Howrah to Delhi Vande Bharat Express: Direct Train, Connections and Options

Timetable and fares last checked 12 November 2026. Confirm times and fares on IRCTC before you book.

Quick answer

Is there a direct Kolkata to Delhi Vande Bharat?

We checked every train in our data for a stop list that includes both a Kolkata terminal and a Delhi terminal. None does. The Vande Bharat Express trains that leave Kolkata go to Puri, New Jalpaiguri, Patna, Ranchi, Jamalpur, Rourkela, Gaya and, as a sleeper, Kamakhya in Assam. The Vande Bharat trains that serve Delhi go west and north to places such as Amritsar, Katra, Dehradun and Ajmer, and east as far as Varanasi and Ayodhya. The two networks do not share a single station, so even a one-change Vande Bharat trip is not possible.

The closest the two groups come is Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh. The Kolkata trains stop short at Patna and Gaya, and the Delhi trains stop short at Varanasi. A third Vande Bharat Express is needed to cover Patna–Varanasi or Gaya–Varanasi, which is why every chain below has two changes.

What about the Howrah–Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper?

In April 2025 Indian Infrastructure reported that Indian Railways was likely to roll out a Vande Bharat Sleeper on the Delhi–Howrah route, with stops listed at Asansol, Dhanbad, Gaya, Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Prayagraj and Kanpur Source: Indian Infrastructure. That report gave no start date, and we have not found an official notice from Indian Railways that confirms a launch date, train numbers or timings. Treat it as announced, not running. Reports of exact departure times for this train are estimates.

The Vande Bharat Sleeper trains in our data that do run are Howrah–Kamakhya (27575/27576) and New Delhi–Varanasi (27421/27422). Neither links Kolkata with Delhi. See the Vande Bharat Sleeper page for the full list.

Vande Bharat connections from Howrah to Delhi

All times below come from our timetable data. Each chain uses three separate tickets, so a late first train does not protect your onward booking. The long waits come from the timetable, not from any buffer we added.

Option 1: via Patna and Varanasi (22347 → 22345 → 22435)

Total: 31 h 10 min for 1,532 km. This chain works when you start from Howrah on a Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It fails on a Wednesday start (22347 does not run) and a Thursday start (22345 does not run on the Friday).

If you would rather sleep on the last leg, stay on in Varanasi and take 27421, the Varanasi–New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper, at 20:50. It reaches New Delhi at 06:10 on day 3. The Varanasi wait grows to 11 h 23 min and the whole trip to 38 h 20 min, but you spend the night in a berth (3A, 2A or 1A) instead of a hotel. The start days are the same: Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

Option 2: via Gaya and Varanasi (22303 → 22499 → 22415)

Total: 31 h 20 min for 1,438 km. Start from Howrah on a Wednesday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday. On other days one of the three trains does not run. This route is shorter in distance, but the 22499 reaches Varanasi at 22:30, after the 20:50 sleeper has already left, so you need a night near Varanasi Junction before the 06:00 departure.

Is either chain worth it?

For most people, no. Both Howrah to Delhi Vande Bharat chains take roughly 13 to 14 hours longer than a Rajdhani, need two changes and include a night off the train in Patna or Varanasi. They make sense only if you want to break the journey anyway, for example a day in Varanasi or Gaya, or if the Rajdhani is wait-listed and you are happy to travel in stages. There is no same-day Vande Bharat chain from Kolkata to Delhi, and no chain that lets you board in the evening and arrive the next morning.

Vande Bharat connections from Delhi to Howrah

Option 3: via Varanasi and Gaya (22416 → 22500 → 22304)

Total: 30 h 10 min for 1,438 km. Start from New Delhi on a Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

Option 4: via Varanasi and Patna (22436 → 22346 → 22348)

Total: 32 h 35 min for 1,531 km. Start from New Delhi on a Monday, Wednesday, Saturday or Sunday.

Vande Bharat ticket prices on the Howrah–Delhi corridor

We do not have fares for every leg, so we cannot give a single all-in price for any chain. These are the fares we hold for the legs above. They are per adult, General quota, and include the meal on Chair Car trains.

The 22347 and 22348 fares are IRCTC totals as shown on erail, checked 12 November 2026. The New Delhi–Varanasi fares are from the IRCTC fare enquiry, checked 11 November 2026. Fares for the Patna–Varanasi, Gaya–Varanasi and Howrah–Gaya legs, and for the Delhi-bound Varanasi trains, are not in our data yet, so check them on IRCTC.

As a rough guide, the two Chair Car legs we do have on Option 4 (22436 and 22348) already add up to ₹3,360 before the middle leg, and you will also pay for a night’s stay. Compare that with the Rajdhani fare on IRCTC for the same date before deciding.

The trains most people take: Howrah and Sealdah Rajdhani

Most travellers between Kolkata and Delhi use the Rajdhani Express, which runs overnight. These are not Vande Bharat trains, and they are not in our own timetable data, so the timings below come from erail and should be checked on IRCTC.

Sources: erail 12301, erail 12302, erail 12313, erail 12314.

The Howrah Rajdhani covers 1,449 km in about 17 h 15 min towards Delhi Source: erail. If you are choosing between the two types of train on other routes, our Vande Bharat vs Rajdhani guide compares seats, food, speed and fares.

Which Kolkata and Delhi stations to use

Kolkata side. Every Vande Bharat Express in our data that leaves Kolkata, including the Patna and Gaya trains used above, starts at Howrah Jn (HWH). None starts at Sealdah, Kolkata Chitpur or Shalimar. The Sealdah Rajdhani is the only train in this guide that uses Sealdah (SDAH).

Delhi side. The Varanasi Vande Bharat trains (22435, 22436, 22415, 22416) and the Varanasi Sleeper (27421, 27422) all use New Delhi (NDLS). The Ayodhya Vande Bharat uses Anand Vihar Terminal, but it does not connect with any Kolkata train in our data.

Breaking the journey: Patna, Gaya and Varanasi

If a two-day trip suits you, each change point has its own Vande Bharat page:

• Howrah–Patna Vande Bharat for 22347 and 22348, including all stops via Asansol, Jasidih and Mokameh.
• Vande Bharat trains in Bihar for the Vande Bharat services through Patna and Gaya.
• Delhi–Varanasi Vande Bharat Sleeper for 27421 and 27422.
• All Vande Bharat trains from Howrah and all Vande Bharat trains from Delhi.

Howrah to Delhi Vande Bharat FAQs

Is there a Vande Bharat train from Howrah to Delhi? No. No Vande Bharat Express, Chair Car or Sleeper, currently runs directly between any Kolkata station and any Delhi station. The fastest all-Vande-Bharat trip needs two changes and takes about 31 hours.

Is there a Kolkata to Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper? Not yet. A Delhi–Howrah Vande Bharat Sleeper was reported as likely in April 2025 Source: Indian Infrastructure, but we have found no official start date. The Vande Bharat Sleeper from Howrah runs to Kamakhya, not Delhi.

What is the quickest way from Howrah to Delhi by Vande Bharat? Take 22347 from Howrah at 15:50 to Patna, 22345 from Patna at 06:05 the next morning to Varanasi, then 22435 from Varanasi at 15:00 to New Delhi, arriving 23:00. That is 31 h 10 min in total and works on Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday starts.

What is the Vande Bharat Express Howrah to Delhi ticket price? There is no through ticket. You buy each leg separately. Howrah–Patna on 22347 costs ₹1,470 in CC and ₹2,695 in EC. We do not yet hold fares for the Patna–Varanasi leg or the Varanasi–Delhi trains in the Delhi-bound direction, so check IRCTC for those.

Which train is fastest from Kolkata to Delhi? Among the trains we checked, the Howrah Rajdhani 12301 is the fastest, at about 17 h 15 min from Howrah to New Delhi Source: erail.

Can I go from Delhi to Howrah by Vande Bharat in one day? No. The shortest Delhi to Howrah chain is 22416 at 15:00 to Varanasi, 22500 at 06:10 the next morning to Gaya, then 22304 at 15:15 to Howrah, arriving 21:10. That takes 30 h 10 min and runs on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday starts.

Does the Howrah–Patna Vande Bharat continue to Delhi? No. Train 22347 ends at Patna Jn at 22:40. To continue towards Delhi by Vande Bharat you change at Patna for Varanasi and again at Varanasi for New Delhi.