Meghalaya Complete Guide 2026: Shillong, Cherrapunji, Mawsynram, Mawlynnong and the Living Root Bridges
Browse more guides: India travel | Asia destinations TL;DR I spent fourteen days in Meghalaya from Shillong to the Garo Hills, and the state delivered. Cherrapunji and Mawsynram still log around 11,873mm of rainfall a year, Mawlynnong remains the cleanest village in Asia, and the Khasi living root bridges at Nongriat and Riwai are unlike anything else on the planet. This guide covers costs, transit, festivals, food, etiquette, and three tested itineraries for first-time visitors in 2026. Why Visit Meghalaya in 2026 Meghalaya sits high on my Northeast India shortlist for one simple reason: nowhere else combines the wettest place on Earth with one of the few surviving matrilineal societies in Asia and a 200-year tradition of growing bridges out of fig roots. Cherrapunji, locally called Sohra, and neighbouring Mawsynram share the wettest-place title at roughly 11,873mm of annual rainfall, and the Jingkieng Jri living root bridges entered the UNESCO Tentative List in 2022. Mawlynnong...