Itinerary - how to fit in elephants and caves

Granola

Greetings

I thought I had gotten my itinerary/budget for my 29-day trip all sorted, but then I started reading up on the caves in Ellora and Ajanta. They sound amazing, and I think my mother (just turned 60 yrs old whom I am meeting in Delhi to travel with) would really enjoy them.

Another backbacker also mentioned that I should try and see elephants while I am there. Any ideas where I can (best) do that?

I'm now going back-and-forth as to what to drop to allow room for these. I would appreciate any advice. If you could choose to drop from any of the following: Bharatpur, Ranthambhone, Jaisalmar, Udaipur, less time (6 days) in Goa, or less time (4 days) in Delhi, which would you choose?

Or, are the caves and elephants really worth it? And do you think I'm pushing my just-turned-60-year-old mother too hard with too aggressive of an itinerary?

I've copied and pasted my original itinerary below.


Dec 1-2 Flight to Delhi
Dec 2-6 Delhi (4 nights) - Tour North Delhi 1 day, South Delhi next day and relax third day
Dec 6-7 TRAIN Agra (1 night) - See Taj Mahal and Agra Fort
Dec 7-8 TRAIN Bharatpur (1 night) - Bird Sanctuary bike ride
Dec 8-9 TRAIN Ranthambhone (1 night) - Jeep Tour
Dec 9-11 TRAIN Jaipur (2 nights) - 2 days Pink City tour
Dec 11-12 TRAIN Jodhpur (1 night) - train ride and sleep
Dec 12-14 TRAIN Jaisalmar (2 nights) - Camel Safari
Dec 14-15 TRAIN Jodhpur (1 night) - see Fort
Dec 15-17 FLY Udaipur (2 nights) - tour Udaipur, 1 day RELAX
Dec 17-19 FLY Mumbai (2 nights) - tour City, see Elephanta island
Dec 19-21 FLY North Goa Mandrem beach (2 nights) - BEACH RELAX, see that flea market
Dec 21-24 BUS South Goa Palolem beach (3 nights) - BEACH RELAX
Dec 24-26 FLY Cochin, Bus to Kumarakom (2 nights semi fancy resort) - Christmas, massages/yoga etc.
Dec 26-27 Boat Cruise from Alapezzy (1 night)
Dec 27-28 FLY Trivandrum-Delhi
Dec 28-29 Delhi Sleep
Dec 29 - Fly home

Merchant

This is your first trip to India, right? Your itinerary isn't going to hold up, nor will you want it to--not for any specific reason, just because India is India. Travel, even when you fly, can be pretty exhausting.

Resist the urge to plan the whole trip. Go over and do the first several things you have planned and then reevaluate. Stuff will take far longer than you expect--what you thought was a half-day excursion will turn out to be a full day one. You'll also discover things you want to see that aren't in bold print in the guidebooks. Then some nice family will invite you home for dinner, etc.

Ellora is probably a better investment than Ajanta, though they are close to each other. You can spend some time in Aurangabad, with a day at the Ellora caves and Daulatabad Fort, and some time later in the markets and monuments in the town. Aurangabad is about 8 hours by train from Mumbai, if I recall, a night train.

cyberhippie

I agree with merchant that is a punishing itinery especially for your old mum!!
Personally I would leave out the south all together or at the very least the kerala or Goa section!
In your Rajasthan section I would drop one of the fort towns as they all have a very similar feel (apart from Jaiselmer)
The Ellora caves are magnificent and Aurangabad is a friendly town with a few attractions of it's own!

Granola

Thanks so much for your feedback. I was thrilled to have found a forum like this with so much good advice.
And yes, this is my first trip to India. I am very excited (and very nervous) about it. I will take your advice and try to be less ambitious/rigid.
Cheers.

iyou

Shoot! I was hoping someone could answer the question of you fit in an elephant. Quite warm there, no doubt.
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machadinha

Hmm. For wild elephants read up on wildparks that boast them, I don't really know of one that's especially recommended, hopefully someone else will be along with some advice. Trained elephants you'll see plenty of in everyday life if you're a little lucky, I've seen them walking down Delhi's Main Bazaar even. I seem to remember they were a little more common down south but this may just have been my impression; generally, they are being driven out of business by modern machinery. In some (many?) of the wildparks elephants are an integral part of the general workforce and a mode of transport, it can be really nice to observe them and their mahouts and their everyday dealings, not to mention being taken on a ride on one. Man are they huge! Great fun.

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Reading tips, all picked up at IndiaMike : INDAX's A Comprehensive Guide To India / Dinoj Surendran's Desi Humor / ITHVC on Culture Shock & Travel Health / JetLag Travel Guides For the Undiscerning Traveller / India Travel Links

sticky

Thats what i thought..... Maybe im too tired, but I read the title as "How do you fit elephants into caves"

maybe I am too tired

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dzibead

Wow, yes, I second the comments above. I got tired just reading your itinerary!

Way too much flying and too many train trips. You aren't giving yourself enough time just to "be" in India. You're just going to be rushing from place to place.

Keep in mind, also, that if you think you can keep to a tight schedule and do a lot of train travel in India you're in for a big surprise. While I think train travel is a fantastic part of the Indian experience - really, it's more than just a way of getting from here to there - to the extent that you really are relying on it for getting around rather than just for the experience of an Indian railway trip, you should be prepared for delays - sometimes very significant delays. A few too many trips that last 14 hours rather than the 6 you were expecting may leave you hating India, and that would not be "a good thing," as Martha Stewart would say.