Trip to South India, mid-April to June, starting in Mumbai

ozyc

Hi all. My first post. Hope I'm not too vague. Will no doubt post again once a more in-depth itinerary takes shape, hopefully in response to some of your answers/queries.

Myself and my girlfriend will be flying into Mumbai next week (mid-April), the beginning of a 7-week trip to India (first ever trip). We're going to stay a couple nights in Mumbai then plan to make a journey (mostly by train and bus) towards the south. Very vague at the moment, but plan to go to:

Goa
Kerela (Cochin, Trivandrum...)
Pondicherry
[domestic flight from South]
Delhi
Agra
[fly out of Delhi]


We have a budget of $50 a day, maybe stretch a bit more.

(1) We were initially planning a train to Goa on 19/20th April to stay there for a few days, but I'm wondering whether it will be too hot to enjoy the beaches, etc -- is it a good idea to be in Goa at this time of year and, if so, any specific suggestions where we should go/stay?

(2) Any other suggestions as to possible destinations between Mumbai and Kerela region? Maybe in the cooler regions?

(3) Where is good to fly out from the south? I'm not that keen on Chennai as a general destination, so maybe there is a better airport that we could slowly make our way towards, with some suggested destinations along the way?

(4) Towards the end of the trip we want to fly to Delhi and do the traditional tour of Agra. How long will we need to put aside for this portion?

I know it's all a bit vague at the moment, but any help would be appreciated.

thanks

ananda2193

$50 a day should do you fine.

1) Goa will be hot then, but so will Kerela also so I don't see why you would pass on Goa because of the heat. As far as what beach to stay at there, it really depends on what your looking for. I personally prefer the south beaches which in general are more quiet. If you want a quiet nice beach then Agonda is a good choice. Also Patnem is nice also. These are my favorite beaches in Goa.

2) You can go to Ooty or Munnar or Kodaikanal which are in the mountains in the south. Also Mysore is a nice pleasant ttown down south. A visit to Madurai in Tamil Nadu is always a highlight.

3) As far as a good place to fly from down south to Delhi, well I think some of the only options are Trivandrum, Bangalore, Chennai, and maybe Cochin. Could be more, not sure. But since your not fond of flying from Chennai, I would guess Trivandrum or Bangalore are youe best options.

4) And if your only interested in Agra then 2 days is enough, though there are excursions around Agra you could visit that could add days to your visit ther.And there's many things to see in Delhi also, so you might want more time in the area.

ozyc

Thanks for the tips ananda2193 -- useful!

Anyone else have any thoughts?

kksivan

WHEN U GO GOA I FEEL IT IS nice to find a place and a marvellous calm beach PALOLAM WHICH is near to CANACONA STATION.
there is budget hotels tooo
When u come THIS TIME dont miss THRISSUR POORAM it is a nice and traditional festival which will ornamented by 30 elephants with traditional drums.

Please note that there is full A/C TRAINS WITH VERY CHEAPEST RATE IS GAREEB RADH.. Mumbai to Cochin just 20 uSD/-

Munnar is nice place to find coool spot. if u are more keen to travel more u can travel from Trivanrum to Agastyaparvam ( it is forested mountains).

I am from Trichur and I was in Mumbai work with computers///

ozyc

thank you for your tips kksivan.

thrissur pooram sounds great -- we will definately try to see this!