Rajasthan or South India-first time traveller

Hi all...planning my first trip to India in mid Feb 2013...can't choose between Rajasthan or South India...e.g ..Bangalore, Mysore, Ooty, Fort Cochin, Varkala

I have 4 weeks and would prefer not to jump from one end of the country to the other...i will be back...any advice would be greatly appreciated....i have travelled a fair bit but believe India is like nothing else...

Train reservations seem to be on my mind...can I do this when i arrive...day before travel?...week before?...

HELP...!!!!!

Rajasthan gets my vote.

Use cleartrip.com and book as soon as you're done finalizing your itinerary. A day before,your only option would be the foreign tourist quota.

Where you visit, is your own choice, really.

Read http://www.indiamike.com/india/india...012-a-t165379/, necessary to book tickets in advance? and Should I really book all my train tickets way in advance?

Is there anything in particular that you want to see or do while you are in India? Listing a few of these might help the choice.

Four weeks is a good time, and you can indeed jump from one end of the country to the other. How about spending two weeks in Rajasthan and then moving to Kerala for the rest of the time? I think you'll still be able to spend some leisurely time in both the states, covering a lot of ground and experiencing two very different regions.

Delhi - Jaipur - Pushkar - Udaipur - Jodhpur - Jailsalmer - Bikaner.

4 weeks. Purrrrrrrrrfect.

Yes please. Happy days.

Being my first trip to India i want to limit the destinations to about 8(4 days each)...

Thinking about it i suppose i could do a little of Rajasthan and fly to the South..

eg...Delhi and Bundi in the north

Mysore and Fort Cochin in the south..

I want to mix it up a bit and have even thought of throwing Kolkata and/or Varanassi into the mix....

My main concern is not to overdo it ....i would rather visit fewer destinations and relax rather than rush about...
Train journey sounds fabulous but I really love exploring old parts of any town or city...

@ Relics1956

You can easily do 2 weeks in the north, and 2 in the south. It's a short flight comparatively speaking.

I did as follows:


14 nights: (plus a couple of transit nights in Delhi to make flight connections)

Delhi
Agra (by road)
Khajuraho (by train and road)
Varanasi (by air)
Rishikesh (by air)
Amritsar (by train, overnight)

Then 12 nights:

Mumbai (by air)
Fort Cochin (by air)
Allepey (on a houseboat) (by road)


Flew into Delhi, and out of Kochi.

Your desire to spend 4 days everywhere is admirable, but probably unnecessary - depending on what you're trying to achieve.

I agree with other posters about having some idea what you want to see and experience. Become as familar as you can with the country. Buy or borrow a copy of the Lonely Planet Guide to see their suggested itineraries, and to read more about the Indian States, and possible destinations. LP also has suggestions around themes, like temples or wildlife or beaches etc.

Go to your local travel agent, and pick up all their brochures on India, just for the ideas about where to go, and what to do.

http://www.indiaunbound.com.au


Trawl through the official tourism website:

http://www.incredibleindia.org/

Thanks to all who have replied thus far...great to get different views, ideas, destinations, possible itineraries...it's exactly what i was looking for to get me started...

I will go away and do more research and keep all posted ...hopefully i will have a clearer idea of the journey in a couple of weeks...in the meantime any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...

thanks again

Hi. Both places are good. Rajasthan will appeal to you if you like desert environs, royal palaces and architecture. Mysore is similar except for the desert. Kerala (varkala) is more of beaches and islands. Ooty would appeal to you if you like hill stations! So depending on what landscape and theme you prefer, you can decide

Hi all ..after much deliberation have opted for what seems to be a fairly relaxed itinerary for feb 2013...4 weeks
Delhi,Jodhpur,Udaipur, Bundi, Khajurhao, Mysore, Trivandrumum, Varkala, Alleppey, Kochi.
I want to fly where I can but need help between Bundi & Khajuraho...train,bus or car/driver????then best way south from Khajurhao..looks like I can fly...(preferred option)...is this direct or back via Delhi?
any advice or suggested inclusions to itinerary & tips on travel between these destinations greatly appreciated...

@Relics,

re Bundi to Khajuraho - personally I would opt for a car and driver; however the train experts here will have an alternative.

Getting from Khajuraho to Mysore is harder than it looks. AFAIK the only flight to Mysore is from Chennai via Bangalore. Worse still, I think it was part of Kingfisher's schedule, and given their problems, is no longer on their schedule.

http://www.flykingfisher.com/pdf/Fli...le_08May12.pdf

So you'll need to fly to Delhi, then to Bangalore, and then take the train from there. Again, a train expert here will have a 'train-only' solution.

If you don't get much response to your question over a few days, you may want to start a new thread with the new specifics.

DrRudi
Thanks for tip re Bundi to Khajuraho...will most likely go car/driver ...from Khajuraho to south will be the challenge.. New thread as suggested may be the answer ...
If too difficult I will go Bundi-Jaipur and fly from there...see Kharjuraho next time ...as this is my first trip to India my motto is: no unnecessary obstacles...relax and enjoy each day... And don,t try to fit in too much ...

I think it is a good idea to skip Khujaraho, reaching it will consume too much of your time.
Apart from Jaipur there are also some flights from Jodhpur to the Bangalore.