You won't get a 'confirmed' ticket, and even the waiting list is full... how do you get home for Chhath?

Passengers planning to return home for Diwali and Chhath Puja 2026 are already facing a familiar problem—finding a confirmed train ticket. Even though the major festivals are still weeks away, reservation demand has surged on several popular routes connecting Delhi, Mumbai and Gujarat with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand.

On a number of heavily travelled trains, confirmed berths have become difficult to find around the festive period. Some services are showing long waiting lists, while certain classes and trains have reached a "No Room" situation, meaning even additional waiting-list bookings are no longer being accepted for those combinations of date and class.

The situation has increased the importance of festival special trains, alternative travel dates and careful advance planning for passengers hoping to reach their hometowns during one of India's busiest annual travel periods.

Delhi to Bihar and UP Trains See Heavy Demand

The Delhi-Bihar corridor is among the routes facing particularly strong demand.

According to reservation availability reported for the festive period, several major trains connecting Delhi with Bihar and eastern India are already struggling with confirmed-seat availability.

These include popular services such as the New Delhi-Rajendra Nagar Tejas Rajdhani Express, Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express, Agartala Tejas Rajdhani Express, Poorva Express, Sampoorna Kranti Express, Brahmaputra Mail, Seemanchal Express, Magadh Express, Mahananda Express, Shramjeevi Express and Farakka Express.

Availability varies by travel date and class, so passengers should not assume that every seat on every departure is unavailable. However, the overall trend shows intense demand on these routes.

Varanasi-Bound Passengers Are Also Facing a Seat Crunch

Travellers heading towards Varanasi and nearby areas of eastern Uttar Pradesh are seeing a similar situation.

Popular trains such as the Shiv Ganga Express are showing waiting lists on high-demand dates. Confirmed accommodation has also become difficult to obtain in several classes on trains including the Swatantrata Senani Express, Lichchhavi Express, Mahamana Express and Sadbhavana Express.

Demand on the Delhi-Varanasi corridor traditionally increases sharply around Diwali and Chhath as a large number of passengers return to eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Mumbai to UP and Bihar Routes Filling Rapidly

The ticket crunch is not restricted to Delhi.

Passengers travelling from Mumbai towards Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh are also finding limited availability on several major services.

For example, some classes on trains operating from Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) towards destinations including Pataliputra, Rajgir, Dibrugarh, Jaynagar, Varanasi and Gorakhpur have either long waiting lists or No Room status on high-demand dates.

Services such as the Mahanagari Express, Kamayani Express, LTT-Gorakhpur Express and Dadar-Ballia Express are also experiencing substantial festive-season demand.

Passengers travelling from Mumbai should therefore check multiple dates and classes instead of relying on a single train.

Gujarat Passengers Face Similar Problem

Rail passengers travelling from Gujarat towards UP and Bihar are also encountering heavy booking demand.

The Ahmedabad-Silchar Express, Azimabad Express and Tapti Ganga Express are among the services where seat availability has become difficult on certain dates and in particular classes. Some combinations have reportedly reached the point where even waiting-list accommodation is unavailable.

This early rush indicates just how strong demand is likely to become as Diwali and Chhath move closer.

Why Are Tickets Disappearing So Early?

Indian Railways allows passengers to reserve tickets within the applicable 60-day Advance Reservation Period, excluding the date of journey for the purpose of calculating the booking window.

Bookings for travel around Diwali 2026 began opening in early September, and passengers immediately started competing for seats on high-demand routes. Indian Railways has also advised travellers to plan early because festival-season demand can quickly exhaust regular train capacity.

This rush is especially intense on routes connecting major employment centres with Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Festival Special Trains Could Provide More Options

Passengers unable to secure seats on regular trains still have another important option: festival special services.

Railways has already announced multiple special trains for the Diwali-Chhath travel season. Recently announced services include festival specials connecting Anand Vihar Terminal with Laukaha Bazar, Yog Nagari Rishikesh with Muzaffarpur, Hazrat Nizamuddin with Dadar, and Anand Vihar Terminal with Pataliputra.

Earlier announcements also included festival services on routes such as Mumbai Central-Katihar, Varanasi-New Delhi, Ayodhya Cantt-Anand Vihar Terminal and Chandigarh-Patna Junction, among others.

Passengers who failed to get accommodation on their preferred regular train should therefore continue checking newly announced festival services.

Don't Assume a Waiting Ticket Will Definitely Confirm

Another important point is that a waiting-list ticket does not come with a guarantee of confirmation.

Whether it clears depends on multiple factors, including cancellations, route-wise seat allocation, quota availability, boarding and destination stations, and the type of waiting list.

For example, GNWL, RLWL and PQWL can have different confirmation patterns. A relatively small waiting number on one quota may sometimes have a lower chance of clearing than a larger waiting number under another quota.

Demand on routes such as Delhi-Patna and Mumbai-Varanasi can also reduce the chances of confirmation because fewer passengers may cancel their journeys during peak festival periods.

What Can Passengers Do If Regular Trains Are Full?

Travellers who have not yet booked should avoid depending on just one train or one travel date.

Check festival special trains as soon as reservations open, compare nearby boarding stations, consider travelling a day or two earlier or later, and look at different classes if the budget permits.

Tatkal can provide another opportunity closer to the journey date, but availability during Diwali and Chhath can disappear extremely quickly and should not be treated as a guaranteed backup.

Passengers can also explore legitimate connecting journeys where suitable rather than depending exclusively on a direct train. However, sufficient time should be kept between connections because a delay in the first train can affect the onward journey.

Plan Early for Diwali and Chhath Travel

The early booking trend makes one thing clear: waiting until the last moment could make train travel to UP and Bihar extremely difficult during Diwali and Chhath 2026.

Several regular trains from Delhi, Mumbai and Gujarat are already showing long waiting lists or No Room status for high-demand dates. At the same time, Railways is adding festival special services to accommodate the seasonal surge.

Passengers should keep checking official railway reservation channels because availability is dynamic. Additional special trains can be announced, passengers may cancel existing bookings, and seat availability can change by date, class and boarding station.

For families determined to travel home for the festivals, flexibility may now be just as important as booking early.