Varanasi with kids

wilmaaa

Hi everyone. I'm making my first ever trip to India this Christmas. I'll be going with my 15 year old and my 6 year old.
(I've calmed my nerves a lot by reading these forums, thank ya much)
We'll be spending most of the three weeks in Varanasi and I'm wondering if anyone has tips or ideas for things my kids would like to do there. Anything special you remember, any advice, would be much appreciated.

wilmaaa

i forgot to ask...as it's Christmas time and I have the kids what are the chances of toy shopping in Varanasi?

AlanJ

I'm sure there are toy shops in Varanasi, even though I can't actually recall seeing these; what I did notice is that most of the shops where the tourists congregate sell the same junk that the two dollar shops specialise in back home.... so you may have to do a bit od hunting around and asking the locals if you want something that will last timm you get home.

However, Varanasi itself is such a whirlpool of movement, colour, exotic sights and sounds (and smells) that it's like being let loose in the biggest toy shop in the world; you are giving your kids a Christmas present they will never forget! If you stay at Scindhia Guest House, right on the banks of the Ganges in the old city, you'll have so many monkeys hanging around (they have been known to steal your clothes from your balcony while you sleep; guests tell of waking up to see a monkey on the balcony wearing their freshly-washed undies for a head-dress) that your kids won't be in the least interested in a stuffed toy... the real thing is so much more fun!

Sarnath is a worthwhile half-day trip, to see an ancient stupa plus a temple where the Buddha gave one of his first sermons (it's inscribed there, in several different languages). But, mainly, you don't have to organise anything when you're in Varanasi... you just have to stand there and let it wash over you!

Do prepare your children, though... you will see bodies being carried through the streets, for the death rites at the Burning Ghat. There are actually a couple of "burning ghats" along the Ganges (the cheaper one has only electric ovens... wood fire is apparently the expensive way to do it, only for the well-heeled), so the likelihood of your children finding something confronting happening right before their eyes is very great (we didn't see any bodies floating down the Ganges while we were there, but we spoke to people who did, while they were out on the river in a small boat).

However, I'm sure if you were the over-protective kind of parent who didn't want their children to see what life is like in the "real" world, you wouldn't be taking them to India in the first place... you'd opt for Disneyland, or somewhere "safe" like that. I took my two kids to Varanasi, and I've never regretted it for a moment; they can do Disneyland for themselves, in the future, with their own kids.

arconsaurabh

as i know varanasi is place of temples...and river bank....for kids u take out one wildlife safari at corbett....varanasi one can enjoy by some spirituality interest in kids it is hard to find

SitaParityaga

If your kids like really low tech toys, its absolute heaven. I was there a few weeks ago and bought some extraordinary tops and painted toys..so you can find things for kids, and its can also be laid back, so depends on the kids I did see other happy kid travelers there.

wilmaaa

thank you guys. The kids are low maintenance and laid back, they'll love some local low tech toys and be more than happy to go monkey spotting. We'll def do the trip to Sarnath and a few others too. We're having a renunion with friends there so it's all pretty exciting. However if I can, I surely would love to take them to Corbett for a weekend, just googled it, wow! My son would die of bliss.

I'm still looking at guesthouses, the Sita Guesthouse is in our budget and the closest to where our friends are staying which would be handy at night etc. The Scindia is also on my list although it's further away. Hard to judge from a map if that'll be a big deal or not. We'll book something to start with and see what it's like when we get there.

The spiritual side of Varanasi is what's fascinated us all and visiting the temples there and seeing the life by the ganges will be a dream come true.

daeve

...me & my 2 children visited Varanasi for 3 days in 2006....they were 12 and 13....Varanasi is the place they wish we'd stayed longer in and that they would definitely visit again...they were fascinated by Sarnath and particularly enjoyed a harum-scarum tuk-tuk ride across town....

peace

Dx

n kumar

be carefull with the road side food, water.

wilmaaa

I'm really glad to hear that your kids enjoyed it Daeve. Did you come across an indoor public swimming pool by any chance?
Yes n kumar, thanks, I'm drilling it into them now about how sick we could get if we aren't careful. I've got enough hand sanitizer to sink a ship
From reading up on India what I'm most worried about is handling all the crowds of people and the touts, but we'll be with Indian friends so hopefully we can use them as shields.

machadinha

Just dropping these links here in case you hadn't found them yet, excellent article: India With Kids, as well as that member's Journals.

__________________
Reading tips, all picked up at IndiaMike : INDAX's A Comprehensive Guide To India / Dinoj Surendran's Desi Humor / ITHVC on Culture Shock & Travel Health / JetLag Travel Guides For the Undiscerning Traveller / India Travel Links

wilmaaa

Thanks a lot, this journal is a great read

daeve

Hi there Wilmaaa,

....didn't spot a public indoor swimming pool, I'm afraid...we stayed at Taj Ganges, which had a very nice outdoor pool, & I reckon that non-residents were using it....

I'm really quite jealous y'know....would love to be back in Benares sometime soon!

peace

Daeve

wilmaaa

Thanks Daeve we leave this Saturday, we'll arrive in Varanasi early Monday morning, verrrry excited!

Darmabum

how lucky for you.

Until then, here's a memory of mine from The City of Light, taken in November of '89 . . . taken from near Asi Ghat, looking beyond Dasashawamedh and Manikarnika . . .

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure - Marianne Williamson

pantelis

Well,from the smallest to the eldest,almost anyone fly kites on the riverbanks of Ganges,so why don't you try expressing this idea to your youngest kid?????Personally when i was a child i really liked that.
Another thing is,why staying 3 weeks in Varanasi???? For me it's quite long.Definitely visit Sarnath, there's an excellent archaeological museum there,don't miss it and some temples around.
Why don't you try to visit Bodhgaya too????It's 6 hours by train from Mughal Sarai{of course if you are interested in Buddhism},i think Mathura as well is not far away{but 3 weeks in Varanasi???}
Anyway, HAVE A GREAT TIME THERE!!!!

__________________