India - Any advice

[tangof1]

Hi

Me and a couple of friends are looking at going to India in october for the F1 Grand Prix in New Delhi, while were still in planning stages, i was wondering if anyone who has been to India (New Delhi in partcular) to give us any advice on what to do and what not to do while we are there.

Plan is to have 6 nights in New Delhi, 3 are written off for the F1 and one of the days is to head to the Taj Mahal and Red Fort in Agra.

Am looking at other places to visit for a few days afterwards the F1, one is to head to Mumbai or Nepal to experince the himalayas.

Any advice would be greatful.

David.

 

[Brisbane Flyer]

India, one of my favorite places on earth, been there 50+ times, love it.
You will need one full day for the Taj assuming driving or train to Agra and back from Delhi, Red Fort is in Delhi, that and other sites in Delhi can be done in 2 days.

Also, visit Fatehpur Skiri outside of Agra, its out there, but interesting.

There is lots to do in Delhi in 2 days, no need to go anywhere else for your 3 days, plus the one day in Agra.

This way, next visit to India u can go other places and say been there done that with Delhi.

 

[drmikki]

I didn't really enjoy Agra - I wouldn't be spending the night there unless you plan to do an early AM Taj visit. According to Karun Chandhok, the track is midway between Agra and Delhi, so if you did overnight you could conceivably attend Friday's proceedings on the way between the 2 - although that will depend on how much luggage you have, and I am not sure if the infrastructure is in place yet. Please note also that I can't vouch for Karun's tourism knowledge, although I'd stake my life on his F1 knowledge!

As the others have said, you will easily find things to do in Delhi for your other days, although if you really want to get out and see other places I would recommed Jaipur. If the rumours I am hearing about traffic access between Greater Noida and Delhi are true, you may be in traffic jams for those extra 2 days

See you there!

 

[RB]

Maybe Agra as a town is not fantastic but as a starter I would be making sure I had time to see Agra fort, then the Taj from the back (over the bridge & across the river from Taj) & then early next am for a visit into the Taj. While there I would also make time to see Panch Mahal at Fatehpur Sikri as per Bris Flyer.

 

[browski]

Plan is to have 6 nights in New Delhi, 3 are written off for the F1 and one of the days is to head to the Taj Mahal and Red Fort in Agra.

Am looking at other places to visit for a few days afterwards the F1, one is to head to Mumbai or Nepal to experince the himalayas.

David.

1. Don't call it New Delhi, it's Delhi.
2. If you are on a multi-entry Tourist Visa, you probably will not be allowed back into India if you visit Nepal - you have to have 6 weeks between India entries.
3. Agra is a cesspit and the trip to the Taj is complete rubbish. (unless you just want to say you've done it.)
4. The backwaters around Cochin and Allepey are pretty cool, Madurai in Tamil Nadu is underated, The Osho ashram in Pune is interesting.

 

[tangof1]

Yeah I heard from Karun Chandhok and many F1 journlists its about two hours from the airport which is south of the city. By the way drmikki Did you enjoy Malaysia and China? Was there at KL.

Someone said you can have 2 days to see the sights of Delhi, whats recommended to see in the city.

Nepal was going to be a long shot, but i think now we might have a few days in Hong Kong and/or Singapore on the way back to Australia.

 

[Happy Dude]

I rate the Taj the most magnificent building on the planet and it is deserving of at least two visits in order to see the way sunlight changes the colour of the building and the atmosphere of the surrounds. Travel to Agra the day before you plan to visit the taj. View the taj from across the river in the late afternoon as RB mentioned and watch the sunset from a rooftop bar. Early AM at the Taj is fantastic. It is a sad endictment on India, and more than a touch ironic these days, that the entry fee is based on your nationality.

Agree with others here about Fatephur Sikri, but I'd recommend Ellora and/or Ajanta over anything in Rajasthan.

There's so much to do in India that heading to Nepal seems onerous on a short trip. There's plenty of the Himalayas in India anyways.

 

[CMak]

Hi - just returned from spending 4 weeks in India. We did the Delhi - Agra - Jaipur triangle and really enjoyed it. We then spent the rest of the time in game parks looking for tigers, successfully.
We had drivers and our own vehicles for the whole trip when not flying. Loved the Taj Mahal and most of the other historical sites.Getting out into the country away from the larger population centres was very worthwhile.
CMak

 

[RB]

A site that I found pretty useful was indiamike.com. Plenty of info & feedback & opinions.

 

[wannerb21]

My advise is to try and book as many trips etc from Australia.. with their exchange rates, black market and chaotic ticketing procedures you can do your dough if you get into some of the queues to buy tickets there.

 

[john john]

Taj at Dawn is worth the early rise and the overnight in Agra. The light is beautiful and you might miss the crowds. Backside of Taj across the river is a worthwhile less-seen perspective. Agra is like most of India - dirty and especially confronting if you've never done developing world (come to think of it India can be confronting even if you've done the developing world). I agree that there is other stuff around Agra worth seeing (Fatehpur Sikri, little Taj).

Amritsar on the Pakistan border NW of Delhi is an ON train from Dehli. The Golden temple, the holiest place for Sikhs, is a beautiful place and experience. The border closing ceremony nearby is a truly bizarre and worth a look.

Further away I can recommend: Varanasi on the Ganges, especially if you're there in late October for Diwali; Bandhavgarh for Tigers in the wild; and Rajasthan

We visited India in late 2007. For Agra, we were lucky enough to strike upon a great Rickshaw wallah who we used for the entire time we were there. He did a great job so are happy to recommend him especially now that he's moved up in the world [email protected] Welcome in India (his website has issues at the moment). PM with your email address if you'd like more info on what we did.

 

[drmikki]

Has anyone visited Darjeeling? Any recommendations for travel in that region? I will likely have 2 weeks in India prior to the GP so the options are Chennai and surrounds (probably doing charity work with friend's mum's charity) or if that falls through I'd like to head to the mountains and tea plantations. Any advice for the less-visited tourist areas greatly appreciated!