in Aurangabad guide for the complete list of the city’s major attractions.

Planning Your Visit to Places Near Ajanta Caves

Given the spread-out nature of the places near Ajanta Caves worth visiting — some a short local stop, others requiring a dedicated side trip — it’s worth planning based on how much time you have. A single-day Ajanta visit works well as a standalone trip from Aurangabad, while travellers with two or three days available can reasonably add Ellora Caves as a separate day, and possibly Lonar Crater Lake for those with a genuine interest in natural landmarks beyond the heritage circuit.

Visitor Tips

• Treat Ajanta and Ellora as separate day trips rather than attempting both in one day, given the combined distance and time needed at each site.
• Allocate an extra day if adding Lonar Crater Lake, since it sits considerably further away than the other nearby attractions.
• Base yourself in Aurangabad for the most convenient access to the wider circuit of places near Ajanta Caves.
• Check opening days in advance — Ajanta Caves are typically closed on Mondays.

Getting There by Taxi

See our Ajanta and Ellora Caves from Aurangabad guide for a combined taxi package covering both sites, our Aurangabad taxi service page for local sightseeing packages covering the wider circuit of places near Ajanta Caves, or our Ajanta and Ellora Caves tour and Ajanta Ellora Caves tour package pages for ready-made multi-day itineraries. For exact travel-time comparisons, see our Aurangabad to Ajanta and Ellora Caves distance page.

Places Near Ajanta Caves — FAQs

1. What are the best places near Ajanta Caves to visit?

Ellora Caves, Lonar Crater Lake, Jalgaon, and Aurangabad’s city attractions like Bibi Ka Maqbara and Daulatabad Fort are among the best places to visit near Ajanta Caves, each offering a different type of experience from heritage architecture to natural landmarks.

2. How far is Ellora Caves from Ajanta Caves?

Ellora Caves sit roughly 100 km from Ajanta Caves via Aurangabad, since there’s no direct highway connecting the two sites, making them best visited as separate day trips.

3. Is Lonar Crater Lake worth visiting near Ajanta Caves?

Yes, for travellers with extra time, Lonar Crater Lake offers a genuinely unique geological landmark, though at roughly 150 km away it requires a dedicated side trip rather than a quick stop.

4. What is the nearest town to Ajanta Caves?

Fardapur is the nearest town, serving as the mandatory stop where visitors park and board the shuttle bus for the final approach to the cave entrance.

5. Can I cover all the places near Ajanta Caves in one trip?

It’s possible over two to three days, treating Ajanta and Ellora as separate day trips and adding Lonar Crater Lake as an extra day if time and interest allow, rather than attempting everything in a single rushed day.

6. Is Aurangabad a good base for visiting places near Ajanta Caves?

Yes, Aurangabad sits roughly 100 km from Ajanta and offers the best combination of hotel infrastructure, taxi services, and proximity to both Ajanta and Ellora Caves, making it the most practical base for the wider circuit.

7. What is the best way to travel between these places near Ajanta Caves?

A private taxi offers the most flexible and convenient way to cover multiple nearby attractions, particularly given the spread-out distances between sites like Ellora, Lonar, and Aurangabad’s own city attractions.

8. Which are the closest tourist places near Ajanta Caves?

The closest tourist places near Ajanta Caves are the scenic hills, viewpoint and waterfall around the gorge and the gateway town of Fardapur. Bigger attractions such as Ellora Caves, Aurangabad city and Lonar Crater Lake are 100 km or more away, so they need separate trips.