Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - A month in India

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A month in India

My brother and I are leaving for India at the end of December. We will be arriving in Bombai and are trying to plan a fun/adventurous trip. Sites, monasteries are fine but we're also looking for adrenaline rush activities. Any suggestions?

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Dear American in India: I highly recommend Ranthambore National Park, about a 3 hour drive south of Jaipur. It is one of the few remaining places where you can see wild tigers. Even if you don't see tigers, there is so much other wildlife to be seen that it is incredible! (This is the park which President Clinton went to in 1999 or so.) I could not find a specific website for the park, but if you type in "Ranthambore" in your browser, sevearl sites on wildlife parks generally in India will show up which should provide more information. To get there, you could easily hire a car and driver in Jaipur to take you down to the park. You could probably arrange with the same driver for him to come back in a few days and drive you back to Jaipur; or your hotel could arrange for a local driver. You can drive from Agra, but I would NOT recommend it. I found out the hard way that it takes 6 hours on a dirt road. The road from Jaipur is a good paved surface the whole way. There are basically two viewing times a day, morning and afternoon. You can go both times every day, and you will see different wildlife at different times. As you are going in December, I would bring warm clothes, including a hat, gloves and heavy coat. The morning game-viewing rides start just before daylight (sunrise is the best viewing time) and it is pretty cold riding out to the park. During the afternoon rides the temperature will be much better, in the high 60s low 70s, perfect for viewing. I was there in January 2000 and it was sunny every day, cool in the morning and evenings. Great weather! Please see the continuation of this message below for information on hotels...

To continue on Ranthambore and India generally... The best hotel I know of in the area is the Sawai Madhopur Lodge. It is run by the Taj group, which operate many nice hotels in India. It is the former hunting lodge of the Maharaja of Jaipur, built in the late 1920's and very art deco but also with Anglo-Indian charm (chintz, big verandah). There are several types of accommodations. There is a block of single story hotel rooms at the back. I thought this were a bit old and unimaginative. There are at least two rooms in the lodge itself, basically suites with huge bathrooms and the original art deco fittings. They also have balconies. They might be nice for a family. However, we opted to stay in tents (after viewing all available room types) and loved it. They are built on a concrete platform and have their own bathrooms attached, so the only tent part are your walls and roof. They have heaters. They are basic, but very comfortable. I believe the tents are only for the winter months. I think they are cheaper than the regular rooms, but I think they are the best choice. (The suites in the main lodge are a very close second, and you may prefer them.) Check the website for the Taj Group of Hotels at Tajgroup.com. The lodge is small and everyone is there to see wildlife, so it has a very friendly atmosphere. The hotel will arrange for jeeps and drivers for the rides. There is one sitting for lunch and dinner. Dinner is often outdoors on the patio with charcoal braziers and fires. Very charming. After the morning ride, you go back to the hotel and can have a big breakfast or tea on the verandah overlooking the cricket/lawn bowling pitch. Very pukka! One word on the food: breakfast and lunch will have western options, but dinner is basically always Indian food. I love Indian food, and hopefully you do too (or don't go to India), but some people get tired of it. I don't know if the staff would make special arrangements for you. If you think this will be an issue, you might want to check with the hotel. As for other things to do in India, after the obvious Agra/Taj (and Fatephur Sikri) I think Jaipur is a great place. You can ride elephants at the Amber Fort, and take trips into the surrounding desert. Udaipur would be a good choice, as it has a big lake and the town is small and walkable. Varanasi is extremely interesting and again small and walkable. Although there is a lot to see in Delhi, I would not stay too long, as the smog and pollution is bad. One word on traveling in December in Delhi and surrounding areas: due to the colder temperatures in winter, there is often a dense fog in the morning. This usually causes delays at the airports, especially in Delhi, Agra and Varanisi. Agra also has a bit of an evening fog problem. I would take trains when ever possible (Delhi to Agra is very easy), or take late afternoon flights when the fog has had a chance to clear. Keep this in mind when seeing the Taj, it may be foggy, but it will add to the charm. Have a great trip!

Thank you so much Nancy for your advice. However, I am having some second thoughts on my trip now that my brother has backed out. I just don't know if I can handle a month of travel in a mysterious land without a general sense of purpose nor a travel companion. I plan on giving it a few more days of thought before deciding. Is it easy to meet other Westerners to travel and have fun with? I am 24 so a lot of my diversions aren't quite spiritual, I worry about how I will handle the transition from recreational to more spiritual, from extroverted to introverted (Might as well be honest: basically I go out to bars, watch a lot of TV and rely on my friends a lot here in the US). Any advice? I am fluent in Italian/French/Spanish is there any hub to meet Western travelers? Taillefer

You bring up a tough issue. Traveling in India by yourself is perfectly safe, I jut think that a month will be wearing. I have only done a few solo trips, like Mumbai, Udaipur and Delhi either as part of a business trip or at the beginning or end of trips with friends who couldn't say on. Short-term trips by yourself are fine, but on longer trips it is so nice to have someone with you to help figure out train schedules, itineraries, etc. Plus a lot of the joy of traveling (to me anyway) is experiencing it with someone else. I think the Taj Mahal by oneself would be a very lonely and unfulfilling experience. Another question to consider is how much traveling you had done on your own, and whether you have ever traveled in Asia before. If you haven't traveled on your own before, and -- more importantly -- have never been to Asia, then I would not recommend that you do this trip by yourself. India is challenging travel, like China and Africa, and I don't think you would enjoy a solo trip as first-time experience of Asian travel. Try to talk your brother back into it. You are so lucky to have a month there, and at a great time of year for northern India which is so hot most of the year. Mention the beaches of Goa and Kerala in South India. Mention the girls he might meet on the beaches... Download pictures of palm-fringed beaches, tigers and Rajasthani forts from the web.... Message continued below...

Alternatively, get the Lonely Planet book on India and get on their website. Lonely Planet travelers tend to be about your age and are experienced travelers. If you stay where they stay, you will inevitably hook up with a group. I think the poplar places to meet fellow travelers would be Goa and Kerala, more warm weather than Delhi and less expensive. I don't know if they are your crowd; some of them have been traveling for literally years and have great experiences, some are just basically bums trying to live as long as they can without working. Finally (and if I were you mother, my choice) you might also consider joining an organized group tour. Check out the web and you should fine a myriad of choices, also do a search on this Fodors site and you should see recommendations for tours. My only caveat is that many of the tours, like Cox and Kings or Palace on Wheels will most likely be older people. However, if you have never traveled in Asia, you might enjoy doing a group for 2 weeks and then once you have your feet wet, so to speak, staying on to see other places. (Not sure this would be allowed because of the charter air fares, however, I think group tours in India at this point are probably begging for participants so if you are interested, try to argue you way into it. Maybe you can offer to stay long enough to take the next charter flight out with the next group. You might also just take the "land only" price, and pay for airfare yourself, which you may already have purchased at this point given your departure date. I am a lawyer, can you tell?!) Ranthambore, which started all this, is actually a good place to do on your own, so maybe you could do a tour that does not include this, and then do it yourself at the end. If you stay at the Sawai hotel, there is a definite camaraderie as everyone is there to see wildlife and you can easily join people going out in the jeeps. There is really nothing else to do there but see wildlife, so you won't be trying to see other sites and work on transport, guides, etc on your own. Varansi (also known as Bernares) is also doable by yourself, as it is small and you would want an individual guide anyway so you don't need to do this on a tour. (I have a guide I used in 2000 and could provide his e-mail address.) Thus, if you could find a tour to do Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and maybe Udaipur or Jaislemer, that might be a good choice. If you are interested in beaches in Goa and Kerala, this is certainly something you can do on your own. I know of a aryuvedic health spa in Kerala that is recommend by friends, maybe this would be a good way to end the trip. Let me know if you want details (Is your brother jealous yet?!) Hope this is helpful. Let me know what you decide.