Airport Transfers in Mumbai

Mumbai's airport is two terminals that behave like two airports. Terminal 2handles all international traffic and some domestic; Terminal 1 at Santacruzhandles the rest. They are roughly four kilometres apart by road with noairside connection, so a domestic-to-international self-transfer meansleaving one building and driving to the other - the single most common way aMumbai itinerary goes wrong. The city's geography does the rest. Mumbai is a narrow peninsula, and almosteverything runs north to south along it, which means there is no such thingas crossing town - only going up and down it. The airport sits in themiddle. That makes the belt immediately around it - Andheri East, Marol,Sahar, Chandivali - the shortest transfers in the city, and it is where mostairport hotels actually are. Sahar in particular is the road the terminalsits on. South Mumbai - Fort, Colaba, Nariman Point - is the historic centre and thefar end of the peninsula. It is not far in kilometres but it is a longtransfer, because every route there is a single corridor shared with thewhole city's commuter flow. Travellers routinely book a South Mumbai hotelexpecting the airport to be nearby, then discover the journey is the longestone they will make in the city. Going the other way, Thane West and Turbheare in Navi Mumbai across the creek, and they are genuinely closer to theairport than South Mumbai is despite feeling further away on a map. Two things worth knowing. The Western Express Highway and the EasternExpress Highway are the two arteries, and which one your driver takes isdecided by your destination rather than by preference - an Andheri or Bandraaddress is Western, a Powai or Navi Mumbai address is Eastern, and crossingbetween them mid-journey is what turns a short run into a long one. AndMumbai's monsoon, roughly June to September, is a real scheduling factorrather than a footnote: heavy rain floods low-lying stretches of bothhighways and journey times stop being predictable. A pre-booked car does not fix the weather, but it does mean a driver isalready assigned and tracking your flight rather than you competing for onein a downpour at the terminal kerb.