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Very helpful suggestions, thankyou. Interesting idea to dip into Nepal, the suggested hotel groups etc
Will no doubt be back in due course to sound you out as the plan develops!
I know zero about travelling to India but I have just watched on channel 4 Grand Indian Hotel, about the Oberoi hotels there, if you’re looking for a night or two of luxury they look fabulous.
I know zero about travelling to India but I have just watched on channel 4 Grand Indian Hotel, about the Oberoi hotels there, if you’re looking for a night or two of luxury they look fabulous.
I can confirm this. I did a Rajasthan trip two years ago staying at mostly Oberoi hotels and the standard was excellent. In Udaipur we got upgraded to a suite which was brill. I googled it and the rack rate was £2K/night!
+1 for Oberoi: the one in Agra is where I proposed, from a balcony overlooking the Taj Mahal!
Do bear in mind that Delhi goes down to single-digit temperatures in Dec., and can get VERY foggy.
Ok, I’ve put Oberoi into my trip ideas.
Beach angle? Not keen on Goa. Maybe a flight somewhere else on the way home
Ok, I’ve put Oberoi into my trip ideas.
Beach angle? Not keen on Goa. Maybe a flight somewhere else on the way home
Good idea, go home via the Maldives. Depending on which part of India you depart from it’s about a 4 hour flight.
I can also recommend an Indian travel agent, these guys were excellent https://rajasthantours.travel
For beach how about the andaman and Nicobar island in particular Havelock island.
Even though I am not the OP. This info is invaluable for me as my wife has travelled extensively but is very worried about going India. She pictures mayhem on roads, cows in streets, public defecation, everything ran down, noise and pollution. She tells me she does not want to go but has been to Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam so I dont get it. I have to build a good itinerary hopefully with culture and beaches etc.
@Erico1875 we love sleeper trains so this may help!What a wise woman! After our visit to the infernal triangle the missus and I couldn’t wait to head off to Vietnam and civilisation
For beach how about the andaman and Nicobar island in particular Havelock island.
+1
I would recommend it as well.Taj has a good resort in Havelock island.
If you are looking for a less humid place and slightly off the tourist path, hillside retreats in Coorg in south India can be a good option. They are situated between forests and tea estates and have a Taj and Marriott. Can combine this with Mysore that has a pretty palace and a few other attractions.
Andaman and Nicobar look pretty good options, and I’ve not come across Coorg so will have a look at that too.
Starting to look like a really interesting trip.Thanks to all so far!
As so many on here have experience of India (and I have a work trip in the planning) if its ok with the OP may I ask what its like paying in India?
I have read that contactless isn’t really a thing although physical card present is Ok.
All the guides seem to mention UPI via GPay and it seems very restrictive (and not available unless you have an Indian Bank account) would I live with Capital on Tap and a Backup with Revolut / Wise for cash or is it better to bite the bullet and do the UPI for tourists at the airport ?
I will be going quite regularly so am open to alocal account / sim etc to keep the costs down and to allow me to use Ola etc just looking for the inside scoop please 😉
Contactless has started now in India, however, with lower limits. Physical fx free credit cards are fine for most of the decent places.
For everything else, cash. UPI I’m not sure is possible without a local bank account.
Uber works fine with fx free credit/debit card.Agree with above, contactless is starting to spread, but very little awareness.
Can you get an android phone and use gpay? It’s just a simple qr scanning method. Unfortunately Apple isn’t working with any local banks or merchants yet. There were rumours that gpay might be brought to iOS, but I guess google has no interest in supporting iOS.
If you are going to be travelling frequently, UPI would make life much easier.
The other option is to get one of the local wallet apps like paytm. You can topup using a uk fx fee free card like wise or starling or Monzo. When you are there, do a kyc to increase the limits.
My last trip I used, in order: chip and pin, contactless, cash. The contactless limit is quite low and I think it worked twice. Ola cabs I took didn’t seem to use my registered credit card so they needed cash.
This cash debate reminded me the 2016 demonetisation in India, and my arrival there few weeks after that.
What a nightmare it was!+1 For Kerala – Depending on the time of the year, if you can avoid the rains, this “country” 🙂 is definitely a honeymoon destination – You’ve got backwaters, boat stays, beaches, resorts etc.
A not-so-much-explored option is also Andaman Islands – There are some wonderful beaches, though flight connectivity might be limited from certain connecting airports only.
On the other Q, Card usage is much wider(both contactless and pin), though the newer Gpay/UPI are promoted everywhere and everyone uses these.
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