travelling to India overland?

icetea

anyone tried it lately?
the Turkey - Iran - Pakistan - India overland route?

I was thinking of at least going to Istanbul or Tehran by train, and then taking a flight from there to India....

anyone else considered this option? should be much cheaper for sure...

Shiver me Timbers

I just asked my uncle about this, who did it during the seventies - now he says he wouldn't consider Iran to be safe at the moment, due to the current unrest - however, if you're determined, I'm sure you'll find a way.

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Shikari

I have heard that Iranians are very hospitable people and that even when the Ayatollah was in power and they were regularly demonstrating and burning the US flag they were still very friendly and helpful to travellers. It remains to be seen whether their hospitality will be affected by muslim men, woman and children being killed and maimed on a daily basis by the US in neighbouring Iraq.

Shiver me Timbers

Yes, it remains to be seen if all westerners have been tarred by the same brush. I have no doubt the majority of Iranians are very hospitable and welcoming people. Still though, it does no harm to exercise caution.

seventies'hippy

Good question icetea,
Lost count of the number of times I've done the old route in the past,,,,,,,,
But that was in the days when there wasn't a real alternative, and besides who would have missed out on seeing afghanistan & trucking down through the Kyber Pass.
These days I have a little more money & a lot less time, & airplane tickets are so easy to come by.
I wouldn't worry overduly about Iran,the routes are still open and people do travel these roads with slight variations, ie from Tehran go to Mashad & then head south east and enter pakistan from there.
I don't know how one crosses over into India these days, guess it depends on the tension at the land crossing, or get your flight from Lahore or one of the northern cities.

Hope someone replies with more uptodate info

Shikari

There's a good book on the subject ASIA OVERLAND:A ROUTE AND PLANNING GUIDE (1998) by Mark Elliot & Wil Klass. It offers a variety of possible routes, modes of transport and advice about where to stay and what to see.

anthropologist

I went to Iran and Armenia last year. Any tourist in Iran will get a fabulous reception. I have never been to such a friendly country. Last year there were hardly asny tourists...we say one Brit, a French chap and his son and a small group of Scandinavians. There are lots of postings about going to Iran on Thorntree but my impression is that most people think about it but then don't bother.

Although my husband is an American and I'm a Brit Iranians seemed well able to distinguish between government policies and personal politics...in this regard they do far better than we do in the west! People loved to talk politics and complain about their governement.

We met a couple of Dutch guys who had driven from Europe in their car and we heading for Pakistan they seemed to think it wouldn't be a problem but it did seem fairly advenurous to us!

Getting into Iran is more complicated for Americans (and sometimes Brits) as you need to go through a travel agent to secure a visa...however for many other nationals it seems fairly uncomplicated though bureaucratic.

I highly recommend visiting Iran though I don't know anything about taking a car in or going on to Pakistan/Afganistan.

skell

I lived in Iran as a child and have always wanted to go back for a visit (I loved it), but an Iranian friend recently told me that now was a bad time. He said he wouldn't even go there right now.

Shikari

There's a very interesting website:
http://www.ozbybike.co.uk/
by a couple who travelled all the way from Scotland to Australia via Asia by bicycle. Well worth a read.

shere

Land crossing is open. The train was running two times week in April.

vistet

The other option is going thru Russia and the ´stans : Moscow - Samarkand is a short (55 hrs) jaunt by train. From there Urumchi or Bishek, Kashgar , Ngari or KKH.
Only armchair travelling so far.

icetea

hmm....thank you all for the replies

in fact I do know the route....at least in theory. It's Budapest - Istanbul - Tehran by train...then Kerman- Zahedan - Quetta - Lahore - Amritsar - Delhi....by train & bus.

there is this great travel site...http://www.seat61.com/India.htm...the train/bus routes are available there..along with fares and all...

On the Lonelyplanet Thorntree forum there were people saying they went on that route recently. One just arrived to India 2 months back. Also heard stories about another person who went til the Pakistani border without any problems. So...one needs to be cautious...but it is quite possible to travel without problems..to get one's Visa at the borders, etc.

Still, I was wondering if anyone wants to share his/her recent experience on that...or, even better, if anyone is willing to go on that route anytime soon...especially because, being a female, I am quite apprehensive about travelling alone (I never quite understood how some women manage to do that..lol).

anthropologist....yes, you are right....many people consider the route and then don't do it. It will probably happen to me too. I wanted to save some money by going overland, for the plane tickets are quite expensive to me, but then...being a female travelling alone....having bigger luggage with me.....maybe it's not such a safe idea after all

wonderwomanusa

Please, cut down your luggage and find a companion.

volga_volga

Hi, icetea!! i have just come back from three weeks of travelling solo (white woman) in Pakistan and i am overwhelmed by the warm reception, hospitality and generousity of Pakistani people. I have felt very safe!! contrary to what i was expecting. I am going back there next year. for sure.

for Iran, a friend of mine, an Australian woman, travelled there with her husband a few months back, and she loved it too. I was sceptical a bit about her experience until i went to Pakistan myself -both are Islamic states but... don't trust what you see in the papers. on the ground level it is different.

i guess no amout of opinions will ever give you enough assurance that it is safe and enjoyable to travel in these countries, you must take the risk but the reward, i think, will be commensurate with the amout of risk that you'll take

myself being Russian, i'd say (and i posted it on the relevant thread) that travelling on a train through Russia is boring almost no heritage left (all destroyed by Soviet years) and people are less than welcoming and really grumpy but... a Pakistani friend of mine from London told me NOT TO GO to Pakistan by myself, i went and had a fab time. so, i also learnt that the natives are not very good at judging how you'll do in their countries as an independent traveller.

pls feel free to ask me more if you are still thinking about this route

v-v

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volga_volga

oh, and with regards to what WWUSA said about finding companion, i have exactly opposite opinion which i expressed on this thread