Planning on eloping to India!- Help needed ,South India itinerary!

edwardseco

Also, if you want to see Kerala or Hyderabad you may consider flying to save time..

danelam

Thanks all for the advice. We are Australian citizens,but I have a student visa for the US. So, the marriage will have to be recognized by the US in order for my fiancee to get a spousal visa in conjunction with my student visa.

Are there some nice resorts in the South that anyone could recommend?

edwardseco

Assuming your visas are still valid I would begin the visa process back in the US. It takes some time and an interview usually. But, you may get lucky since its in conjunction with your student visa..

danelam

Yes she will have to have an interview at the US consulate in Sydney and provide my visa which is valid for another year.

freenote

Hi Danelam ,just to give you a guide on hotel prices ,it is possible to have a room which is nice and clean ,en-suit and satellite TV for as little as 400/500 irs ,might help the budget a bit

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kmalik

Having successfully avoided the Indian marriage scene in favor of a civil marriage in the US, I'll stay out of advising on the idea of getting married in India - and focus on the 7-10 day travel aspect.

The first question you need to think about is the timing of your trip and heat factor in the summer (when I assume your trip will be). That would steer me towards Bangalore and environs than Tamilnadu. In that context, I should mention that we still consider Hampi to be among the highlights of our recent travels in India. It might be hot in the summer, but definitely worth a consideration. We have considered a trip to the Coorg district, but can not comment on it without having been there. You could combine Bangalore, Mysore and Hampi into a reasonable 7-10 day itinerary, which might be comfortable in the summer months.

We have been to and liked Kerala, but not sure if summer months are the best time to visit. But perhaps some of the hill stations like Munnar might be good to consider.

danelam

Thankyou for the tips

I've been researching possible itineraries along with places to stay. I was thinking of doing Kerala. Flying into Cochin and from there doing a houseboat cruise for a night or two in the backwaters (was looking into a package from the Malabar House). From there heading to one of the hill stations perhaps Ooty. We would also like some time at the beach too.

I must say that the response to this thread has been overwhelmin and really helpful. Thanks a heap to all who've posted.

I've also ordered the lonely planet south india book today so I can get a good overview of what I might want to do so that I can plan accordingly.

zoltan

> Can anyone recommend tours, accomodation, itineraries etc.

Here's a quick suggestion:
- Chennai
- Mamallapuram
- Thanjavur (this is a *really* nice location - not too touristy & some lovely temples)
- Madurai (home to one of the important Hindu temples) and finally
- Chennai.

> Is Hyderabad out of the question?
Probably a little far out of the way, to make a detour given your tight time frame.

As far as hotels go, in Thanjavur, you can't go past the "Hotel River Resort". Absolutely brilliant; not too expensive (~AU$50 per night) and lots of places to explore in the outer laying villages - they had bikes for hire ~AU$2 for a few hours.

Cheers
Zoltan

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