Help needed on my itinerary in India (from south to north)

iamlody

Hey all, thanks for any advice you privide in advance! I am 25/M, alone for this 21-day travel in India. Arrived at Bangalore at Oct 12th and left from Delhi at Oct 31st.

i got 20 days in India, with both flights fixed (Oct 12 @ Bangalore and Oct 31 @ Delhi)

Maybe this is my first and only chance to travel alone to India, so i wanna to see as many as i can this time

The must go places for me are Madurai, Hampi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Varanasi, Khajuraho, Agra, Delhi. Besides i also want to visit Kanniyakumari/Jaipur/Udaipur... am i too greedy

since Bangalore is my first place in India, Madurai/ Kanniyakumari/ Hampi are all around it. Then i got the following choices. (Fly from Hyderabad to Kolkata just $85, quite good price to save 2 days in train)

1. Bangalore - Madurai - Kanniyakumari - Bangalore - Hampi(Hospet) - Mumbai - Hyderabad - (Fly to) Kolkata - Varanasi - Khajuraho - Agra - Jaipur - Delhi

2. Bangalore - Madurai - Kanniyakumari - Mumbai - Hampi(Hospet) Hyderabad -(fly to) Kolkata - - Varanasi - Khajuraho - Agra - Jaipur - Delhi


or can you provide me other more feasible more efficient itineraries? thank you so much!!

wichy

If I have the only chance to travel to India, I would skip Kanyakumari and replace it by Kerala backwaters - Quilon, for example, is well connected with Madurai and Mumbai or Bangalore by train, or you can find a cheap flight from Cochin straight to Mumbai.

And when in Bangalore, don't miss Mysore and at least Somnathpur temple :-)

Than - the train from Mumbai to Hyderabad will takes about 16 hours, and the train from Hubli to Mumbai will take 16 hours also plus 3-4 hours to get from Hampi to Hubli, but there is a overnight train from Hospet (which is near Hampi) to Hyderabad, and there are some cheap flights from Mumbai to Kolkata (about 100$). So if I were you - I would make it this way:

Bangalore - Madurai - Kanniyakumari (or Allepey/Quilon) - Bangalore - Hampi(Hospet) - Hyderabad - Mumbai -(Fly to) Kolkata - Varanasi - Khajuraho - Agra - Jaipur - Delhi

__________________
Past the point of no return...

iamlody

Thank you so much Wichy! Your suggestion helps a lot!

one more Q: is Hyderabad worth a 2-day travel? if not I may skip Hyderabad and go to Mumbai from Hospet directly

vonkla

If I were you I should skip Hyderabad. There are some nice things to see but it is not worth two days of traveling.

__________________
.
See our travel journals Mumbai-Dehli in three months; From Kochi to Delhi

wichy

I personally like Hyderabad - it has it's own unique ambience, and if you like forts - Golkonda fort is excellent. If I have to choose - I would prefer Hyderabad to Mumbai. But the best option - to replace Mumbai by Ellora/Ajantha, they are really worth a visit!!! There are some convenient overnight trains from Hyderabad to Aurangabad and back.

But Mumbai has it's own charm too, and it's more convenient for flight to Kolkata. You can visit Elefanta caves when you're in Mumbai, as you don't have time for Ellora/Ajantha caves.

Anyway - the train straight from Hospet to Mumbai is unconvinient IMHO and run only 2 days a week, and to go to Hubli and take a train from there will take you too much time - so I would prefere to have an overnight train from Hospet to Hyderabad, and than take a fast train from Hyderabad to Mumbai.

iamlody

Thanks both

Too many wonderful places to go but i got such tight time frame, damn it >..<

I love ancient architectures! temples/forts/ruins are all fine.

So i may skip Kanniyakumari, and my itinerary becomes

Bangalore-Mysore-Madurai-Bangalore-Hampi-Hyderabad-Mumbai-Kolkata-Varanasi-Khajuraho-Agra-Jaipur-Udaipur-Delhi

any suggestion on Jaipur and Udaipur? both are fantastic! but if i have to choose only one of it, should i choose Jaipur? (Amber Fort, Sheesh Mahal etc)

need your experience

Thanks!

wichy

I cant give you advice about Udaipur/Jaipur, as I love both and they're very different. Each of them is good for taste of Rajasthan, and each of them are a bit touristy. But as the connection between Agra and Jaipur is better - choose Jaipur.

iamlody

Yes i love Jaipur also

As you said these two places are very different. what's the difference between them? the building or the view or other things?

wichy

The buildings and the city look are different too - but more difference is in the ambience. Jaipur is bigger and more bustling, it has more traffic in the city centre, and Udaipur is more relaxed, and lakes make it look like a coastal town. Sights are great in both, and both has lots of tourists (Jaipur has a bit more, I think - but it's bigger).

If you decide in favour of Jaipur - don't miss Choki Dhani - a big entertainmant complex stylized as a Rajasthani village with great food and lots of amusement And if you choose Udaipur - don't miss a dance show in Bagore-ki-Haveli

iamlody

Wichy you are great! I think i will visit both, LOL

bonded

Day 1 Bangalore
Day 2 Hampi Express from Bangalore (SBC) 22:30 Hospet (HPT) 07:45 running all days
Day 3 Hampi
Day 4 Kanyakumari Express (6381) Guntakal (HPT) 07:50 Nagarcoil (NCJ) 11:35 running all days
Day 5 Kanyakumari
Day 6 Kanyakumari Express (2634) Kanyakumari (CAPE) 17:15 Madurai (MDU) 21:50
Day 7 Madurai
Day 8 Kanyakumari Express (2634) Madurai (MDU) 21:55 Chennai Egmore (MS) 06:45
Day 9 Jaipur Express (2967) Chennai Central (MAS) 17:30 Jaipur (JP) 05:55
Day 10 Travel
Day 11 Jaipur
Day 12 Marudhar Express (4854) Jaipur (JP) 15:50 Varanasi Junction (09:30)
Day 13 Varanasi
Day 14 Bundelkhand Express (1108) Varanasi Junction (BSB) 17:10 Mahoba (MBA) 03:25)
Day 15 Mahoba to Khajuraho by taxi
Day 15 Khajuraho Nizamuddin Express (2447A) Khajuraho (18:15) Agra Cantt (AGC) 02:25
Day 16 Agra
Day 17 Gwalior Udaipur Express (2965) Agra Fort (AF) 18:20 Jaipur (JP) 22:20) or RSRTC bus
Day 18 Jaipur
Day 19 Jaipur Delhi by bus

iamlody

OMG guy you are helping me from hell! Thank you so much. i think i would pick up some of your information