krs24

hi all, Im a 20 year old australian male planning on travelling to india (new dehli) in the very near future, i was mainly curious if you guys could help me with how much spending money i would need to stay there for a month, i have got the plane tickets sorted so only need opinions on how much cheap hotels cost and how much i would need for food and travel daily, also planning on seeing the taj mahal so if anyone has any advice on what to bring, costs, things to do/see etc thanks

progol

You might want to check out the website, IndiaMike, as it is an on-line community devoted to India and travel, and very well might give you a lot more information than you'll find here:

https://www.indiamike.com/

vp_singh

Delhi has accommodation to suit all budgets. There will be a few very cheap hotels near the New Delhi rail station & ISBT (Bus stand). The area is popularly called the Pahar Ganj. These will cost you no more than say Rs. 800/- to 1000/- for a night. But here you will need to be very cautious. The hotels are by and large dirty. What you save on accommodation will be squandered on hefty medical bills for skin diseases / stomach ailments cant be ruled out!
I guess you should plan for Ginger Hotel which will cost you about Rs. 2000/- per night. There is a reasonably fine restaurant on the ground floor and you can have your meals. This hotel locates next to the New Delhi Rail Station, on the Ajmeri Gate side. The rooms and washrooms are very clean. You could ask the house-keeping to give you crisp towels and bed linen. Take the rooms away from the railway yard as it could be very noisy. The location is definitely quite poor but from point of view of connectivity, it is central, for the metro runs from just outside of its gate.
You will need to book it in advance for it is a busy hotel with high occupancy.
For meals I guess another Rs. 2000/- per day should be fine??
Happy & safe travels!

krs24

thank you so much for your response you have been very helpful! also i want to go when there is some form on festival type thing on if anyone has any good suggestions on when to go where to go what to do and if i should bring or do something in particular? thanks

vp_singh

India is a land of colours & festivals like none else! There are several festivals which come to my mind immediately. Some I have visited and some I have heard of as very interesting. You could begin with:
Pushkar Cattle Fair / 15-17 November, 2018.
Marwar Fest, Jodhpur / Oct. 23-24, 2018.
Holla Mohalla Festival at Anandpur, Punjab / 21-22 March 2019...extremely interesting!
Nagaur Cattle Fair / 10-13 Feb. 2019.
Sufi Fest Jodhpur / Feb. dates not known yet.
Desert Fest Jaisalmer / 17-19 Jan. 2019.
Baneshwar Tribal fair, Nr. Dungarpur / 16-19 Jan. 2019.
Hornbill Fest Kohima / December 01-10, 2018.
There are several great festivals in Kerala & Tamil Nadu viz. Pongal, Thrissur Pooram, Chennai & Mahabalipuram Dance Fest,
Closer to Delhi is Suraj Kund Crafts Mela / Feb. 1-15 2019.
Hope it helps!

BigRuss

Read Kevin and I in India. It's . . . illuminating.

thursdaysd

You are planning to spend a month in India and only see Delhi and the Taj Mahal? Why?

smithmartin

As you said you will be going to New Delhi, India for a month. India is an amazing place, i've been there twice. Might i suggest that instead of staying in New Delhi for a month, you should explore other parts of India too. You should definitely visit the Himalayas, there are bike trips that start from New Delhi to Ladakh. i was able to get myself registered to one such trip, it was the best biker experience i ever had.

Then you could move towards South India. If you like beaches then you should definitely go to Goa & Pondicherry. I think this is all that you would cover if you want to really enjoy each place. I had a little more time on my hands & i went to the Golden Temple too. I must say it's an amazing place. Try if you can go there too. Hope this helps.

jacketwatch

I think the OP means he's flying to Delhi but not staying there for a month.

That being said places to see are many. Many see the golden triangle, Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. while you are in Rajasthan (Jaipur) consider other cities there like Udaipur, Jodphur and as VP Singh has mentioned the cattle fest in Pushkar. There is a fairly nice hotel in Ajmer from where you can go to Pushkar called Data Inn. Avoid the Mansingh palace. We were robbed there. Also avoid Merwara Estates. Its old and has lots of potential but management there is terrible. We stayed there, believe me its a mess. Its dirty, management doesn't care for individual reservations, only big groups and there are frequent power outages.

Then consider the south of India like Kerala.

Also consider the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the well of souls there, Jallianwala Bagh and the border ceremony ( )

jacketwatch

We actually saw this 5 yrs ago. Then the first two Indian soldiers to strut to the gate were female as if our women are tougher. I read they have to rotate soldiers as there is great pressure to be perfect. The audience is separated by sex BTW. It was well worth seeing. BTW India is a cauldron in the summer so best time to go is fall and winter.

thursdaysd

Yes. If going in the summer emulate the British and head for the hills.