Rajasthan and North India.
Rajasthan is a western Indian state that is famous for: its rugged landscape;
majestic forts; beautiful palaces all over the state; desert towns of
Bikaner, Jodhpur & Jaisalmer; lakes in Udaipur; hill stations of Mount
Abu; beautiful marble carved jain temples of Ranakpur & Mount Abu;
an open air gallery in the regions such as Shekawati; a unique chance
to stay in a old haveli or converted palace in any one of the cities.
It is well worth combining a visit to Uttar Pradesh to cover Agra for
the world famous Taj Mahal and the historic city of Varanasi with its
bathing ghats and trips to erotic carvings of Khajuraho and wildlife parks
of Bandavgarh & Kanha in Madhya Pradesh and finally add the hill station
of Darjeeling & the bustling metropolis that is Kolkata in West Bengal.
Each one of the cities are steeped in history (details of which are provided
in the guidebooks which we have not gone into). Some of the main cities
and list of items to see within are listed below:-
- RAJASTHAN
- Ajmer: Dargah, Navsiyan Jain temple, Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra.
- Bharatpur: Excellent Keoladeo Ghana National Park, bird sanctuary
, Lohagarh Fort.
- Bikaner: Jungarah Fort, Karni Mata temple at Deshnok, camel
breeding farm.
- Chittaurgarh: Chittaurgarh Fort with its Tower of Victory
and Tower of Fame.
- Jaipur: The Palace of Winds, City Palace, Observatory, Amber
Palace, Jaigarh fort and many more.
- Jaisalmer: Jaisalmer Fort, Havelis, camel rides, sand dunes
in the desert.
- Jodhpur: Mehrangarh Fort, Jaswant Thada, Umaidh Bhawan Palace.
- Mount Abu: hill station, Dilwara temples.
- Pushkar: Pushkar Lake, Brahma temple.
- Ranakpur: Famous for its magnificently marble carved jain
temples.
- Ranthambore: Excellent wildlife park containing varied forms
of wildlife including Nilgai Antelope, wild boa, Langur & the
elusive tiger. Note: Ranthambore wildlife park is closed in the
summer, however, you can visit ManSingh Sanctuary where you can spot
varied wildlife excluding tigers. Rathambore park is also a great
place for walks to the Fort and nature trails and excellent place
to view sunsets & sunrises in a quiet retreat area in the wildlife
off-peak season time.
- Udaipur: City Palace, Jagdish temple, Lake Palace, Fateh
Sagar, Saheliyon Ki Bari.
- UTTAR PRADESH
- Agra: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Itamadh-Udh-Dhaula, Fatehpur
sikri.
- Allahabad: Hindu holy town most famous for the confluence
of the 3 rivers: The Ganges, the Yamuna and Saraswati. This town is
televised all over the world every 12 years for the famous Kumbh Mela.
- Chitrakut: Hindu holy town with ghats and temples.
- Varanasi: Bathing ghats of Varanasi are one of greatest images
of India. Taking a boat ride along the Ganges in the morning is an
experience not to be missed. Other sights include: Kashi Vishwanath
temple, Benares Hindu University and a visit to Sarnath (the buddhist
pilgrimage point).
- WEST BENGAL
- Darjeeling: Nestled in the Himalayas excellent views of Kanchenjunga
(subject to claer weather conditions), Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
(narrow gauge toy train) now classified as a heritage site, Himlayan
Mountaineering Institute, trip to Ghoom for the buddhist monastery.
- Calcutta: Howrah Bridge, Eden Gardens, Victoria Memorial,
a hustle bustle town with trams, taxis and lots of firendly people
throughout.
- MADHYA PRADESH
- Bandavgarh Wildlife Reserve: This is one wildlife park withone
of the highest densitiies in India for tigers. Excellent for spotting
the elusive tiger.
- Kanha Wildlife Reserve: This is one of the best wildlife
parks in India. Excellent for spotting the elusive tiger.
- Khajuraho: Noted for its temples with erotic carvings. The
Khandariya Mahadeo temple is a work of art.
- Orcchha: Very peaceful town lost in time. A great reprieve
from the hustle and bustle towns of Agra and Jaipur. Known for its
Fort and temple.
They are split up into Standard and Superior.
Standard hotels are simple 2 - 3 * equivalent properties. In some
cases they are small family run heritage properties which have been very
popular with our past customers.
Superior hotels are generally 3 - 5* properties. Again where possible
we have tried to aim for heritage properties in preference to modern concrete
block type properties.
Note: Heritage properties have many positive points (examples are
staying in a small haveli inside a fort, some have courtyards, sometimes
rooms have old run down carpets, paintings on walls and chandeliers).
Heritage properties also have negative points. Each room is completely
different. One room can be much superior to the next as these are in many
cases old converted palaces or merchant's mansions. Maintenance is generally
one notch lower than a corresponding concrete block type hotel. Mod-cons
are not necessarily similar to that of modern hotels. In general in superior
type hotels the character level is 1 notch lower but the maintenance is
one notch higher.
We have tried to split up the trips into 2 main sections
although in some cases there are going to be overlaps into some of the
other regions. They are as below (Just click on the links below for details
on the routes with maps & train times and hotels used for the costing):-
Individual Tailor-
made Itineraries in Rajasthan & North India In these set
of arrangements there is an emphasis on travel by road with the use
of a private car & driver to cover the sights and combine it with stay
in interesting heritage style hotels where possible.
Rail / Hotel Holidays in Rajasthan & North India In these set of arrangements
travel is by by Indian rail using an Indrail pass and combined with stay in interesting heritage style hotels where possible.
|
