Things to do in Dawki

The short version: Boating on the Umngot so clear the boats look airborne, with Bangladesh across the water.

Dawki is the border-checkpoint town on the Umngot, and the water is the show: in the November-February window the river runs glass-clear, boatmen rowing under the old suspension bridge with Bangladesh on the far bank. In monsoon the river runs brown and boating thins out.

Best time: November to February for the clear-water window.

No entry permit for Indian nationals; foreign nationals register at checkposts.

October to May works; the monsoon is the point in Cherrapunji and Mawsynram, and the fiercest anywhere in India.