Travel advice needed for India trip in November

Ok we are so close to booking our India trip, hopefully in the next week or so. Was supposed to go this August but i was worried about the weather so we delayed it until November. I went in November last year and the weather was perfect.

I travelled solo last time but this time i am taking my hubby. I think we will have only 10-12 days.

This is what we are thinking Delhi - Jaipur - Agra - Varanasi - Sikkim - Delhi.

Last time i did Delhi - Jaipur - Agra - Varanasi - Delhi - Rishikesh - Dharamshala - Delhi.

Day 1 arrive in Delhi - happy to catch first train to Jaipur on that day. arrive in Jaipur spend 1 night there,

Day 2 - Jaipur sightseeing. Get a night train to Agra - is this possible??

Day 3 - 4 Agra sightseeing

Day 4 - night train to Varanasi

Day 5 -7 Varanasi

Day 7 - Varanasi to Sikkim - to do 3night/4 day tour of Sikkim. What will be the best way to get to Sikkim from Varanasi? Then from Sikkim to Delhi?

Is it easy to book train tickets from overseas? I have a had a quick look at the website and it all looks so complicated?

We may cut out Jaipur if time is getting tight

thanks in advance

Sarah

I would suggest that you take the Day-3 morning train to Agra (from Jaipur). That gives you a full day in Jaipur and still leaves 1.5 days in Agra.
There is a 6:10 am train http://erail.in?T=JP::AGC:

Day 7 - Overnight train from Varanasi/Mughalsari to New Jalpaiguri(NJP) http://erail.in?T=BSB::NJP:
Day 8 - By jeep to wherever you want to go in Sikkim
Day 9/10 - Sikkim
Day 11 - Back to NJP. Catch the Rajdhani express to New Delhi.
Day 12 - In New Delhi by 11 AM

Research your trains at http://erail.in/
(Use All stations tab to find lesser stations)
Then check for seat availability at http://indianrail.gov.in/seat_Avail.html (using the train numbers and station codes found at erail.in)

To book tickets use irctc.co.in (govt site where you need to create an account and make sure that your credit cards work internationally) OR use makemytrip.com or cleartrip.com
The later two are easy sites to use for train tickets

Good Luck

Try a travel service provider like cleartrip.com - you can book train & air tickets and their interface (for train bookings) is a lot better than the Indian railways website

thanks for the advice!

Last time i had my train tickets booked for me and they were in advance.

Is this necessary, or should we able to book the train trips once we get to India?

Does anyone know if Ginger Hotel Delhi is already booked out in November? looks like our flight doesnt get in until 7pm so we will have to spend the first night in Delhi. I looked at their website and it wont let me look for November booking

I advise you to book your trains soon, as it will be Diwali rush. (Well, I don't know your exact dates, but Diwali is 6th November, and many people will be travelling.)

Book your train tickets very soon. Several legs in your journey get booked fast.

Ahh yes you are all correct most of those train trips are booked out for november already & have waitlists

Our other option we are thinking of is:

Day 1 - fly direct into Mumbai and spend 2 nights, visiting all the famous spots (we love Shantaram)

Day 4 - fly Mumbai to Bagdogra and onto Sikkim for 4 nights

Day 8 - fly Bagdogra to Delhi

Day 9 - fly delhi to Varanasi return trip for 2 nights ( this flight is very cheap 650 rp ea way plus taxes with spice jet)

Day 11 - train to agra 2300

Day 12 Agra

Day 13 Agra - delhi by train and flight home

So what are your travel dates in November (original plan)?
There are ways to enhance your chance of getting train availability. Some trains have foriegn quota which you can avail.

That is travelling nov 3rd - 15th from Australia

We really like the idea of flying into Mumbai now and starting there. A flight from Mumbai to Varanasi was not expensive, but to get the train from Varanasi to NJP it is all booked out and such a long journey 16hrs.

I was looking on cleartrip.com to check the all the train trips availability.

Train#4056 has some availability from Mughalsarai to New Jalpaiguri.
If you want to continue this Mumbai plan, book your train tickets soon.

I use http://indianrail.gov.in/seat_Avail.html to look up seat availability (get the train number and station codes from erail.in)

If you could shift your plan by 1 week, it would work out better since Diwali will be over.

I know it would be easier to delay our holiday, but it would also be wonderful to experience Diwali too.

I will book the flights today Nov 2nd -15th. Going to fly into Delhi because it's easier and then out of Mubai on the 15th.

Looks like i will have to get the hang of booking the train tickets direct myself

What is the best city in India to experience Diwali?

thanks for all your help

Sarah

Any city in North India (Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan should do) for Diwali.

Book tickets right now. Cancellation charges are very small.

ok flights are booked Nov 2nd - 15TH

Here is our itinerary so far:

Day 1 - Perth - Delhi arrive 1910

Day 2 Delhi - sightseeing

Day 3 Train Delhi to Agra 0615 - 0812 BOOKED. Plan to see the Taj & Baby Taj this day

Day 4 Agra - Fatehpur Sikri then overnight train to Varanasi 1600 - 0510 BOOKED

Day 5 Varanasi

Day 6 Varanasi

Day 7

Day 8

Day 9

Day 10

Day 11

Day 12

Day 13 Mumbai

Day 14 Mumbai

Day 15 Mumbai - Perth

So what do you think? Any suggestions for the gap in between? I was interested in a North Sikkim tour but it is looking a little too expensive right now. Bodh Gaya looks interesting but then I'd love to go to Manali too. Nepal for a few days from Varanasi, then a flight to Mumbai?

ahh so much we want to do and see

Does Diwali start on Nov 5th and go for a few days? i kind of hoped we would be in Varanasi for Diwali but looks like we are stuck on a train

Sarah

Another option for those days is
-Overnight train from Varanasi to Jhansi and from there to Orchha
-Overnight train from Jhansi to Aurangabad to visit Ellora and/or Ajanta caves.

Panchmarhi is an option. Train from Varanasi to Pipariya (47 kms from Panchmarhi).

Any of Bandavgarh / Kanha National Park is an option.