India in December

No but India is somewhere I would love to visit.

Hi Noona,

thank you for starting this topic. I was so excited to read this as I want to do the same thing. Please come back when you have done it and let us know how you went on.

I realise it's only May !

My friend has just come back from a two and a half week tour. She had ball and loved it. She went to Jaipur and they are doing some sort of building work. Very beautiful though.

I've been-a while back now though. We did Agra, Delhi and Jaipur.

India is very draining, but an unforgettable experience. Be careful about what you eat and drink, and enjoy!

How do you go about organising this please?

Noona - how did you get on applying for a visa.
I've been twice to India and would like to go again but found the visa application almost impossibly complicated.
A son lives there.

If you are only going for less than 30 days you can get an e visa which I think costs £30, a 180 days one is much more expensive. Yes that visa is a pain to apply for, luckily we have a visa office in our town, doesnt make it any easier.
The application gets you in the mindset for the beurocratic system that India is under....... Long time back we used to have to apply at the embassy, in and out in one day.

There is a saying about India ' the British gave India beurocracy, India perfected it.
So true

I am interested in the application of getting a visa as my sister and i are going to India next November for my 65th!!

We are doing the Golden Triangle. Any information would be gratefully received about visas.

India was one of the best holidays I have ever had. My friend and I had a private tour (Trailfinders) and it was just us with a driver and guides in every place we visited and not much more expensive than a group tour. We went to Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Kerala and Shimla. The organisation was truly amazing (thanks to Trans India) and it all worked like clockwork. A truly fabulous holiday. We went in November 3 years ago and the weather was lovely.
Our visas we did quite easily (compared to a Chinese one !) on-line but the photographs could not be done in one of the supermarket booths as they had to be 2" x 2" so check if this is still the case.
Have a lovely time !

Here is the link
indianvisaonline.gov.in

In N India it might be getting a bit chilly,Nov, so dont expect it to be too hot.

At least you will have missed the s.w.monsoon, dont think the n.e. one will have any effect, but the climate there is so changeable this year.

One thing to be aware of if you intend having a driver is that the company which employs them is a good one. Trans India make sure their drivers stay in hostels overnight and have one day off a week and the cars are well maintained. We heard of other drivers who were expected to sleep in their cars. Our driver considered Trans India to be the best in the business and was very pleased to be working for them.

You have reminded me jollyg that we did have snow ( the first of the season) in Shimla !

oh how exciting!!!!,

Hi Careof 123. I too am doing this holiday, but in October. Our trip sounds similar to yours, we are travelling with Cox and Kings. We are going because we wanted to go on a holiday where we wondered "What will it be like?" . We are regular cruisers and met a chap on a ship who said the Golden Triangle was the best holiday he had ever had! So let's hope it lives up to our expectations.

Aqua I have been speaking to Cox and Kings about a trip to India next March.We want to do the Golden Triangle,Shimla and Amritsar. My friend has been to India many times and loves it .

Last October I did the Golden Triangle, plus 4 days in Shimla - all fabulous!

I met my friend yesterday who was born in India and her father had been the headmaster of a school there. She is 75 and returns once or twice a year as she loves it so much.

Now for a cautionary tale. As you would expect she is very savvy about the country and totally at ease.

She and her partner were travelling by train overnight second class with air con. She was in her bunk bed in the sleeping corridor. She lay on her side towards the wall with ear plugs in with her valuables under her pillow. She woke suddenly in the night to find her bag containing her passport, IPad, phone, money, credit cards, diary had been stolen. they had to stay on a number of extra days to get a temporary passport.

So please take a body belt in which your valuables are stored and wear it. Have a wonderful time and possibly like me, who was robbed in broad daylight last year, have your purse etc on a slim chain attached to your bag, you can get them from Amazon. I have two purses and car keys = 3 chains.

Hi Riverwalk and others who have done The Golden Triangle,I know it is a while since your post, but me holiday is getting nearer, and I am getting slightly apprehensive, so can I ask you a few questions please? Did you wear any particular clothes? We are staying in nice hotels, but were there any foods that I should avoid (other than the obvious)? Any other tips? Thanks in anticipation

If you're staying in good hotels then you can safely eat and drink anything therein, including ice in your gin & tonic, in my experience.

We didn't eat street food.

As for clothes, in October it was hot and dry, so most Westerners were dressed in floaty dresses, kaftan tops & trousers,capri pants & tops/T-shirts, and sun hats, but definitely no shorts or low-cut tops.

Even staying in good hotels I would still take some Immodium, as a change of diet and water can make you a bit 'loose' so nip it in the bud with a couple of pills!!

As I said in my 'Am I now insane' thread, am going in November with Solo Holidays! Am nervous as am a walking disaster!!

Thank you, I am stocking up with Imodium. Thanks for your advice. I am really pleased about the ice in gin and tonics!

You will have a wonderful time. We went 2 years ago. There is something new and fascinating around every corner.

The monsoon season varies according to area, but in general it's June to September. Where we go, the SE, the best time is Feb.-March.

What did you do in your free time. Did you walk around, go on rickshaws and go shopping?