Luggage and clothing help for 3 week intrepid tour to India in January
Dec 6th, 2011, 02:14 PM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 143
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Luggage and clothing help for 3 week intrepid tour to India in January
Would appreciate suggestions for probably backpack and suitable clothing for north India and then Kerala in January please. What size bag and wheeled or not??
Dec 6th, 2011, 10:20 PM
#2
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 7,689
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Some thoughts and suggestions:
1. I assume you have looked at weather websites and know what to expect in terms of temps. Winter so far in north India, in my experience, has not been as cold as normal. Today for example in Delhi it is almost 80 F, sunny and very lovely. But that of course can change. (The sunny part mostly does not change.) The most important thing is to have layers to add on and take off as temps change during the day. Gloves, a scarf and a hat are easy to pack and probably will be quite useful, esp for things like sunrise at the Taj Mahal. Thick warm socks are good for the many places where you have to remove shoes but may prefer not to go barefoot on cold marble or stone floors. Long underwear, again easy to pack, may be a good idea if you are doing any game drives or desert camel rides in the morning.
2. A shawl is an excellent item to have. It can be used either as a wrap or a blanket, either for men or women. There are many beautiful shawls for sale here, so you may want to buy one here first thing. A blazer, windbreaker, or other jacket is a good thing to have. A raincoat with a removable lining is a good option (it won’t rain but is good for warmth.) Cotton sweaters rather than wool are better I think, as wool may be too warm during the day, and you can layer a cotton sweater with a turtle neck or long sleeve shirt. But wool works too if you prefer that.
3. For Kerala, casual summer clothes are all you need. A good sunscreen of course. A light cotton sweater for places where air con may be strong, like bus rides, airplanes or restaurants.
4. I find streets to be on the dusty side, and so prefer closed shoes to open sandals, but that is my personal preference and may not be yours. In any event, flat, comfortable shoes for women are required, as sidewalks are often non-existent, and where they do exist are often in bad shape. High heels and India do not mix well. (India women of course can make them work effortlessly, but they can work a sari too, while I can’t.)
4. India tends toward the casual side, and esp for a tourist. There are generally no dress codes for religious sites. For mosques you should be dressed modestly, but in north India in winter that won’t be an issue in any event. You will most likely not be touring any mosques in Kerala, but will be touring churches, where again modest dress should be observed as a mark of respect, which means knees and shoulders should be covered, altough I doubut you would be sotpped if you dressed otherwise. In south India for temples IMO you should not be wearing shorts or skimpy tops but I have yet to see anyone stopped for being dressed in outfits which might be problematic in other countries like Thailand. For restaurants, unless you are going to very expensive restaurants in major cities, you do not need to be overly concerned with dress (and even then you won’t see jackets on men and often see T-shirts). I would say to bring one nice outfit for dining out. Trousers for women are fine in that case.
5. As you are on a tour for most of this trip, your luggage will be handled for you, so I would not worry too much about size (check with the tour to see if they have any rules on weight or size). For the portion of the trip on your own, you will be inundated with offers to assist with luggage at railway stations and airports, so again I would not be worried about size. (10 Rupees a bag is enough. If you give a 50 you will make their day. ) If you are flying between places, there are free luggage carts at airports. If you are taking the trains, I might say to avoid wheeled luggage as it will be cumbersome in rail cars (although nice on platforms, but again you are unlikely to be hauling your own bags.). I am a fan of duffle bags for trains for Europe, but in India with porters it does not make a big difference and hard suitcases are easier for porters (they put them on their heads).
1. I assume you have looked at weather websites and know what to expect in terms of temps. Winter so far in north India, in my experience, has not been as cold as normal. Today for example in Delhi it is almost 80 F, sunny and very lovely. But that of course can change. (The sunny part mostly does not change.) The most important thing is to have layers to add on and take off as temps change during the day. Gloves, a scarf and a hat are easy to pack and probably will be quite useful, esp for things like sunrise at the Taj Mahal. Thick warm socks are good for the many places where you have to remove shoes but may prefer not to go barefoot on cold marble or stone floors. Long underwear, again easy to pack, may be a good idea if you are doing any game drives or desert camel rides in the morning.
2. A shawl is an excellent item to have. It can be used either as a wrap or a blanket, either for men or women. There are many beautiful shawls for sale here, so you may want to buy one here first thing. A blazer, windbreaker, or other jacket is a good thing to have. A raincoat with a removable lining is a good option (it won’t rain but is good for warmth.) Cotton sweaters rather than wool are better I think, as wool may be too warm during the day, and you can layer a cotton sweater with a turtle neck or long sleeve shirt. But wool works too if you prefer that.
3. For Kerala, casual summer clothes are all you need. A good sunscreen of course. A light cotton sweater for places where air con may be strong, like bus rides, airplanes or restaurants.
4. I find streets to be on the dusty side, and so prefer closed shoes to open sandals, but that is my personal preference and may not be yours. In any event, flat, comfortable shoes for women are required, as sidewalks are often non-existent, and where they do exist are often in bad shape. High heels and India do not mix well. (India women of course can make them work effortlessly, but they can work a sari too, while I can’t.)
4. India tends toward the casual side, and esp for a tourist. There are generally no dress codes for religious sites. For mosques you should be dressed modestly, but in north India in winter that won’t be an issue in any event. You will most likely not be touring any mosques in Kerala, but will be touring churches, where again modest dress should be observed as a mark of respect, which means knees and shoulders should be covered, altough I doubut you would be sotpped if you dressed otherwise. In south India for temples IMO you should not be wearing shorts or skimpy tops but I have yet to see anyone stopped for being dressed in outfits which might be problematic in other countries like Thailand. For restaurants, unless you are going to very expensive restaurants in major cities, you do not need to be overly concerned with dress (and even then you won’t see jackets on men and often see T-shirts). I would say to bring one nice outfit for dining out. Trousers for women are fine in that case.
5. As you are on a tour for most of this trip, your luggage will be handled for you, so I would not worry too much about size (check with the tour to see if they have any rules on weight or size). For the portion of the trip on your own, you will be inundated with offers to assist with luggage at railway stations and airports, so again I would not be worried about size. (10 Rupees a bag is enough. If you give a 50 you will make their day. ) If you are flying between places, there are free luggage carts at airports. If you are taking the trains, I might say to avoid wheeled luggage as it will be cumbersome in rail cars (although nice on platforms, but again you are unlikely to be hauling your own bags.). I am a fan of duffle bags for trains for Europe, but in India with porters it does not make a big difference and hard suitcases are easier for porters (they put them on their heads).
Dec 7th, 2011, 09:25 PM
#4
Cicerone - it's an Intrepid tour. The OP will be handling her own luggage. Given the state of the streets, I'd probably go for a backpack....I don't use porters, and I doubt the tour will either, so tackling the stairs in train stations is also a consideration. For me, the lighter the better.
Dec 8th, 2011, 01:32 AM
#5
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 12,268
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
onebag.com wheeled backpack always carry on works great
weather2travel.com climate guides layers cargo pants
thatzip down to shorts travelsmith.com.
Comfy light shoes for trails if trekking several pairs of
socks nothing dries. mdtravelhealth.com good medical kit
for "Delhi Belly" insuremytrip.com always wise.
indiamike.com great local info posting
everything always cheaper for me boots on the ground.
weather2travel.com climate guides layers cargo pants
thatzip down to shorts travelsmith.com.
Comfy light shoes for trails if trekking several pairs of
socks nothing dries. mdtravelhealth.com good medical kit
for "Delhi Belly" insuremytrip.com always wise.
indiamike.com great local info posting
everything always cheaper for me boots on the ground.
