Gujarat is India's westernmost state, a broad sweep of Arabian Sea coastline, salt desert, and temple towns on the border with Pakistan and Rajasthan. It holds four UNESCO World Heritage Sites plus the walled city of Ahmedabad, the only Asiatic lion population on earth at Gir, the white salt flats of the Rann of Kutch, and the 182-metre Statue of Unity. It is also an alcohol-prohibition state with a famously vegetarian kitchen, from the multi-course Gujarati thali to Surat's locho and Kutch's dabeli.
Gujarat is widely regarded as one of India's safest and most orderly states, with low violent-crime rates and a strong tradition of hospitality. Visitors face environmental rather than criminal risks: extreme pre-monsoon heat from April to June, monsoon flooding from June to September, Arabian Sea cyclones on the Saurashtra and Kutch coasts, and heavy road traffic. Statewide alcohol prohibition and border-area permits in Kutch are legal requirements travellers must plan around. With sensible timing, hydration, licensed transport and standard urban precautions, the great majority of visits are entirely trouble-free.
Current safety advisory
Low
The US Department of State places India at Level 2 - Exercise Increased Caution (crime, terrorism and civil unrest) and advises against travel within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border; the UK FCDO likewise advises against all travel within 10 km of that border, which runs along the northern edge of Kutch. No advisory singles out Gujarat for elevated risk, and the state's main cities carry no restriction. Advisory positions checked 20 September 2026.
Last updated: 2026-09-20
Official advisories
Guidance from national travel-advisory services.
Level 2 - Exercise Increased Caution
Advise against all travel within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border
Exercise a high degree of caution (India overall)
Essential safety tips
Practical advice that applies everywhere.
Gujarat is one of India's safer states for visitors, with low levels of violent crime; the realistic risks are heat, monsoon flooding, road traffic and opportunistic scams rather than personal attack
April to June is dangerously hot across Gujarat, with Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Kutch regularly above 43C and occasional 45C+ heatwave days; the city runs a formal Heat Action Plan, and outdoor sightseeing between 11AM and 4PM in those months should simply be avoided
The south-west monsoon (mid-June to September) brings flash flooding to Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Saurashtra; underpasses flood within minutes, rural causeways wash out, and the Gir National Park jungle trail closes entirely from 16 June to 15 October
The Saurashtra and Kutch coasts sit in the Arabian Sea cyclone track - Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall near Jakhau in Kutch in June 2023 and forced mass evacuations; check IMD warnings at mausam.imd.gov.in before coastal travel in June and again in October-November
Gujarat is a dry state: manufacture, sale, transport and consumption of alcohol are prohibited. Foreign tourists and Indian visitors from other states can apply for a legal e-permit at eps.gujarat.gov.in; buying or drinking without one is a criminal offence
The Great Rann of Kutch runs to the Pakistan border. A permit is required to enter the White Rann and Kalo Dungar area, issued at the Bhirandiyara check post on the Bhuj-Dhordo road (roughly INR 100 per person plus a vehicle charge) or online at rannpermit.gujarat.gov.in; carry a passport and visa copy as a foreign national
Road traffic is the most statistically serious hazard. National and state highways carry trucks, tractors, motorcycles and livestock at wildly different speeds, and night driving on rural Saurashtra and Kutch roads is genuinely risky - travel intercity by day, by train or GSRTC bus where possible
Drink only sealed bottled or filtered water, avoid ice of unknown origin, and eat street food from busy stalls with high turnover; stomach upsets are the most common thing that derails a Gujarat trip
Dress modestly - covered shoulders and knees - at Somnath, Dwarka, Akshardham, Palitana and Jama Masjid; phones and cameras must be deposited in free lockers at Somnath and Dwarkadhish, and Palitana's Shatrunjaya hill involves roughly 3,800 steps with no food or leather permitted
Ahmedabad's walled city, Manek Chowk at night, Law Garden market, Kalupur railway station and Navratri garba grounds in October are the crowded settings where pickpocketing and bag-snatching occur; carry a cross-body bag worn in front
Common scams to avoid
Recognise and sidestep tourist-targeted scams.
Autorickshaw meter refusal and commission detours
Drivers at Ahmedabad SVPI airport, Kalupur railway station and outside major sights refuse the meter and quote a flat fare several times the legal rate, or insist a requested hotel is 'closed' or 'full' and detour to a place that pays them commission
How to avoid: Insist on the meter (INR 25 for the first 1.25 km, then INR 20/km, with a legitimate 25 percent surcharge 11PM-6AM), or book an Uber or Ola from the app. Refuse all unrequested shop, emporium and hotel stops
Fake government handicraft emporiums
Drivers and self-appointed guides steer visitors to 'government approved' shops in Ahmedabad and Bhuj selling ordinary machine-made textiles as rare Kutchi handwork at inflated prices, with the driver taking a cut
How to avoid: Buy at the artisan co-operatives and workshops themselves - Bhujodi for weaving, Ajrakhpur for block printing, Nirona for rogan art and copper bells, Khavda for pottery - or at Gurjari, the actual Gujarat State Handicrafts outlet
Unofficial Gir safari and Rann permit sellers
Touts near Sasan Gir and on the Bhuj-Dhordo road sell 'guaranteed' lion safari permits or Rann entry passes at heavy mark-ups, sometimes for slots that do not exist; Gir permits are capped and genuinely scarce in season
How to avoid: Book Gir jungle trail and Devalia permits only at girlion.gujarat.gov.in or the Sinh Sadan forest reception centre, and obtain the Rann permit at the Bhirandiyara check post or rannpermit.gujarat.gov.in. Keep the official receipt
Illegal alcohol offers
Bootleggers and hotel staff offer to supply liquor in this dry state. Beyond the legal exposure, Gujarat has repeatedly seen deaths from methanol-tainted bootleg spirit, including the 2022 Botad district poisoning that killed dozens
How to avoid: Decline entirely. If alcohol matters, apply for the legitimate tourist or visitor e-permit at eps.gujarat.gov.in before arriving and buy only from the licensed permit shops attached to approved hotels
Train station 'helpers' and fake ticket counters
At Ahmedabad Kalupur and Vadodara Junction, men posing as officials claim a ticket is invalid, a train is cancelled, or a booking must be re-made at a nearby 'authorised' travel office that charges a large fee
How to avoid: Only use the official reservation counters inside the station, or check status in the IRCTC or NTES app. Railway staff wear identity badges; anyone who approaches first should be treated as a tout
Distraction pickpocketing in festival crowds
During Navratri garba nights in October, Uttarayan on 14 January and at Manek Chowk after dark, pairs work the crush - one jostles or spills something while the other takes a phone or wallet
How to avoid: Carry a zipped cross-body bag in front, keep the phone in a front pocket, split cash between two places, and photograph the passport and visa pages in advance
Health considerations
Staying healthy on your trip.
- Vaccinations
- No vaccinations are required for entry from most countries, though a yellow fever certificate is mandatory for arrivals from or transiting yellow fever endemic countries. Routine vaccines plus hepatitis A and typhoid are standard advice for India; hepatitis B, rabies and Japanese encephalitis are considered for longer or rural stays. Malaria and dengue both occur in Gujarat, with dengue peaking after the monsoon - antimalarial advice should come from a travel clinic before departure.
- Water
- Tap water is not safe to drink anywhere in Gujarat. Use sealed bottled water from a recognised brand, check the seal is intact, or carry a filter or UV purifier bottle. Avoid ice, raw salads washed in tap water, and cut fruit from roadside carts.
- Food
- Gujarat is overwhelmingly vegetarian and food standards in established restaurants and thali houses are high. Street food is a genuine pleasure here - eat at busy stalls with fast turnover where food is cooked to order in front of you, and be more cautious with anything fried in advance and left standing, or with dairy sweets in summer heat.
- Facilities
- Medical care is excellent in the cities and thin in the countryside. Ahmedabad has several large private hospitals with international-standard emergency departments (Zydus, Sterling, SAL, CIMS) plus Apollo Hospitals at Bhat near Gandhinagar, and the state-run Civil Hospital at Asarwa is one of Asia's largest. Vadodara, Surat and Rajkot have good private hospitals; Bhuj, Sasan Gir and rural Saurashtra do not, and serious cases are transferred to Ahmedabad. Pharmacies (chemists) are plentiful and most medicines are inexpensive and available without the prescription a home country would require.
Safety for specific travellers
Tailored advice for different groups.
Emergency contacts
Numbers to know before you go.
- Police
- 100 (police) or 112 (single national emergency number)
- Medical
- 108 (GVK EMRI free ambulance, statewide in Gujarat) or 112
- Fire
- 101 (fire and rescue) or 112
- Coast Guard
- 1554 (Indian Coast Guard maritime distress) - relevant on the Saurashtra, Kutch and south Gujarat coasts
- General Emergency
- 112 (Emergency Response Support System; works from any phone, connects to police, fire and ambulance)
- Main Hospital
- Civil Hospital Ahmedabad, D Block, Asarwa, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 380016 - phone +91 79 2268 3721
- Embassy Us
- US Consulate General Mumbai (consular district covers Gujarat): +91 22 2672 4000; US Embassy New Delhi: +91 11 2419 8000
- Embassy Uk
- British Deputy High Commission Mumbai: +91 22 6650 2222; British High Commission New Delhi: +91 11 2419 2100