# Tips on Travel in India



## Ashland Train Enthusiast (Apr 6, 2012)

Good Morning All!

My fiancée and I have recently set our date for the wedding (not on a train, but I initially considered buying out the EB for our wedding before I was shot down), and are looking into taking our honeymoon in India. She's interested in the food and culture and music, and for me, it's a railfan's delight. If we were to spend approximately two weeks there, what recommendations/tips would those of you who have traveled there before have for a pair of adventurous travelers (been to much of Europe and Central/South America, so we're completely ok going off the beaten path)? If we wanted to split the time between seeing places and things as well as trying to get some significant train journeys in, what might be some options we should look into?

Thanks so much for your advice and input.

~ DCTE


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## Texan Eagle (Apr 6, 2012)

DC Train Enthusiast said:


> Good Morning All!
> 
> My fiancée and I have recently set our date for the wedding (not on a train, but I initially considered buying out the EB for our wedding before I was shot down), and are looking into taking our honeymoon in India. She's interested in the food and culture and music, and for me, it's a railfan's delight. If we were to spend approximately two weeks there, what recommendations/tips would those of you who have traveled there before have for a pair of adventurous travelers (been to much of Europe and Central/South America, so we're completely ok going off the beaten path)? If we wanted to split the time between seeing places and things as well as trying to get some significant train journeys in, what might be some options we should look into?
> 
> ...


Aah my favorite topic! I could probably write a book full of suggestions and recommendations on how to enjoy an adventurous vacation on trains in India, but I guess I will leave that for another time and try to be concise for now 

I can suggest a bunch of ideas but I need some information to start off-

1) What time of the year would you be traveling?

2) What city would you like to fly in and out from? Mumbai and Delhi are two easy options, but do you have something else in mind?

3) How comfortable would the two of you be about traveling in non climate-controlled trains with open windows?

4) What kind of places are you looking at visiting? Forests, mountains, beaches, history, big cities?

If you have not done so already, go ahead and join IRFCA Forum. Tonnes of information and folks to help you out.

Since you would be going there on honeymoon, my personal suggestion would be to indulge in AC First Class ride on at least one Rajdhani Express category of trains, preferably one out of Delhi-Howrah, Delhi-Sealdah, Delhi Mumbai or Delhi-Trivendrum. I suggest these because I know the service on these routes is amazing and if the coach attendants see 1) you are a foreign tourist, and 2) you are on honeymoon, they will go out of the way to make your journey fun and memorable. Also, all these four trains have the new German design LHB cars with huge windows, so the view will be beautiful.

My advice would be to stay away from the gimmicky tourist trains such as Palace on Wheels. They are overpriced and not even half the fun as the regular trains.

A few popular options to start off your research-

1) Do at least one journey along the "Hindi heartland" i.e. eastwards from Delhi along the river Ganga. A good destination would be Varanasi. Lots of culture and music and food to keep your wife happy and it lies on super-busy Delhi-Howrah mainline so you will have plenty of trains to choose from.

2) A day run on Konkan Railway from Mumbai to Goa. It is one of the most scenic rides and the destination Goa is a big attraction among tourists.

3) One of the hill railways. Kalka-Shimla would be my suggestion. Darjeeling Hill Railway might be better in scenery and has steam locos too but that part of the country is very volatile in weather as well as political situation. In the south Nilgiri Mountain Railway also has steam but it is prone to frequent disruptions. You could try.

4) Offbeat Meter Gauge lines- since you said you don't mind being adventurous, the Meter Gauge lines running at various places across the country is a good option to explore the "other side" of India. Ahmedabad-Udaipur, Mavli-Marwar, Akola-Ratlam are three beautiful meter gauge routes.

Send me a personal message (PM) with your email ID and I can help you plan out your trip in detail.

Edit: Added more info.


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## Ashland Train Enthusiast (Apr 7, 2012)

Texan Eagle said:


> Send me a personal message (PM) with your email ID and I can help you plan out your trip in detail.


Thanks TE, I got your PM, so I'll send you some more details directly!


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## Texan Eagle (Apr 7, 2012)

DC Train Enthusiast said:


> Texan Eagle said:
> 
> 
> > Send me a personal message (PM) with your email ID and I can help you plan out your trip in detail.
> ...


Cool! Just a suggestion- consider discussing broad idea of your plan here on the forum itself so that it can serve as a ready-reference guide for others who may be interested too. The finer details I can help you out by mail.


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## caravanman (Apr 7, 2012)

Hi,

One of my favourite topics too... I love train travel in India.

I am sure you are in safe hands with Texan Eagle's advice and I hope that some items of general interest do get discussed here in the open forum.

I believe that most travel advice is to visit between October to March, for best weather.

I posted a report of my recent trip online, if you care to have a quick look:INDIAN TRAIN TRIP

Good luck,

Ed


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## Ashland Train Enthusiast (Apr 10, 2012)

Thank you both for your replies! Ed, your trip looks really cool, those are some great pictures there.

Unfortunately our travel plans prohibit a winter trip, as we are getting married in April 2013, and I am in Graduate School, so will have classes in the Spring and Fall; that being said we may look at a later summer (August) trip based on your advice.

We are looking to spend 2 weeks there, and the thought is to stay in maybe 4 or 5 places for a couple of days each to experience different regions of the country, and then connect between the places via train. I know we'd like to do at least one longer trip, and then at least one shorter (day) trip in a non-AC class.

I noticed in the other thread in this forum about the difficulty for non nationals to book train tickets, does anyone have any tips or suggestions for how to go about doing that? I found this link on a great site Texas linked me to (http://www.seat61.com/India.htm#book - from outside) that details how to do this, and it looks... difficult, so I was wondering if anyone had any other insight or suggestions.

Thanks for your great advice and tips, keep them coming!

~ DCTE


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## Texan Eagle (Apr 10, 2012)

DC Train Enthusiast said:


> I noticed in the other thread in this forum about the difficulty for non nationals to book train tickets, does anyone have any tips or suggestions for how to go about doing that? I found this link on a great site Texas linked me to (http://www.seat61.com/India.htm#book - from outside) that details how to do this, and it looks... difficult, so I was wondering if anyone had any other insight or suggestions.
> 
> ~ DCTE


For a foreigner wanting to travel on multiple trains in India, I would recommend getting the IndRail pass. It is like Eurail pass in Europe and allows unlimited train journeys within a specific number of days. You can read about it here on Indian Railways official website, but you may find better information about it here on the IndRail section on Seat 61 or here in IndiaMike travel forums. I have personally never used this option, since it is only for foreign nationals and I have done all my travel in India as an Indian national, but I have read several travelogues by folks who found the IndRail option very comfortable. One option is to buy the IndRail pass from International Tourist Bureau in New Delhi, but better option would be to get it through an approved travel agent here in the US before you leave, the earlier you decide your trains, greater is your chance of getting seats and class of your choice.

Buying individual journey tickets for travel on Indian Railways from abroad is a bit complicated, but not impossible. Read about it on online forums, loads of travelers go to India and explore it by trains 

Edit: Additional Info- Found out from a friend in India- the International Tourist Bureau (ITB) is located on premises of New Delhi railway station with proper signage directing to the same. This place deals exclusively with providing reservations to foreign tourists who have purchased an IndRail pass. Most important trains have a separate "foreigner quota" of seats, so even if the general availability shows the train is sold out, you would still be able to get a reservation. Basically all you need to do is land in Delhi, go to the train station, purchase IndRail pass and talk to the folks at ITB to suggest you the right trains for your destinations and book seats/berths in them. This is the theoretically simplest way to go about it. If the idea of landing in India without any train bookings firm in hand seems too worrying to you, go through travel agents here in the US, but make sure you are booking through an approved reliable travel agency.


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