Moving in Lucknow, from Gomti Nagar's wide roads to the old city's galis

Two very different moving days in one city

Anyone who has lived in Lucknow for a while will tell you the city has two personalities. One is Gomti Nagar, Gomti Nagar Extension and newer townships like Sushant Golf City and Vrindavan Yojana, with planned roads, apartment societies and room for a truck. The other is old Lucknow around Chowk, Nakhas, Aminabad and Kaiserbagh, where houses share walls, lanes turn without warning and a lot of the furniture is older than the people using it.

The distance between the two isn't much. What happens on moving day is very different. A family shifting from an old family house near Chowk to a flat in Gomti Nagar Extension is really doing two separate jobs, one at each end, and the plan has to cover both of them.

Moving into Gomti Nagar and the newer townships

Gomti Nagar is older than newcomers expect. Its khands, such as Vibhuti Khand, Vineet Khand and Viram Khand, have plenty of independent houses and builder floors, and the main issues there are cars parked along internal roads and the odd narrow stair up to a first-floor portion. Vibhuti Khand is also full of offices, so weekday traffic builds up there by mid-morning.

Gomti Nagar Extension, Sushant Golf City and Vrindavan Yojana are mostly gated societies and townships. The roads are easy, but the rules are firm. Expect to need:

• Written permission from the maintenance office to move in or out
• A service lift slot, usually during daytime only
• The vehicle number and crew names at the main gate
• Covers on lift walls and lobby floors, which some societies check before signing off

Newer towers sometimes hand over flats before every lift is running. If you're taking possession of a new flat, ask whether the service lift works before you fix a date. Carrying a sofa up nine floors can be done, but it's slow and nobody enjoys it.

What changes in old Lucknow?

In the old city, the house is usually the harder part. Older homes around Chowk, Kaiserbagh and Lalbagh often have a raised wooden threshold at the main door, a courtyard in the middle and a steep stair to the upper rooms. The furniture is heavy and solid, with sheesham beds, takhts, glass-fronted showcases and big brass and copper utensils that have been in the family for generations. A few things we plan for on these jobs:

• Old showcases are measured against the doors, and their glass panels come out and travel separately in the Perfect Box
• Brass and copper vessels are wrapped one at a time, because they dent more easily than people think
• When a joint family is splitting up, each carton is labelled with whose it is and which address it's going to
• Someone from the family stays at the loading point while goods come out through the gali

The calendar matters more here too. During Muharram processions, and around Eid and Diwali, roads in the old city get crowded or diverted, so check the dates before you choose yours. Early mornings, before the shops lift their shutters, are the quietest time to load.

When old furniture meets a new flat

This is the bit families don't think about until unloading. A double bed and a tall almirah that sat comfortably in a high-ceilinged room in Aishbagh may not get through the door of a flat in Gomti Nagar Extension, or may leave no room to walk around. Before moving day, measure the rooms and doors in the new flat and compare them with your biggest pieces.

If something won't fit, there are options. Pieces that come apart can be put together again inside the room. Things you're not ready to give up can go into storage while you decide. And be honest about what you'll really use, because paying to move a takht nobody sits on doesn't make much sense. Tell your move manager the size of the new building's lift as well. A tall almirah that can't stand upright in the lift goes up by the stairs.

Coming to Lucknow from another city

People arriving on transfer usually know the office address and not much else. If the job is in Vibhuti Khand or along Faizabad Road, living in Indira Nagar, Gomti Nagar or towards Chinhat keeps the daily drive shorter. For offices near Hazratganj, Mahanagar, Nirala Nagar and Aliganj are within easier reach. A good rental often turns up only after you've spent a week or two in the city, so it's common to hold goods in storage while you look.

If your goods are coming from Delhi, a drive of roughly 490 km, plan on them arriving 2–3 days after loading, and Noida, around 480 km away, is much the same. From Varanasi, about 290 km, it's usually 1–2 days, while Mumbai at about 1440 km needs 5–7 days. The Lucknow packers and movers page has our other routes and services, and if you're packing up in the capital, the Delhi moving page covers that end.

One more tip for newcomers. Ask your landlord or society which days unloading is allowed before you book train tickets, so you aren't sitting in an empty flat waiting for a permitted slot.

Your first days in the new neighbourhood

Once the truck has gone, a few Lucknow jobs are worth doing early. In an independent house or builder floor in Aliganj, Indira Nagar or Mahanagar, check the overhead tank and the motor before you unpack the kitchen, because a dry tap on day one slows everything down. Many of these homes also rely on an inverter during power cuts, so get an electrician to reconnect yours on the day it's unloaded.

In the townships, the jobs are different. Register your household help and driver with the society office so they're let in at the gate, collect access cards and parking stickers, and ask how the power backup works in your tower. If you've moved from the old city, don't be surprised if delivery riders and repair people take a while to find you at first. Share a landmark along with the tower and flat number.