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Diana

(Are they falling for it Ma?)

Ok, here is the deal. I go back to my beloved Kerala end of January and it's looking like I have the opportunity (my think-positive word for "I gotta") to travel from south India up allllll the way to Uttarakhand in the North where I will spend a few weeks at a "sister" program to my own in Dehra Dun. This will be in mid-late April/Early May.

It will be me and possibly a few of my staff members (1-3) and I'm wanting to make this a fun excursion to the North as it will be my first time further up than Mumbai.

So, do I fly? Go by train?

Obviously I need to visit the Taj Mahal as I pass by...but what else?

Often I see folks post on this site with a jam-packed two week trip to all of India and I feel feint with exhaustion (I'm a 40+ woman of the world but not a 20-something aerobics instructor any longer--not that I ever was, but then I digress...).

Thus when I started contemplating this "side" trip I thought I should just toss it out to you folks to get the best input from the start as to what to see, do, ...what not to...where to stay and so on. The "must dos" that one can do in...let's say, 3 weeks. And I'll be returning to the U.S. at the end of this journey so will need to keep that in mind. Time is somewhat flexible.

So, Suggestions please. Best planned itinerary wins a souvenir from...uh...India!

Oh, and if my staff and I wear India Mike Tees, will IM foot the bill?

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pgupta

Let's start with a guidebook. Read that and see what interests you. You can make your way from Kerala -> Mahrashtra -> Rajasthan -> Uttaranchal (khand). Lots of day hiking/treks in Uttaranchal.

Flying is still expensive in India. I prefer using trains for long distances and buses/jeeps. No trains in the mountains so you have to use jeep.

Spend about 3 weeks per state and in about 4 months you can see about 4-5 states of india in great detail. Look at a map of India and plan a logical route.

happy travelling

pallav

http://pallavgupta.homeunix.org

shashank.aggarwal

I want the prize first ..

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pontesnm

It is very hot in most of India at that time. See weather underground (link below). (I should add that I have seen the Taj in May when it was 44 C in the shade. I was in the sun most of the day - almost got heatstroke from not having enough water; I was a teenager then LOL). How much heat can you take? Kearala is one of the cooler places. In India I would only recommend the coastal areas and the mountains

http://www.wunderground.com/global/IN.html

Diana

Wow...and here I stupidly thought I would be getting out of the heat of summer and into the cool of the mountains.




There you go!

Sama

only when the mods start getting paid.....

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shashank.aggarwal

Mountains would be fine..however Agra, Delhi, Jaipur are no mountains..they are cities with extreme climate..too cold in winters and too hot in summers..the temperature varies betweem 2'C to 46'C or more.

However if you actually plan to spend time in mountains them you can use Delhi as the base town and then move on from here.

Secondly if you are coming this far, I would strongly recommend withstanding the heat for one and visiting Taj..it can easily be done in a day trip...

Since you are 3-4 travellers, economics of a AC Indica will work fine for you. I would recommend doing the Delhi-Jaipur-Agra trip as I see that you would be leaving the county soon and don't want you to miss on that.

After that you can move on to hills...now there are lot of options there as well..if you interested in Trekking then you can do that as well...and it would be your choice if you want to spend time in Uttrakhand OR Himachal Pradesh...as both thse states cover Himalayas Extensively..

Diana

Thanks for the information. The train is sounding good given the cost of airfare and that I'm not traveling alone (I don't think...not sure at this point.)

I am fairly heat sensitive (by India standards, about average by U.S. standards) and I melted in Kerala last May so I'm a bit anxious about Agra in April. Any better in Feb? Mar? Ever?

A day trip should be ok. Just can't see missing it though I'm getting to be a semi-ex-pat...will be back in Sept through Feb in fact (at least that is the plan.)

And that leads to the next thing you mentioned. I don't think I'll be trekking a lot. (medical reasons) but would like to take at least one small (long weekend type) trek into the mountains. One that doesn't involved tons of walking.

And I will be in Dehra Dun for "work" of sorts. Mostly will have a week or so of free time.

All advice is welcome and I especially just would like to know "don't miss" places/sites/events...I can work out the details next week.

shashank.aggarwal

April - July are hot months in Northern India...August and September are soaked in monsoon...

Rest of the six months are fine for traveling..if you are in Dehradun and would have time off, you can PM our member Dilliwala. he is a big fan of those places and know them like back of his hand. he will give all the information that you might require about the mountains in that region. Just PM and ask him to post in this thread so other members can also benefit/contribute.

bijapuri

you could break journey north at Mt. Abu in Rajasthan. It's a hill station, though I suspect it's only a little cooler in may, but you would see the Dilwara temples anyway.

Flying isn't expensive if you book ahead and do it on Deccan, now owned by Kingfisher, I believe

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Diana

Soo....if I went in October? I could possible postpone this trip until then as my Feb-April stretch is already packed with work. (I have, however, secretly books a secluded villa for a week of pure R & R ...well, almost pure, I'm taking my staff along. )

Rest of the six months are fine for traveling..if you are in Dehradun and would have time off, you can PM our member Dilliwala. he is a big fan of those places and know them like back of his hand. he will give all the information that you might require about the mountains in that region. Just PM and ask him to post in this thread so other members can also benefit/contribute.[/quote]

Excellent! Will do. Thanks for the tip.

Likewise to you bidjapuri! Thanks!

Dilliwala

Oye, WHAT IS THIS??
Am I the designated spokesman for DD/Muss now?? Then I want some REAL MONEY - no t-shirts, no smileys, and I cudn't care less if the Mods remain unpaid!

Diana, there's a LOT of info on Dehradun and Mussoorie on the site - just do a search. Thereafter u can always come back with more specific Q's.
End-Apr and early-May will be absolutely ideal weather-wise. In fact early-May is the latest one shud get out before the summer-hordes descend, unless u have a place to stay away from the bazar. Also search for Dhanolti, which is good for a day-trip from Mussoorie. Also nearby is Surkanda Devi, a 1.3 km uphill ascent (500 m) along a cemented path. Great views on a clear day, altho in that time-frame u are very unlikely to see the snows, except early morning.

Nick-H

And that'll be after the members start paying subscriptions!

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Diana

And that will be when Agra freezes over in March!

Plan B. Definitely going up in October.