No personal experience but dh used to travel to India for business all the time. I doubt I could get him to go back for vacation (it would be low on our list only b/c we have so many other places we want to see!). That said, MIL and BIL went about 6-8 years ago and had a fantastic time. However, the main purpose of their trip was to attend the wedding of dh's cousin which was apparently a fascinating cultural experience. After that, they traveled around to the usual tourist spots with MIL's sister and family though the trip was planned with help from the Indian family that the cousin married into. Unfortunately, having no direct experience, I cannot offer you advice. Wish I could tag along and look forward to hearing more about it!

That is exciting! No one I know has vacationed in India except relatives by marriage who are from India and visit family for months at a time.

BPathome, I am that person too! I was kind of excited about seeing Qatar! If it were me, Id divert to Helsinki on the way out, and Qatar on the way back, LOL. But with 5 of us, we are not that portable or nimble to dart in and out of cities for 2 day layovers! As the major domo of our excursions, I have learned it's a lot easier to keep a sane schedule. There is always one of us carrying something we bought that is fragile and unwieldy, too! Like something L-shaped, 36" on one end, and glass.

4Kids, the places one goes for business were, in my experience, very much devoid of charm and so modernized. Not exactly a draw for tourism.

My friend who went to Antarctica also went to India, but that was a long time ago. All I remember her mentioning was the temples to sex...quite stunning for a church lady such as she... Oh yes, she did get to see the Taj at night during a full moon and showed me a picture of it...it was incredible.

DH spent a lot of time in India on business, but never got to see the Taj Mahal. He'd go for 2 months at a time and they'd keep him working 7 days a week as he had to go to the plants that had electricity that day as not all of them had electricity every day. He was all over the country, but never got to see any of the real sites. He has an iron stomach though and never got sick...though he'd eat things even some of the natives wouldn't touch. My old boss would drink only tea while he was there and he insisted that he see the water bubbling in the pot when they brought it to him so he was sure the water had been boiled. He too did not get sick, though I won't vouch for how hungry he got.

Tauck runs several tours of India...you might want to see where they go and what they do just to get some ideas of the highlights and maybe suggestions for where to stay.

"Rube Goldbergesque" LOL!!

I have friends who just returned, I'll get some intel and will report back!

If you check The Style Saloniste blog, you'll find a review of her recent to India.

LOL, JLC, i bet she had a wonderful time! To me, it sounds like just the way someone should spend their early 20s; i'd never have had the guts.

Diane, How kind, thanks. I notice that the same cities and sites pop up again and again for tours of India. I am wondering if there were any things they thought were not worthwhile or repetitive. Eg there is a pink city and a blue city. Do you really want to see both?

Annie, So you have two friends who are travel nuts! I know about the sex temple. I think only about 10% of the carvings are sexual there, but that is where the footsteps are worn. They are quite ... explicit and include bestiality and other exotica. I'm not sure I'd want to explain that. To DH, I mean. LOL

I think when I was there on business it was about a week. I have never had stomach troubles travelling. I think that is because I use bottled water and don't eat street foods. I like Indian food and so do the kids, but the hotels we are looking at will have Western options. I was with colleagues and we really wanted to see the Taj Mahal during our (brief) New Delhi layover. One guy had his assistant calling all around trying to find a helicopter to take us. He finally found one, but it was affiliated with a hospital. The pilot was game (for $) but my colleague respectfully declined, no doubt imagining the headline when an ill person found no med evac available that night because a bunch of American bankers ...

I did look at Tauck. I also looked at one of my favorite companies (from whom I steal ideas but have never used), Artisans of Leisure. I also looked at a NY Times tour and Greaves (written up in Amex' Departures). I asked the Aman hotels and they recommended a company in Delhi. called Amber Tours. I am combing through the itineraries but they seem very similar. I don't think we will do any of the safari-like elements, since we have done that in other places.

As always, appreciate the help.

Oh, India is on our list to do, and we have friends (and coworkers) who have been. DH is getting the itch for a grand journey and we'll see where India lands. The "Golden Triangle" is on the list.

I have been to Helsinki, but only for work (about four+ times). The airport code is "HEL". That summarizes my feeling about staying at the Airport "coffin" hotel.

Dawnidea, great link!

Gooster, let me know if you end up leaning that way, love to hear what you discover.

My son is an airport code savant. Some of them seems so bizarre, unless you know the former name of the airport!

I haven't been, but know several people who have been and loved it. We saw a story on 60 Minutes (I think) recently about this train, which made me want to go there and travel that way. http://www.the-maharajas.com

Yeah… I looked at that train.... the accommodations that I liked, for our family were… Are you ready? $100,000.

A bit ironic in the land of Mother Teresa, where you feel conflicted for even modest expenditures. The one company I liked includes "voluntourism" excursions which we would like to do, but it's a tricky ethical balance in the abstract, and I'm sure even more so when you're there and you actually see the conditions for many.

That's a heck of a cookie Mtn!

Are you familiar with the Circumnavigators Club? The HQ is in NYC, and you might know a member or two. If the members there are anything like our local members once you express an interest they happily share information with you. They are spirited travelers!

Such fun!

Circumnavigators

We were in India for a month a number of years ago, and loved it. I would avoid the "voluntourism" angle; simply visiting as a comfortable American tourist is already tricky, as you say. It was not an easy place for travel in that regard, but we had an amazing time, saw remarkable things, and met terrific people. But it was a kind of shock immersion. We attended my husband's graduate school friend's wedding in Bangalore (a grand and elegant affair which took place over many days); went to a Snake Park where we saw the most frightful cobras being handled by their keepers; stayed at a jungle B&B in the Mudumalai Game Reserve; went to another sanctuary further north (the name escapes me) where we got a tour from a student studying "fishing cats'"; went to the 18th century Jantar Mantar astronomical observation center (I believe it's on the World Heritage list); saw countless ancient palaces and temples (I found Fatehpur Sikri haunting); visited Madras and New Delhi; and of course toured the golden triangle and the Taj. Everything is spectacular--the food, the landscapes, the people, the historical sites. I had a good friend who worked at the American embassy in Delhi who kindly loaned us his driver for several days of travel (I will say that I found travel by car more than a bit hair-raising). My husband's friend lives in both SF and India, and we're looking forward to another trip there someday.

Thank you so much for posting, Kkay. Your enthusiasm comes through your post! I had an employee once invite me to his wedding, which iirc was both in London and India. I had three little ones and felt it was too long to leave them, but I really regret it (especially since I can go as a tourist but I would be so intrigued to see a wedding). Lucky you! ...and you spent a month there! Fantastic, as in "fantasy'! I am going to look up the place you've mentioned, esp Snake Park as I had told the tour companies I've spoken with, no animals, BTDT. But not cobras!

The wedding was an amazing and unforgettable affair; if you ever have another chance, don't miss it. One evening the close women friends of the bride (I was kindly included) gathered on the splendid garden roof of the groom's house where we had our hands decorated elaborately with henna, a decoration that lasted over a month. We were hand-fed by servants (see my earlier post about the trickiness of being American) because the henna had to "cure" with frequent applications of salts and citrus. Traditional musicians arrived, and dancing ensued.

There are a few different Snake Parks in India. I'm sure one is more fascinating than the next. Our Mudamalai visit was actually to stay at the rustic Bamboo Banks B&B there (we met the owner at the wedding) rather than to see animals. But on the primitive track that led into the jungle, our driver had to stop for elephants. I remember where we were staying when we met the PhD student researching the fishing cat—the Hotel Bharatpur Ashok (Forest Lodge) in the Keoladeo National Park, another UNESCO World Heritage Site (we're casual birdwatchers).

You will see plenty of animals in India, of course. Cows will stroll in front of your bicycle rickshaw, peacocks will scream at you from the trees, and monkeys will try to get into your taxi and cavort on your balcony. You will see children bathing their water buffaloes in the Yamuna River near the Taj Mahal. And I hope you see a hoopoe, as John Updike famously wrote. They are charming.

$100k for the train? I knew it was probably expensive, but wow.

I've never been to India and my friends that go, do so to visit family (mostly up North). However I have a friend from Kerala and always wanted to travel there.

I will say that even my Indian friends who live in Canada are VERY careful about what they eat. One got sick for two weeks from a banana! He thought he'd be safe b/c he had to peel it but must have cross contaminated.

I have been to a few Sikh weddings in Canada and if I had the opportunity to attend one in India, it would be number one on my travel list, if only for the clothes! Edited to add...ok, also for the food.

Robo, you always have such a pretty gleam in your eye! And wait until I show my girls the photo. I am going to have to make sure they understand this is not one enormous shopping expedition.

Just steer them toward salwar kameez or lehenga choli and away from saris - that's the advanced class.

Here's another outfit I got to wear..all are now languishing in my closet waiting for the next wedding. As soon as I walked into the room a kind woman pounced on me with safety pins to fix my scarf...scarf folding is an art.

I'm normally pretty sensitive about cultural appropriation but my hosts gave me a few outfits to wear - so in the end it seemed more almost polite to join in than wear the little black dress.

Mtn, not sure if you are on Instagram but there is a children's clothing store owner from London who has 5 children of her own and they just did a gorgeous trip to India. The pics were fantastic. She tagged where they went. You should take a look.: lacoquetakids

And her shop- oh my. I have purchased quite a bit for my littles. But that doesn't help with your trip!

robo, you are adorable!

Theclose, thank you! It is not a very common destination, and it is massive and complex, so any and all source of input are welcome!

Edited to add - I just looked through the photos. Stunning.

My brother has traveled to India several times for GE and his company always teams him with a U.S. co-worker who is from India. The last time they went his friend drove him to his family's home which was about an hour from New Delhi. DB didn't think about it on the way out in the afternoon however the return in the evening was rather hairy - no street lamps and no traffic lights and no discernible right of way - so as they approached an intersection his friend would just speed up claiming that the other cars will stop. It reminds me of the traffic circles in New Jersey. He made it back safely but he said he'd never attempt that again.

He always enjoyed his trips there and loved the county, the culture, the food - it was a sensory overload.

One of DH's partners is from India and they go back every summer. Raj stays for a month and his wife and children remain all summer. They are quite wealthy and stay with his parents in the family compound up in the mountains. But even with his personal knowledge of the country there were 2 occasions when one of his children became severely ill due to inadequate hygiene among the locals. He has always told us that when traveling in India you must be cautious with your diet, avoid the 'unwashed' and don't stray too far off the well traveled path. You've traveled enough that you're familiar with all the typical cautions.

However we are all looking forward to a photo of you and your DD's attired in stunning silk saris.

Thanks, Maire_Cate. I have been to India on business, too, but though I was in three cities I had no time to sight-see. I didn't get ill, in fact IIRC I have never gotten ill while travelling anywhere, and that has included a lot of places people worry about. Of course I use bottled water even to brush my teeth, and I am not exactly one for street food.

I too have heard that, outside of the cities (where the traffic is awful and cows a nuisance), driving is downright harrowing. We never do tours, but in India we are looking only at companies that do private tours because we want to be escorted the entire time. Maybe for a couple backpacking you can be more adventuresome, but as a family, India is the one place where I concede to wanting a tour company taking care of us!

How about pre-trip reading (that you all may have already read)? A Suitable Boy - courtship as an allegory for post partition India by one of my favorite authors, Vikram Seth (he also wrote an awesome travelogue about hitchhiking from from China, through Tibet back to India called From Heaven Lake, and his novel An Equal Music is incredible). And The God of Small Things is set in Kerala! And of course Midnight's Children...I seem to also remember really loving Tamarind Mem by Anita Rau Badami.

Mtn, just got an email that Celia (from La Coqueta clothing store) just did a blog entry with details of her trip to India. Here is a link if you are interested:

https://lacoquetakids.wordpress.com/2015/05/01/indian-summers/

Thank you the close, I will go look. I have been spending a lot of time the last few weeks figuring out our itinerary for India. We will use a tour operator but even so I want to thoroughly vet the possibilities. I cannot get over the beauty. I know there are a lot of downsides too, but what an incredible place.

Hi Mtn. What tour operator did you end up with? I'm currently planning a 3-week Mumbai > Delhi itinerary in northern India, with most stays at Aman, Oberoi and Taj properties. Did you happen to post a trip summary or photos? I'm loosely following an Abercrombie & Kent itinerary but am adding other stops.

I peruse destination reviews on a few other sites, but I also really enjoy the insights I learn here. Thanks so much!

Hi Jules,

We ended up using Amber Tours, based in Delhi, and they were excellent. I basically planned the itinerary, and the hotels, but they had someone with us every moment we were in India. A local guide, our driver and his assistant. It was better than 5 star service. Exceeded my expectations (as did the entire trip). I don't usually like or want my hand held, but India may not be a good DIY destination especially with a family and if one likes creature comforts. You of course balance creature comforts against "authentic" experiences, but I felt pleased with the balance for us.

I chose them over Greaves because they are based in India. The pricing was very similar (no bargains anywhere for sure).

We flew into and out of Mumbai, but only to get free flights (for five people in flat beds over spring break, not easy). The only way I could use my frequent flyer miles was by taking that route, so that was pretty compelling (the seats would have cost 10-12k each). I would not suggest Mumbai otherwise. I didn't go to Delhi because I had been on business before and I generally didn't want big cities. But at least Delhi makes sense geographically if you want to see Agra and Rajasthan.

Once I get over the jet lag, I am tempted to go back. We didn't see the Himalayas, or the South at all (many recommend river cruises in Kerala). We were not interested in any safari-type destinations, BTDT, but many seem to like those too.

Our itinerary within India was:

Mumbai, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaiselmer, Jaipur, Alwar, Agra, Varanasi

We stayed at a the Oberoi Mumbai, Oberoi, Udaivilas, Umaid Bhiwan Palace, The Serai, Oberoi Rajvilas, Amanbagh, Oberoi Amarvial and the Nadesar Palace.

As far as itineraries go, Mumbai is interesting but I wouldn't have gone there if we hadn't landed there. I would also take Jaiselmer and Varanasi off the itinerary, and maybe even Alwar (where the Aman is). The rest of the cities are musts, and we loved visiting them. India is such a beautiful place.

Mumbai is mostly just a big modern city. There were some interesting temples, the market, the laundry, a house where Ghandi lived, but .. ehh.

Jaiselmer had intrigued me for the sand dune camel rides and the 14th century fort, near the Pakistan border. The fort was kind of honky tonk, plus you will see soooo many forts. The camel rides were fun, but you can do those elsewhere, and people say the dunes are even better outside Jodhpur. The best thing about it was the hotel, where we stayed in luxury tents that were fab. we had never done the luxe tent before and I thought the kids would love it; they did. But it is a long way to go! We rented a plane to get us from Jaisemler because otherwise it was 10hr on the road. Not worth it.

Alwar is where the Aman is. And not a whole lot else. There is a fort and a temple, like just about everywhere, and the property is gorgeous, just a show stopper ... but TBVH I don't think it is worth a detour in the context of a once-in-a-lifetime trip to India. We had a wonderful stay at the Aman (big fan of the brand) but the Oberois "-vilas" brand is every bit as good as Aman, if not better (heresy!). I do not think it is hyperbole to declare Oberoi -vilas the best hotel brand in the world. Since the Aman is out of the way, I would take it off the list, if that allowed me to visit say, the Himalayas, or Kerala.

We knew Varanasi was a "challenging" place to take a family. I'm glad I went but not sure I would recommend it, esp, since, like Jaiselmer, it is out of the way. It is a crazy circus of a place, like Time Sq New Years eve and Coney Island, times ten, with lots of cows, bulls, dogs, incessant horns, rickshaws, tuks tuks, and motorcycles thrown in, and incredible layers of dirt and stench and the infrastructure of a war zone. It was important to me to visit the Ganges, even if it would probably be a Superfund site here at home. I think we will always remember it, I will say that. Some people think it is the most important site in India. Maybe if you are very spiritual (certainly if one is devout Hindu). I thought the Aarti ceremony with fire was interesting but not worth the trip itself. The cremations are interesting but I didn't feel it was a terribly moving expereince, YMMV. The holy men, covered in white ash and dredlocks and wearing loincloths, seemed like something out of a NatGeo film.

As far as hotels, they were superb. I would make only one change. In Jodhpur, everyone favors the Umaid Palace. Look at the room photos online. For some reason it makes me think of 70s Moscow. I found it depressing. The common areas are TDF and it is cool that the Mararaja lives there, but I would choose the hip Raas downtown. We lunched there. In Varanasi, another former palace, the Nadesar was cool (Reza Pahlavi slept in our room once -- sp?) but a tad rundown. That said, it is the best in Varanasi.

The service and food (both Western and Indian) at all of these hotels was more than 5 star. But, as you know, the prices are Western. I was told even domestic travellers pay those prices, and I can believe it; there is tremendous wealth there alongside the poverty. Eye-popping wealth.

We took Ciproflaxin with us and ate everything, including foods offered to us by locals in a few cases. Three of us got sick over out trip but within hours the Cipro cured it, and we all just took one each day from then on. I was very surprised at the quality and hipness of the Western fare, we also tried a lot of Indian dishes, did a cooking demo, and gained new favorites.

The people are very warm, and it seemed, genuine. They truly seem to have a light, as corny as that sounds. We drove for hours through many small towns, deserts and farms and saw shepherds and farmers and women in saris carrying things on their head. They wave and smile and say hello. We saw very very little begging, and at no time did we ever see anyone who appeared malnourished, to my great surprise. I was told that Rajasthan, where most of our touring was, is one of the wealthier states.

Flights within India were fine (usually only one class of service), but Air India is just ok where as Indigo is a great airline (seems identical to Jetblue).

HTH! I will post pictures soon but I still have a laptop issue with Iphoto and it is a long saga to fix.

Wow! Thank you so very much for that summary. I'm going to reread it a few times and do some research based on your suggestions. And I'll definitely contact Amber. Sounds like you experienced a fabulous trip. My husband unfortunately has no desire to travel to India with me, so I think my 28yo niece is going to be my companion. I'll be an empty nester in the fall, so I'm excited to be able to get away for a full 3 weeks. I'm also using points to fly flat to Mumbai where I'll overnight, and then my current itinerary includes:

Udaipur, Ranakpur, Jodhpur (will check out Raas), Pushkar (I'll be traveling during annual fair dates - might be utter chaos there but interesting nonetheless), Jaipur, Agra, possibly Panna National Park, Varanasi, Delhi

I'm on the fence about Alwar, so your comments help. And I'll rethink Varanasi, although others have said I should see it. I might be able to add on a couple days in Nepal ... or at least see the Himalayas from inside India.

I definitely prefer villages and small cities over metro areas, so I want to fit in as much of that as possible.

Thanks again, Mtn! This is so helpful.

Happy to help, Jules. If you want, just email me and I will give you the contact person; it's a family company. I was told that any clients who go to Delhi are invited to dinner in her home. I was sorry we missed that!

We did do Ranakpur (one of my favorites), but that was enroute between cities not an overnite.

As far as the Aman, we did have a wonderful stay, to be sure. And in all of these places they have elaborate greeting rituals, but their's was so beautiful even my teenagers teared up.

For those who recommend Varanasi, I would ask them why, and see if it resonates with you. It's a tough one.

PS DH did NOT want to go to India either, FWIW. And a lot of people think it is downright odd to want to go. DH now agrees that it was a terrific and fascinating trip.

If I message you here on houzz, would you receive that as an email?

I'm thinking I could swap The Oberoi Vanyavilās for the Aman property (also luxury tents), so that my itinerary could look something like this:

Oberoi, Mumbai

Oberoi Udaivilās, Udaipur

Raas, Jodhpur

? property, near Pushkar

Oberoi Rajvilās, Jaipur

Oberoi Vanyavilās, Ranthambhore

Oberoi Amarvilās, Agra

Himalayas - India or Nepal

Oberoi, Gurgaon near Delhi

I still need to play around with this a bit and look more closely at Varanasi and the Taj properties - can't recall which one caught my eye. Did you travel by train at all?

Jules,

I think so!

I would choose one spot with luxury tents, as that is kind of cool. We hadn't stayed in them before and are unlikely to go back to the parts of the world that have them, so I made that a priority.

I don't know anything about Pushkar. What is it that you are going to see there?

Ranthambhore is to see tigers, yes? We didn't do any wildlife stuff, all I know is someone at the Amanbagh who had been to the other Aman, the Ranthambhore one, said they never did see a tiger! No idea if that is common or not.

Amarvilas is a great spot to see the Taj Mahal; you take a golf cart over to be first in line at sunrise. Amazing.

So jealous you will see the Himalayas/Nepal!

I don't know anything about Gurgaon.

Varanasi hotels are a pretty sorry lot. Nadesar Palace is hands down the best though.

In re hotels generally, I will throw one idea out there. One guide had mentioned that sometimes people want to do the luxury hotels for most of the trip, and then throw in one "home stay", to get more local flavor. Not sure I'd do that as a family of 5, but I like the concept.

We did not travel by train. See further up this post about the $100,000 charge for the luxury train! LOL. I think at the other extreme the trains can be pretty sorry. IDK really.

The thing Amber tours did best was transportation. Other than Varanasi and Mumbai, we had the same driver, assistant and vehicle for the entire trip (at one juncture we flew between 2 points while they drove overnight). The vehicle was very spacious (probably seated 14 or 16; we were 5, plus driver, assistant, and local guide.). It appeared to be brand new. It had a fridge of cold drinks. It had very large sliding windows so you could easily lean out for a photo or fresh air. Not to be rude, but there was no odor. Americans are infamous for our unique aversion to any sort of human scent, and one often finds in other parts of the world that hygiene sensitivities are different. Or, almost as bad, heavy perfumes or colognes or scents are favored. There were no olfactory issues with our transportation, a relief given how many miles we were traversing. The bus rides were actually pleasant. The scenery was often wonderful, it was all so comfy, and it was fun for the whole family to be able to play cards, etc, as Mom and Dad were not navigating/driving. We made several interesting stops just along side of the road to look at farming or crops or wells or animals, meet local school kids, etc .

We did bring snacks with us, unsure of what we might find if we got the munchies in rural India. I packed granola bars, nuts, and fruit leather (we were glad to have those, though we were plied with wonderful food at B,L and D).

Twice we had 5hr long car rides; we stopped half way at fabulous lunches. One at a Royal Mountbatten Lodge, another time we dined in a "treehouse". Bathroom facilities can be rare, esp Western style, but the driver knew where to take us.

I will message you for the contact at Amber. That type of private guide sounds perfect for this trip.

Pushkar Fair is an annual camel and livestock festival held in November. Google photos of the event. It looks quite extraordinary, colorful, lively and chaotic. I feel lucky that I'm traveling through the region at that time. Looks like luxury tents are offered there, too, albeit a different type of experience than Vanyanvilas.

I'm getting so excited!

Ok, I will log in and look for your email.

I saw the photos for Pushkar, looks amazing. Do ride a camel. it's very easy ... we even played polo on camels! I did not like the elephant ride everyone takes up the Amber Fort, on two grounds. Not sure it is up to current animal rights standards vs. some of the elephant experiences we had in Thailand. Also, you sit on them oddly, sideways, and I was sure I was going to slide off and bang my head open on the 14th century cobblestones and spend weeks in a sorry rundown fan-cooled hospital getting curry IV. My arms were sore for days from holding on (but then I ama fraidy cat, too).

But you should have an elephant experience while you are there (bathing the babies is fun), if you haven't done that before. And a camel ride. And see the monkeys; some of which are mean and some sweet. I forgot that feeding the monkeys in our backyard at the Aman villas (fruit) was a highlight.