Shillong

Shillong, Meghalaya's capital, sits at over 1,500 metres in the East Khasi Hills, its pine-covered slopes, colonial-era architecture and lively music scene having earned it the nickname 'Scotland of the East' from British administrators. The city's distinct Khasi matrilineal culture, in which property and family name pass through the mother's line, shapes much of daily life here in ways quite different from most of India.

Shillong's reputation as one of Northeast India's musical hubs, with a strong local rock and gospel scene, adds a further layer of character beyond its scenic hill-town setting, and the city functions as the natural base for exploring the wider Khasi and Jaintia hills region, including Cherrapunji and the living root bridges further south.

Developed by the British as the capital of undivided Assam in the late 19th century before becoming Meghalaya's capital upon the state's creation in 1972, Shillong's colonial-era planning and architecture still shape much of the city's older core.

Shillong Airport has limited connections; Guwahati's airport is about 3 hours away by road.