India Luxury Travel Blog

A Look At The Different Heritage Destinations In India

The Indian civilization flourished in the surrounding areas of the Indus Valley sometime in the year 3300 to 1300 BCE. This was the first major civilization in India. All these years, India amassed a rich cultural heritage that is reflected in the different cultural and heritage destinations that India offers to its guests. If you [...]

Beach Tours of India: Visiting Beaches and Coastal India

India tourism has truly come of age. There is a more conscious effort that is being made to promote India as a tourist destination, and there is more curiosity to visit India. The beauty about India is that once you visit her, you can just never have enough. Many people are of the belief that [...]

An India tour for Beginners

Australian cricketer Michael Hussey considers an India tour as one of the toughest. That’s probably because he has to game to play and win and beating the Indian cricket team these days is more than a matter of luck! But thankfully most people who plan an India tour don’t have competition on mind. They come [...]

Make Yourself India Tour Savvy

If there is one word that best describes India, it is vibrancy. You will discover why this word becomes the right choice when you get here. But before you do, a few things that you should know about Indians because forewarned is forearmed! Jokes apart, you do need some preparation if you’re on your first [...]

Down the Slopes on a Vacation in India

Are you planning an India Tour for a skiing experience? Now, the first thing to wonder about is, does India really qualify as a good skiing destination? If yes, then can it think beyond the snowy slopes of Gulmarg in Kashmir, (a town that has earned its respect as a great skiing place)? So let’s [...]

An India tour for Beginners

April 22nd, 2011

Amjad Khan

Australian cricketer Michael Hussey considers an India tour as one of the toughest. That’s probably because he has to game to play and win and beating the Indian cricket team these days is more than a matter of luck! But thankfully most people who plan an India tour don’t have competition on mind. They come with expectations of soaking in a splash of India which can be done on a Golden Triangle tour, especially if it’s your first time to this surprise-filled country. Now what should you expect on your first India tour…definitely more than snake charmers and elephant rides!! While the entire country is an entire treasure trove, the Golden Triangle cities are a cache for any tourist.
So you can start your visit with a dip in the sacred sarovar at the Golden Temple in Amristsar. Even if you’re not a devout person, the mesmerizing site of the temple is so overwhelmingly peaceful that you might have second thoughts about converting! The next on your itinerary should be the historic city of New Delhi. Although the ‘new’ in the name is paradoxical to the historic value of the city, Delhi is a convenience for those who want to savor both, the contemporary and the rustic in one go. Of course, anyone visiting the country for the first time will have the Taj Mahal top on their list and rightly so, because missing out on this wonder is sacrilege to tourists! So the next on the list should be a trip to earthy city of Agra that continues to reek of the Mughal era. While the Goden Triangle Cities cover a royal tour of Rajasthan too, the ones already mentioned should give any tourist the best start to a great India tour.

Make Yourself India Tour Savvy

February 21st, 2011

Amjad Khan

If there is one word that best describes India, it is vibrancy. You will discover why this word becomes the right choice when you get here. But before you do, a few things that you should know about Indians because forewarned is forearmed! Jokes apart, you do need some preparation if you’re on your first India tour and this preparation has little to do with reading those books in the country and charging your cameras to click the elephants, tantriks and snake charmers who think you’ll bump into the minute you leave the airport! Now although there are different things one has to consider in preparing for an India tour, a top priority is preparing your stomachs!
So one of the first things you will discover is an Indian’s knack and enthusiasm to feed people. Especially if you are anywhere is the Golden Triangle cities, you will envy the cow for its four stomachs! You will learn soon after your first meal in India that you need to start saying no to servings soon before your stomach is full, because it is after your first vehement “no” that Indians stuff you with your last two courses! In Rajasthan a refusal to eat means, “I can’t at anymore by myself so you need to stuff my mouth!” Another thing is, Indians and their food habits vary depending on where you are. So if you’ve just attuned your stomach to downing a fat-laden breakfast in the north of India at 10, you’ll have to re-regulate your stomach to downing fluffy rice cakes at 7 in the morning in the south of the country. And when it comes to variety in the South, you have rice for breakfast, rice for lunch and you guessed it well, rice for dinner as well! Nonetheless, Indian cuisines are a journey in themselves and even if you have to tours to India as a food connoisseur, you will be very, very far from disappointed!

Down the Slopes on a Vacation in India

February 14th, 2011

Amjad Khan

Are you planning an India Tour for a skiing experience? Now, the first thing to wonder about is, does India really qualify as a good skiing destination? If yes, then can it think beyond the snowy slopes of Gulmarg in Kashmir, (a town that has earned its respect as a great skiing place)? So let’s answer these questions and shatter a myth. India can boast of being a country that offers tourists a fair chunk of extreme sports. From white water rafting where the rapids are a challenge to the best of rafters, to mountain treks that are a Sherpa’s delight, to camel and mountain safaris, the country has it all, and it has it all in plenty! Therefore naturally, even when it comes to qualifying as a skiing destination, India can think beyond Kashmir.

So if you really planning a skiing detour when on a winter India vacation, visit Auli, a little town nestled in the Garhwal Hills in Uttaranchal and let not the word little take you in for this town gains in size, although not literally, but in terms of hosting tourists in the winter months. It’s from January to March that the green slopes of Auli are swathed in a nice and thick yet adequately soft white blanket that are a skier’s joy. What makes these slopes more irresistible is the fact that they are considered a good skiing ground from international standards too. While the place may not boast of international competitions, I’m sure vacationers skiing down a mountain slope with the sole purpose of relaxing, don’t want competition from a bunch of professionals whooshing and whizzing past them!

Wedding Wonders on an India Tour

February 7th, 2011

Amjad Khan

Kate Perry and Russell Brand solemnized their love for each other when they wedded at the Ranthambore National Park in Rajasthan. Although the tigers are not too happy about it, none of the invitees are complaining! Not that many of us plan an India tour with a wedding in mind, but India is gaining popularity as an exotic wedding location. Now where else in the world do you get to hobnob with priests and tigers at the same venue?
For those of you who feel there is no big deal in getting married in India here are a few eye opening facts. An Indian wedding can be, cost-effective, yet extravagant; simple yet overwhelming; contemporary yet traditional. In short, getting married in India as per the Hindu rituals is both an awe-inspiring and humbling experience. Of course, we are not recommending that everyone goes the Kate Perry or Elizabeth Hurley way but there is definitely more charm in an Indian wedding than one can imagine. Moreover, what better way to make an India holidays memorable than saying your ‘I-dos’ for either the first time or once more out here. And it doesn’t have to be with the tigers in the backdrop always!
When it comes to wedding locales and locations, you are spoil for choice in India. However, the colorful and festive state of Rajasthan is a hot favorite among many. Udaipur’s lake palace makes for an idyllic setting making you wish you could be wedded time and time again! For that matter most forts and palaces in Rajasthan throw their doors to open to wedding enthusiasts. So all that are required is the will and partner to get married in India!

Close to Nirvana on an India Tour

February 1st, 2011

Amjad Khan

India is known for its obsession with religion. Rites and rituals are so integral to every Indian home that it’s difficult to remain untouched by them even when you’re as a tourist on your first India Tours. So don’t be surprised if your cabbie breaks a coconut just as he approaches a mountainous terrain or if your tour guide insists you visit a dargah at the onset of your journey. But the best part about India’s religious sentiments is that it rubs off in a nice and gentle way on tourists. So while no one will force you to convert you will have a slight change of mind especially, if to book yourself on an India Tour that takes you to different Buddhist spots.
You can begin your journey at this rustic Buddhist town called Sarnath. It was here that Lord Buddha gave his first sermon and although who can’t hear him preach there is something so tranquil and soothing about being in the same as the Buddha that you almost feel holy! The next should be a drive into BodhGaya, the place where the Buddha gained enlightenment and even though you may be miles away from nirvana, the visit is definitely a fantasy. Next, spend a day exploring the Dungeshwari Caves at Gaya to build your known story of how Buddha must have spent his years in penance. This visit will also make you wonder what it is that drives humans to attain superhuman feats! And in that itself lies the first lesson of being a Buddhist- be happy for what you have, including your little Buddhist tour on an India tour! Of course there are more places that you can add to your itinerary but as we said earlier, religion in India rubs off tourists in a nice and gentle way!