Destination Guide · Meghalaya

Nongriat Travel Guide: The Double-Decker Living Root Bridge Trek

By Beauty of Bharat · Published 24 October 2026 · Destination in Meghalaya, Northeast India · Part of the Meghalaya travel guide

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There is no road to Nongriat, and that is the point. From Tyrna village above Sohra, some 3,500 steps plunge down through banana groves and butterfly forest to a valley where the Khasi and Jaintia people have been growing bridges for centuries: guiding the aerial roots of rubber fig trees through hollowed betel-nut trunks until the roots thicken into living walkways over the streams.

The double-decker at Nongriat — two root bridges stacked one above the other, each still growing stronger — is the masterpiece, and the single-decker bridges, blue natural pools and the Rainbow Falls beyond reward those who stay the night in the village's simple guesthouses. The climb back up is the entry fee and everyone pays it gladly: this is one of India's great walks, to a bridge that is alive.

Highlights: Best Things to Do in Nongriat

The Double-Decker Root Bridge (Umshiang)

The two-storey living bridge itself — cross it, photograph it, and marvel that it is still growing.

The 3,500-step descent from Tyrna

The stairway is half the experience — forest, villages, hanging bridges and valley views all the way down.

Rainbow Falls

An hour beyond Nongriat, a powerful fall with a famous rainbow in its spray and a deep blue swimming pool.

Natural pools of Nongriat

The clear rock pools near the village — the swim your legs have earned.

Village stay

Sleep in Nongriat's homestays: rice, dal, and the sound of the river — and a head start on the climb out at dawn.

Best Time to Visit Nongriat

October to April for firm steps and swimmable pools; the monsoon makes the bridges and falls spectacular but the stairs treacherous.

That window is when Nongriat shows its best side. It also matches the wider season for Meghalaya — the Meghalaya guide sets out the state's full calendar, festivals included, so you can time Nongriat alongside Shillong and Cherrapunji/Sohra on one trip.

What Makes Nongriat Different

There is no road to Nongriat, and that single fact is the point of the place. From Tyrna village above Sohra, some 3,500 steps plunge down through banana groves and butterfly forest to a valley where the Khasi and Jaintia people have been growing bridges for centuries, guiding the aerial roots of rubber fig trees through hollowed betel-nut trunks until the roots thicken into living walkways over the streams. The journey is therefore not a transfer to a sight but half the experience itself, with forest, villages, hanging bridges, and valley views unfolding all the way down.

The double-decker bridge at Nongriat is the masterpiece of that living engineering: two root bridges stacked one above the other, each still growing stronger with every season, to be crossed, photographed, and marvelled at as a structure that is alive. Around it, the valley offers more than a single crossing, with single-decker bridges, clear rock pools near the village where a swim rewards tired legs, and Rainbow Falls an hour beyond, a powerful fall with a famous rainbow in its spray and a deep blue swimming pool below it.

Nongriat also differs in how it asks to be visited. Sleeping in the village's homestays, with rice, dal, and the sound of the river, gives a head start on the climb out at dawn and turns the visit into a stay rather than a day trip, while the seasons sharpen the choice: firm steps and swimmable pools from October to April, against a monsoon that makes the bridges and falls spectacular but the stairs treacherous. The climb back up is the entry fee, as the guide puts it, and everyone pays it gladly, which is why the valley feels earned rather than merely seen.

A signature Nongriat visit begins with the long descent from Tyrna, taking the stairway slowly through forest, villages, hanging bridges, and valley views until the valley floor opens. The double-decker root bridge itself comes first on arrival, crossed and studied as a living structure, followed by the clear natural pools near the village for the swim tired legs have earned. With a night in a village homestay, the next stretch reaches Rainbow Falls an hour beyond, with its rainbow spray and deep blue pool, before the dawn climb back out of the valley closes the stay.

To place the valley in Meghalaya, climb back toward Cherrapunji (Sohra), the rain town the Nongriat guide names as the gateway above the steps, whose cliffs and falls frame the valley from the plateau, and Shillong, the hill capital that anchors a longer state trip. The Mawphlang Sacred Forest offbeat guide profiles a grove protected by Khasi custom that extends the valley's living-tradition theme, while the jadoh guide introduces the Khasi rice-and-meat dish served in the kitchens of the hills above the valley.

How to Reach Nongriat

The trek starts at Tyrna village, about 30–40 minutes by road below Sohra (Cherrapunji), itself two hours from Shillong; guides and porters are available at the trailhead.

Most travellers route into Meghalaya through Shillong or the nearest transport hub and continue by road; local taxis and shared transport cover the last stretch in season. Build in buffer time for hill and island routes, and confirm festival and permit rules for Meghalaya before you set out.

Get Directions — Google Maps

A Taste of Meghalaya

No stop in Meghalaya is complete at the table. The state's kitchen is best met through Jadoh, Dohneiihong and Tungrymbai — look for them in Nongriat's own markets and eateries, where the cooking is at its most local. Each dish has a full page in the Food Atlas: Jadoh · Dohneiihong · Tungrymbai · Pukhlein.

More Destinations in Meghalaya

Nongriat is one of 5 destinations in the Meghalaya atlas. The others pair with it naturally — each has its own full guide page.

Shillong

hill city and cultural gateway.

Cherrapunji/Sohra

waterfalls and caves.

Mawlynnong

village and nature tourism.

Dawki

river and border landscape.

Offbeat Meghalaya: Beyond Nongriat

When the headline sights are done, Meghalaya keeps a quieter register — Mawphlang Sacred Forest · Laitlum Canyon · Mawsynram · Nongkhnum Island are the state's lesser-known corners, profiled in the Meghalaya guide. Expect fewer facilities and more of the state as its own people know it.

Frequently Asked Questions