I've never been to India and I'm planning a trip to India for next year. I bought a bookguide and I have been doing some reading. I'm not planning to visit the whole country because I know that India is huget and there seems to be a lot to see. So far, these are the places that interest me:

Delhi, Agra (Taj Mahal), River Ganges, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Goa, Kochi (Cochin), and Bijapur.

Can all of these places be visited in one trip? If so, how many days do think that I should stay in India? How can I travel from place to place? Are trains in India reliable to do such a trip? Am I expecting to see too much in one trip?

Thanks for your opinions!

By the way, sorry for the spelling/grammar mistakes. English is not my first language.

of course you can do them all...but it will take some time if you want to see them on more than a drive by basis...

for instance i will have my first indian trip later this year...i am spending 11 days and will visit only delhi, agra and jaipur...we will be driven from place to place by a private driver whom i hired through a delhi agency....

i suggest that you contact one of the delhi agencies often spoken about on this board, like compass tours, castle and king, and others....do a fodors search for them...

trains are one way to travel and many find them excellent...distance are significant and driving is slow so many prefer to fly as flights are very cheap....

Agreed with RHKKMK

Do that Northern Triangle!
Delhi/Agra/Jaipur and throw in Varanasi for the Ganges. 14 - 21 days is good.

I hope, when you say "River Ganges", that you mean Varanasi.... this is certainly one of the great sights of the world, and certainly one to add to your itinerary. Also, since you are around Jodhpur, I would have to recommend that you add one more destination, and that is Jaisalmer. This is like something out of the Arabian Nights, a medieval city in the desert, reached by train (the airport has been taken over by the military) in a half-day (or overnight) from Jodhpur. You can do a camel safari from there into the deep desert.... an experience never to be forgotten.

In fact, so enthusiastic would I be over these two destinations, that I would say that, if your time is limited, you could even consider leaving out Goa or Cochin (both a LONG way from Delhi and Rajasthan) to fit them in.

You need to plan carefully regarding the weather. We visited India in October/November, and we found that the weather in the north was fantastic (we even managed to get into Leh in early November before the snow started)..... but it was still a bit rainy in Goa and Cochin, so we left them till (almost)last.

If you gave yourself 18 days, you could do the Rajastahan destinations, plus Delhi, Varanasi, and Agra. To add Goa and Cochin, a total of 25 to 28 would be preferable; you could push things a little faster, but I guess this depends on the time of year, as you may find that on VERY hot days you are quite "spent" by lunch time and need to start again in the late afternoon.

The trains in India are quite wonderful.... they are fast, frequent, comfortable (if you choose your "class" well... we liked 3AC best, side upper and side lower on overnight trips)and cheap. You can zip down from Delhi to Agra in three hours (less on the super-expresses), or Jodhpur to Jaisalmer in six. Only Udaipur is a bit of a pain to get to (and from), as (this was true eighteen months ago, anyway) it is on a narrow-gauge railway line, so the express trains between the capitals don't go through there. However, there are trains to Udaipur from Jaipur or Ahmedabad. And, of course, there's always the bus system. Most Indians travel by bus, not train, so wherever you are, the chances are there will be a bus to whatever destination tickles your fancy waiting at the bus station. Lots of hotels, also, around train and bus stations (not always the best hotels in town, however!), so you won't be stuck for accommodation.

Really, the best advice I could give you is to do TWO trips to India. On one trip, base yourself in Delhi and do the northern areas by train and bus; next time base yourself in Mumbai and do the southern areas. However, having said that, I must admit that on my one and only trip to India, I couldn't bear to follow my own advice -- I just wanted to see EVERYTHING, which is how you are feeling right now, I expect! So we used -- in addition to the trains and buses -- a Jet Airways pass, which gave us 15 days to travel between cities (I think we chose Leh, Varanasi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Cochin, and Goa). This turned out to be terrifically cheap... less than $100 per journey .... and it meant we could get from one part of the sub-continent to another in a couple of hours (we also travelled from Mumbai to Delhi on Air Deccan; their advance-purchase flights were actually cheaper than a train ticket!) Now, I certainly don't recommend that you spend more time on planes than you have to -- the planes themselves are fine, but the check-in procedures and the travelling to and from airports is very time-consuming and not terribly pleasant -- but if you are determined to fit five weeks' holiday into three weeks, then this just might help you to do it without breaking the bank. But you will see more of the country on the ground, travelling alongside the "ordinary" Indian family.

What else can I tell you? Cut Agra back to as little time as you can. It's the least-pleasant city we visited in India, with the most aggressive touts. There is really only one indispensible sight to see there, anyway (even though the Fort is nice), and after two hours looking at the Taj, you will use your time best by moving on to the next stop. You can do the Taj on a day trip from Delhi, but that's probably not the best way to do it, as about a million other people will have the same idea, and you will spend a lot of time standing in line or trying to line up a shot of the building that doesn't have 487563285 tourists blocking the view. One of the best decisions we made was to travel there from Delhi (Nizamuddin Station) by the train that leaves at around 9 p.m.; it arrived in Agra just after midnight, and we got an autorickshaw straight to the Hotel Sheela, which we chose because it is only fifty metres from the ticket booth at the entrance to the Taj. By 12:45 we were in bed, and five hours later we left our hotel room (before breakfast), strolled up to the ticket office, bought our tickets at a time when less than a dozen people had the same idea, and by 6:05, just as the sun was coming up, we were standing in front of an almost-deserted Taj Mahal. Two hours later, it was so full of tourists and noise -- which takes all of the ambience and mystique out of it -- that we were glad to bid it adieu and return to the hotel to have breakfast and pack. When we emerged again, around 9:15, the queue at the ticket office was frightening to behold, and the car park was full of school-group tour buses.... and the day-trippers from Delhi hadn't even started to arrive by then!

If you do a lot of train travel, try and be a back-packer, as you will find it easy to stow one pack safely in your bunk, thus avoiding the tale of woe of so many travellers who have their belongings stolen. The "one-carry-bag" policy will serve you well if you travel by bus (where you can stow it on your lap or up next to the driver) or plane, too.... the airport check-in searches are VERY thorough, and are done three times!

Even if you don't know where you are going to sleep at night, don't leave the decision up to the autorickshaw driver, or he will take you to his brother-in-law's rathole and you'll be charged ten times the going rate for a night's sleep. Find out the name of one good central hotel in each town, even if it's way above your price range, and tell the autorickshaw driver to take you there. There are bound to be a cluster of hotels near the one of your choice, so, when you alight, you can merely stroll around until you find one to your liking. The autorickshaw driver will look puzzled when he pulls up outside the hotel you directed him to, and you pay him and then walk off down the street, but so what?

Prepaid taxi booths at the airports are convenient and safe, but you pay more for the privilege. They are best for telling you (on a display board) their cost for the part of town you want to go to. When you've checked that, you can then find your own taxi or autorickshaw (the latter are cheaper, more fun, and usually quicker as they laugh at traffic jams) and negotiate a price less than half of what you saw on the display board. Never hand over your money until you get to your destination and have checked that it is actually the RIGHT destination, and never believe stories that the hotel where you've booked has closed or burned down.... just find another driver (there will always be dozens nearby).

India, by the way, is the best holiday destination in the world. You are set to embark on an adventure you will never forget. Jump right in.... don't see everything from inside an air-conditioned coach. Don't eat in your five-star hotel (it's no cleaner than anywhere else, and stories abound of people who got "Delhi belly" from the "safest" place in town), and use public transport as much as possible. Eat lots of the fruits that the markets (everywhere) offer (give an couple of bananas to children nearby). And, most of all, wear good walking shoes... wherever you are, there is magic to be seen just by walking one more block or climbing one more hill!

I want to underscore a point that Alan has made. If you are a budget traveler and a backpacker in India, DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU GET THERE, know what accomodations you will be getting, preferably read prior accounts of fellow travelers etc. I have seen quite a few backpackers come to grief with their accomodations and their train experiences - almost always they brought the thing on themselves by going into the field unprepared. Budget travel in India (especially for a Westerner) is not for the faint of heart.

I was there in January and would vote for Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and Varanasi. We also went to Khajuraho but it was not worth the time it took.

The Taj is better than pictures and I found Varanasi (Ganges)fasciating.
While i am really glad we went because it was fascinating, it was not one of our favorite countries-the most aggressive touts we've ever encountered, gap between rich and poor, and people who tried to cheat us. On the other hand, some people were great and it is truly unique.

It seems your guide –escort, I assume you had one, failed in his presentation of Khajuraho Temples, one of the very few surviving North-Indian Shaivite temples, of sublime beauty. Nearly all artistic remains of ancient & medieval India are of a religious nature, cloaked in Hindu mysticism, experiences of a deep religious experience. Medieval European art is also deeply religious. Much of it was the work of pious monks or men of religious vocations. European art was deliberately designed to take away the thoughts of the devotees to things more spiritual as against the world of senses. On the other hand, Indian art, particularly as found in the Western group of temples at Khajuraho, made full use of the female form as a decorative motif, scantily dressed. Even the gods & goddesses are portrayed young & handsome. Nuances of human emotions & sensitivity are finely expressed on the faces of sculpted figures. The shyness revealed in the smile of a girl writing to her lover or the happiness portrayed on the faces of a couple embracing each other, are revelations of great artistic sensibility. It is this aspect that makes the temples of Khajuraho so very different.

How many places can be visited in one trip? depends on how long the trip is.

I'd say 4 weeks min for your wish list.
Cut that to 2 if you only want to do bog std Rajasthan + Udaipur, and Agra.

Indian trains are wonderful, if usually slow.

Both agree and disagree with Agtoau - yes, do your research. But i

continued .. yes, do your research. But it is not necessary to know exactly where you will be, where you will stay.

It's not even necessary to know how you will get there.

Just get a flight and book your first few nights and take it from there.

BTW - Kochi is wonderful. I liked Khajuraho too but it takes many hours to get into and out of by public transport (no train). And therefore not for those with limited time.