KARNATAKA TRAVEL GUIDE · UPDATED OCTOBER 2026
KSRTC Bus Guide: Bus Types, Booking, Shakti Free Travel and Key Routes
How Karnataka’s state buses are organised, which class to pick for which trip, who rides free under the Shakti scheme, and where the airport Flybus can take you. Facts are checked against several sources, and every gap is flagged.
Quick answer: which Karnataka bus should you take?
For most visitors, the choice comes down to two things: do you want air-conditioning and a reclining seat or berth (Airavat, Ambaari Utsav), or the cheapest ride that gets you there (Karnataka Sarige, Ashwamedha Classic)? Book the premium classes in advance on the official KSRTC site or app. Take the ordinary and express buses on shorter hops. If you are a woman living in Karnataka, the ordinary and express buses are free under Shakti; visitors from other states should expect to pay.
Karnataka runs a large state bus network, and for many places in this site’s guides, from the Kodagu hills to temple towns and the coast, a state bus is the cheapest way in. The trouble is the vocabulary. Rajahamsa, Ambaari, Airavat, Sarige and Pallakki are all different products, four separate corporations run them, and the free-travel scheme covers some and excludes others.
This guide sorts that out. It leans on KSRTC’s own site where it has detail, on news reports for the newer services and fares, and it says plainly where we could not confirm a figure. We do not print a route-by-route fare chart, because we found no reliable public one; the section on cost explains how to get a real number in two minutes.
Four corporations, one confusing name
People say KSRTC for every government bus in the state, but Karnataka splits the job across four corporations. The split began in 1997, when the Bengaluru city and north-western operations were carved out of KSRTC, and a north-eastern corporation followed in 2000. Which one you meet depends mostly on where you are.
| Corporation | Where it runs | What it means for a visitor |
|---|---|---|
| KSRTC (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation) | Based in Bengaluru, mainly southern Karnataka, plus interstate services to Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa and Puducherry | Your operator for Mysuru, Kodagu, the Western Ghats and most Bengaluru departures |
| BMTC (Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation) | Bengaluru city and its metropolitan region; split from KSRTC in 1997 | City buses to and from the bus stations |
| NWKRTC (North Western Karnataka) | Headquartered in Hubballi; north-western districts | Hubballi, Dharwad, Belagavi side; operates some Airavat Club Class services |
| KKRTC (Kalyana Karnataka) | Headquartered in Kalaburagi; north-eastern Karnataka, with Vijayapura district transferred to it in 2009 | Kalaburagi, Bidar, Raichur and Vijayapura routes |
KSRTC’s Wikipedia entry puts its network at 82 depots and 170 bus stations as of 2024. A July 2025 news report put the combined fleet of the state’s corporations at 26,130 buses running 23,635 scheduled services, carrying about 1.17 crore passengers a day. We quote these only to show the scale; neither is an official current figure. For the north of the state, see our guides to Vijayapura and Bidar.
KSRTC bus types compared
The table groups the classes you are likely to see, from cheapest to most comfortable. The Shakti column reflects the exclusion list published when the scheme began in 2023, plus newer classes where a source states their status.
| Class | AC? | What we could confirm | Shakti free? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karnataka Sarige | No | The standard ordinary bus; the base tier | Yes |
| Ashwamedha Classic | No | Red-and-silver buses, 3+2 non-reclining seats, introduced 5 February 2024; runs between districts | Yes, per Wikipedia |
| Rajahamsa Executive | No | Listed as a non-AC intercity class above ordinary | No, excluded |
| Non-AC Sleeper | No | Overnight berths without air-conditioning | No, excluded |
| Airavat Club Class | Yes | 2+2 AC seater on Volvo, Scania or Mercedes-Benz chassis; launched 16 May 2012; operated by KSRTC and NWKRTC | No, excluded |
| Airavat Club Class 2.0 | Yes | 15 m Volvo 9600 multi-axle; launched 30 October 2024; 25 in service by July 2025 | No (Airavat variants excluded) |
| Ambaari Utsav | Yes | AC sleeper, Volvo 9600, 2+1 berths; launched 21 February 2023; 40 buses at launch | No, excluded |
| Flybus | Yes | Premium airport service from Bengaluru's international airport; details below | No, excluded |
| EV Power Plus | Electric | KSRTC's electric service | No, excluded |
How to choose
For a daytime run under about three hours, ordinary and Ashwamedha buses are fine and cost the least. For an overnight run to the coast or another state, an Ambaari Utsav berth or an Airavat seat is worth the premium, because a night in a non-reclining 3+2 seat is a tiring way to arrive at a beach town. Wikipedia also lists Pallakki, and several defunct brands (Meghdooth, Sheethal, Vaibhav, Airavat Bliss, Superia and Diamond); you will still see them on old blogs and ticket aggregators, so do not plan around them.
Where the premium classes go
Airavat Club Class serves Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Kundapura, Hubballi and Belagavi inside the state, with interstate services to Hyderabad, Chennai, Tirupati, Goa and Mantralayam, according to Wikipedia. In July 2025 KSRTC added five Club Class 2.0 buses: two on Mangaluru to Bengaluru, two on Mysuru to Mantralaya and one on Bengaluru to Tirupati. Our Mangaluru guide and airports guide show how the coast connects once you arrive.
Shakti: who travels free, and who does not
Shakti is the state’s free-bus scheme for women, launched on 11 June 2023. By 14 July 2025 officials said it had passed 500 crore free rides. It matters for travellers in two ways: it explains why ordinary buses are crowded, and it is easy to assume it applies to you when it may not.
| Question | What the 2023 guidelines said | Our reading |
|---|---|---|
| Who is eligible? | Women domiciled in Karnataka; transgender women are reported as included | Visitors from other states are not covered, so carry money |
| Which buses? | City, ordinary and express buses of KSRTC, BMTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC | Premium classes are excluded (see the table above) |
| What ID? | Government photo ID and address proof at first, with zero-fare tickets issued by the conductor; a Shakti smart card from the Seva Sindhu portal after that | Rules may have been updated since 2023; carry ID anyway |
| Seats? | Half the seats on KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC ordinary and express buses reserved for men; luxury, AC, interstate and all BMTC buses exempt | Expect full buses at peak hours |
| Interstate? | Free travel only on services within Karnataka; a bus bound for another state is not free even for the Karnataka stretch | A news report of a 20 km allowance near border states exists, but we could not open the article, so we do not rely on it |
The sources are news reports from June 2023, when the scheme started, plus a July 2025 update that mentions no rule changes. We found no official, current rulebook, so treat this as a summary and ask the conductor if you are unsure. If you are travelling with a woman who lives in Karnataka, she can save money on ordinary buses on routes such as Bengaluru to Mysuru, but her free ride does not extend to the rest of your group, who pay full fare.
Bengaluru's bus stations: which one for which trip
Most visitors start in Bengaluru, and the first mistake is going to the wrong station. Two matter.
Kempegowda Bus Station, also called Majestic. It sits opposite the KSR Bengaluru railway station and handles both BMTC city buses and intercity buses from KSRTC and other corporations, including services to Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Because it is across the road from the railway station, it is the natural place to switch between train and bus; our guide to scenic train journeys covers the rail side. A 2025 news report mentioned plans to redevelop Majestic on a public-private model, so the layout may change.
Mysuru Road Bus Station, also called Satellite. According to Wikipedia, it has nine platforms and is where services to Mysuru, Madikeri, Virajpet, Kollegal, Chamarajanagar, Ramanagara and Male Mahadeshwara Hills depart, plus buses to Kozhikode, Kalpetta and Kasaragod. All Kerala RTC and Puducherry services start here, and Tamil Nadu normal-fare buses to Ooty, Coimbatore, Chennai and other towns run from here too. For a Coorg trip this is the station to head for, which matters for the 3-day Coorg itinerary.
Station lists change, and Wikipedia is not an official timetable. Before you leave, check the departure station on the ticket you booked and give yourself time for the cross-city ride.
Flybus: airport buses beyond Bengaluru
Flybus is KSRTC’s premium AC service from Kempegowda International Airport. It began in 2013 with a Mysuru route and has since grown into a way to reach several regional towns without going into the city first. If you land late and want to go straight to Coorg or Mysuru, it is worth knowing about. The airport itself is covered in our airports guide.
| Route | Details reported | Fare |
|---|---|---|
| Airport to Mysuru and Madikeri | Listed among Flybus destinations in a November 2025 report; Mysuru has multiple routes | Not stated in our sources |
| Airport to Davanagere | Volvo multi-axle; via Tumakuru and Chitradurga bypasses; leaves the airport at 12:45 am and 10:00 am; leaves Davanagere at 8:00 am and 5:00 pm | Tumakuru ₹400, Chitradurga ₹980, Davanagere ₹1,250 |
| Airport to Kozhikode | Started 15 August 2026; leaves Terminal 1 at 10:45 pm, reaches Kozhikode by 7:15 am; the return leaves Kozhikode at 7:30 pm and reaches the airport at 4:15 am; stops at Nayandahalli Metro, Mysuru, Gonikoppa, Kutta, Mananthavady, Kalpetta and Thamarassery | ₹1,550 a seat, 48-seat Volvo AC |
One caution: the November 2025 report says KSRTC runs 13 Flybus routes but then lists Mysuru 9, Madikeri 2, Davanagere 2 and Kundapura 2, which adds to 15. The counts do not agree, so check the current list in the KSRTC app rather than relying on any number. A proposal to bring the Kozhikode bus into the airport before 2:30 am for international passengers was described as unconfirmed. Gonikoppa and Kutta, on the Kozhikode run, are in Kodagu, so a southern Coorg arrival by night bus is possible.
What a ticket costs, and how to find your fare
We could not find a trustworthy public fare table, so we do not print one. KSRTC’s booking page shows sample fares from Bengaluru, but the page gives no currency, class or date, and it still carries 2021 press releases, so we treat it as an illustration and not a price list. What we can verify is how fares move.
| What changed | Detail | Source type |
|---|---|---|
| Interstate fares, January 2025 | Karnataka RTC raised interstate fares by 15%, based on distance within Karnataka; Kerala RTC raised charges by ₹100 to ₹120 on services from Bengaluru and Mysuru | News report |
| BMTC city fares, January 2025 | Minimum fare rose from ₹5 to ₹6 and the second stage from ₹10 to ₹12 | News report |
| Dasara surcharge, 2025 | ₹20 and ₹30 added on Bengaluru to Mysuru express, non-stop and premier services between 26 September and 8 October 2025 | News report |
The Dasara line is the useful lesson: festival periods can add a surcharge on busy corridors, so book early. If you are heading to Mysuru for the festival, read our Mysuru Dasara guide; the Mysore Palace guide covers the city once you are there.
Get a real fare in two minutes
- Open the KSRTC site or app and search your exact route and date.
- Compare an ordinary bus, a Rajahamsa or Airavat and, for overnight, an Ambaari Utsav berth.
- Check the boarding point, not just the price. Majestic and Mysuru Road are in different parts of the city.
- Add a margin for festivals, long weekends and school holidays. Our long weekends in 2027 list shows the crunch dates.
How to book a KSRTC ticket
KSRTC’s own site, ksrtc.in, handles one-way and round-trip bookings, and the page lists Android and iOS apps. The same page lists a WhatsApp booking number, 6364940880, and a helpline, 080-26252625. Because the page also carries old 2021 notices, confirm both numbers on the live site before you rely on them.
Steps
- Search origin, destination and date on the official site or app.
- Choose a class and a seat or berth. Premium AC services are the ones worth booking ahead.
- Note the boarding station and reporting time on the e-ticket.
- Carry a government photo ID. Women using Shakti need it at the start of the journey.
What we could not confirm
We could not find the advance-booking window or cancellation and refund terms in any source we could open. These differ by service and change, so read them on the booking screen before paying. Third-party sites also list KSRTC buses, but the fare and the cancellation terms on those can differ from the official channel.
Planning by bus: mistakes to avoid and a checklist
Mistakes that cost time
- Going to the wrong Bengaluru station. Per Wikipedia, Coorg-bound buses leave from Mysuru Road, not Majestic; confirm on your ticket.
- Assuming Shakti applies to everyone. It is for Karnataka-domiciled women on non-premium buses within the state.
- Booking a late-night arrival with no onward plan. Check how you will get from the bus station to your stay before you book.
- Using old class names. Meghdooth, Sheethal and Airavat Bliss are defunct brands.
- Trusting a single aggregator listing. Cross-check with the official site.
Checklist
- Photo ID, e-ticket and a phone with the KSRTC app.
- Small cash for city buses and autos at the other end.
- A light jacket for AC coaches.
- A plan for the last leg: many hill towns need a taxi or jeep after the bus.
For trips that combine buses with other modes, see weekend getaways from Bangalore, the 5-day Karnataka itinerary and best time to visit Karnataka.
KSRTC buses: frequently asked questions
What is the difference between KSRTC and BMTC?
BMTC runs buses inside Bengaluru and its metropolitan region and was split from KSRTC in 1997. KSRTC runs intercity and interstate services, mainly in southern Karnataka. NWKRTC and KKRTC cover the north-west and north-east.
Is KSRTC travel free for women?
Only for women domiciled in Karnataka, on city, ordinary and express buses within the state, under the Shakti scheme that began on 11 June 2023. Premium classes such as Airavat, Ambaari, Rajahamsa and Flybus are excluded, and interstate buses are not free.
Can tourists from other states use the Shakti scheme?
The 2023 reports say it is meant for women domiciled in Karnataka, so visitors from other states should expect to pay. Confirm with the conductor, as rules can change.
Which bus is best for an overnight journey?
An AC sleeper such as Ambaari Utsav (2+1 berths on a Volvo 9600) or an Airavat Club Class seat is the comfortable choice. Non-AC sleepers and ordinary buses cost less but are tiring on long routes.
Which Bengaluru bus station do I need for Mysuru and Coorg?
Per Wikipedia, Mysuru Road (Satellite) Bus Station lists services to Mysuru, Madikeri and Virajpet, while Majestic is the main hub for other intercity routes. Check the boarding point on your ticket.
Can I take a bus from Bengaluru airport to Mysuru or Coorg?
Yes. KSRTC’s Flybus lists Mysuru and Madikeri among its destinations, and the Kozhikode Flybus stops at Mysuru, Gonikoppa and Kutta. Fares and timings change, so check the app.
How do I book a KSRTC ticket online?
Use ksrtc.in or the KSRTC apps for Android and iOS. The site also lists a WhatsApp booking number and a helpline; confirm both on the live site.
Do bus fares rise during festivals?
They can. For Dasara 2025, KSRTC added ₹20 and ₹30 on Bengaluru to Mysuru express, non-stop and premier services from 26 September to 8 October. Book early for peak dates.
Keep exploring Karnataka
Once you know how the buses work, pick a destination: browse the best places to visit in Karnataka, the hill stations, or how to reach Hampi from Bangalore.
Fares, timings, rules and station lists are drawn from news reports and Wikipedia as of October 2026, change often and may be out of date. Confirm on the official KSRTC site or app before you travel.