Ajib! (Amazing!) is an exclamation you will use often when you first visit India. There’s so much to see and do in the world’s seventh-largest country that it can be hard to know just where to begin when making that first journey of discovery.

Perhaps you’ll want to see the massive forts, regal palaces, imposing mausoleums, intricately carved temples and serene shrines that India is so well known for. If you do, you’re not alone, as cultural tourism and the opportunity to see the country’s living past is the number-one reason most travellers visit India.



Today, there’s no stopping South Asia’s tourism juggernaut, with nearly five million visitors crisscrossing the subcontinent last year. Of these, more than 100,000 Australians notched up a world-record average stay of 28 days in 2007.

The exquisite Taj Mahal is the paramount monument on every traveller’s itinerary. After your first visit to India, however, you will find out that there’s much more to marvel at than just the Taj. The triangle of sacred temple towns in South India (Thanjavur, Tiruchirapalli and Madurai), the cave temples of Ajanta with their 2000-year-old frescos, and the intricate beauty of the Hawa Mahal, a landmark building in the pink city of Jaipur are other highly worthwhile and interesting attractions.

India’s vast size also provides an almost limitless horizon of special interest options, one of which is sure to appeal to you. Trekking isn’t just about scaling the face of Mt Everest with a party of experienced mountain climbers, it could just as easily entail walking past quiet villages and through green meadows on the sort of holiday that families with children can enjoy.



If the sporting life appeals, consider fishing for mahseer in the cool, clear Himalayan streams. Golf addicts can tee off in Kolkata at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club – the second oldest in the world – along peacock-dotted fairways at the New Delhi Golf Club, or in the midst of pine-scented fresh air at Gulmarg in Kashmir.

You can golf in Gulmarg during much of the year, but when winter comes take to its slopes and ski the Himalayas. Facilities at India’s leading fun-in-the-snow resort, a contender for the 2010 Commonwealth Winter Games, include Asia’s highest and longest cable car. The two-stage ropeway takes skiers to a height of 3747 metres on Kongdoori Mountain.

If you aspire to even greater heights, take to the air from the glider base in New Delhi. Air currents are excellent, heights are easily achieved and costs are low.



Travellers wanting a more solid footing can do no better than go on an elephant safari through India’s famed wildlife sanctuaries. Many reserves have been set up throughout India – such as Corbett, Kaziranga and Gir, the last home of the Asiatic lion – to protect endangered animals like leopard, tiger, elephant and rhinoceros.

If all the excitement of an elephant ride has stimulated your mind, calm down with some yoga and a transcendental meditation course or rejuvenating ayurvedic treatment at a specialised centre in Kerala.

Few Australians realise that the beaches of southern India are quite wonderful. It would be shame to miss Kovalam or Mahabalipuram near Chennai, or the famed sands of Goa on the west coast. The Easter Carnival is an exciting time to visit the former Portuguese colony of Goa, but if you happen to miss it there’s still plenty of contemporary Indian cultural life to be found in every state. Theatre, music recitals, classical and folk dances, exhibitions, fairs – there’s always something happening to interest visitors.



Don’t overlook the opportunity for a culinary adventure. Try a different dish every day of the week and you will have only started your journey on the road to gastronomic delights. Remember not all Indian food is curry and not all curry is hot, but if you want the familiar rest assured that Western fare or superb Chinese, French or Japanese specialities are readily available.

Incredible sights, dining delights and new insights are only three memories that visitors take home with them after an encounter with incredible India. •

Photography courtesy India Tourism

Travel Tips

• The ideal time to visit northern India (such as Rajashthan, New Delhi and as far south as Mumbai) is from October to March, when temperatures are cooler. Southern India experiences warm temperatures throughout the year.
• You can forget a phrasebook when you pack your bags for India. It’s not that a few words in Hindi like namasté (hello) and shukriya (thank you) aren’t appreciated, but you’ll find someone speaking English just about everywhere you go in the land of curry and the Taj Mahal.
• A visa can be obtained from consular offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, as well the High Commission in Canberra. Visit www.hcindia-au.org
• Although Australian dollars can be exchanged at airports, some banks and most hotels, it’s advisable to carry funds in US dollar traveller’s cheques. Credit cards are widely accepted in tourist centres.
• Given advance notice, India Tourism offices in major centres can arrange lectures, visits to local institutions, schools, fashion and cultural shows, performances of dance groups and meetings with local people of similar hobby or professional interests.
• Inexpensive daily sightseeing tours can be booked through State Government Tourism Development offices as well as India Tourism Development offices in leading centres. India Tourism offices can organise registered tourist guides who can plan tailor-made sightseeing tours catering for special interests such as art and architecture.
• Internet cafés are widely available and so is mobile phone usage. SIM cards can be easily purchased for the visitor who wants to keep in touch with family and friends in Australia.

Travel Facts

getting there

• Singapore Airlines has 91 flights a week from Australia to Singapore with onward connections to Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore, Chennai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai. Airline partner SilkAir has numerous connecting flights from Singapore to Cochin, Trivandrum and Coimbatore in southern India. Phone 13 10 11 or visit www.singaporeair.com.au
• Other airlines include Air India (phone 02 9283 3370 or visit www.airindia.com), Qantas (phone 131 313 or visit www.qantas.com.au) and Thai Airways (phone 1300 651 960 or visit www.thaiairways.com.au).

getting around

• India has a comprehensive network of domestic airlines that make it easy to hop from city to city. Of these, Jet Airways has an office in Australia. Phone 1300 361 400 or visit www.jetairways.com
• The Indrail Train Pass allows unlimited travel for specific time periods on India’s huge rail network. Train travel is a great way to get to meet local people. Visit www.indianrail.gov.in
• India specialist Sydney-based ACR International Travel & Tours can plan tailor-made holidays that incorporate special interests like golf, handicrafts, history or trekking. Phone 02 8252 8777 or visit www.acrtravel.com.au
• Adventure Associates, phone 1800 222 141 or visit www.adventureassociates.com
• Asiaquest Tours, phone 1800 144 738 or visit www.asiaquesttours.com.au
• Ausindia Holidays, phone 1300 146 342 or visit www.ausindiaholidays.com.au
• Banyan Tours and Travels, phone +91 11 4173 4810, e-mail info@banyantours.com or go to www.banyantours.com
• Creative Holidays, phone 1300 747 400 or visit www.creativeholidays.com.au
• GAP Adventures, phone 1300 796 618 or visit www.gapadventures.com/v&t
• InterAsia Tours, phone 1300 133 001 or visit www.interasia.com.au
• Intrepid Travel, phone 1300 364 512 or visit www.intrepidtravel.com
• Natural Focus Safaris, phone 1300 363 302 or 03 9249 3777 or visit www.naturalfocussafaris.com
• Travel Indochina, phone 1300 138 755 or visit www.travelindochina.com.au
• Travman Tours, phone 1800 338 007 or visit www.travman.com.au
• Icon Holidays, phone 1300 853 953 or visit www.iconholidays.com
• Wendy Wu Tours, phone 02 9224 8888 or visit www.wendywutours.com.au

where to stay

• Taj Hotels has a network of fine properties in India. Phone +800 4588 1825 or go to www.tajhotels.com

health

• Cholera and typhoid inoculations and protection against malaria is not compulsory but recommended. Bottled mineral water is widely available.

further information

• India Tourism has a wealth of information, brochures and maps. Phone 02 9221 9555 or go to www.incredibleindia.org