Travelling through India for three months ॐ

[Bazooka Jesus]

Alright kids, my preparations are in full swing. Seven weeks to go... let's hear those juicy tips!

[PurpleTree]

Nice i want to do that too soon-ish maybe, India is also cheap for travelling compared to many other places

i‘ve been to India twice

try to not have high expectations though

[An young being]

I can't help you in person, but here are (almost) all the places you can visit in India. The list starts from the south and ends in North, but doesn't include Kashmir and Ladakh as I was too lazy to complete it. I have marked the must visit places as well, but you can decide based on your interests! Enjoy your trip!

 

India tourist spots.xlsx

[An young being]

Here are some general tips to make your journey better:

1.Buy an Airtel or Jio sim. They have coverage throughout India. You need internet, and it is dead cheap, so please buy those data packs. ( Approx. 200 Rs per month for 1.5 gb/day. If it's over, you can buy extra packs).

2. Avoid eating in smaller restaurants/road side shops/ street food. They will be dead cheap but It will surely lead to stomach upsets. There are hundreds of good quality hotels that are cheap in every city, so use internet and read the reviews to find the restaurant. Don't eat somewhere simply because many locals eat there, because they have a stupid stomach that can digest any food. Use restaurants that Google shows as a bit costly and with good reviews. Costly for us is still cheap for foreigners. Even there are many good quality restaurants that offer tasty and healthy street food. Food will differ in each state you visit. If you can't handle spicy food, stay away from Telungana and Andhra Pradesh or stay in 3 star hotels. Even they could be cheap sometimes.

3. Use booking.com app or Oyo to book rooms. Once again, look for high reviews.

4. There will be hundreds of people everywhere, so please relax and observe slowly. You will get used to it very soon. Natural and off beat places will have less human population. If you want such places, look for places with less popularity but high ratings.

5. Have cash always in hand. 

6. The south and the North and the northeast are completely different zones. You will have cultural shocks in each zone. North East is rarely visited by both Indian and foreign tourists, it had many hidden natural gems.

7. There will be taps in every hotel to wash your hands, so wash it thoroughly before eating. Also, don't drink from bathroom tap, it's not drinkable!

8. There will be people everywhere ready to cheat you and earn some money. Avoid taxis in airport, use Ola and uber apps to book them. Technology is your best friend in India! If you can't avoid, negotiate as much as you can, they will reduce the price to less than half the original. Avoid paying beggars and children, they are mostly scammers. If you want good tourist agencies, look for their reviews in Google. In India, everything has Google reviews!

9. Use the list I provided. All temples have high ratings because of faith and usually overcrowded, so visit only the must visit ones or check the architecture in Google. Most will be similar. If you wish, I can provide personal recommendation of temples/ spiritual sites you can visit.

I will update with more points of I felt anything necessary.

[Bazooka Jesus]

58 minutes ago, An young being said:

I can't help you in person, but here are (almost) all the places you can visit in India. The list starts from the south and ends in North, but doesn't include Kashmir and Ladakh as I was too lazy to complete it. I have marked the must visit places as well, but you can decide based on your interests! Enjoy your trip!

 

India tourist spots.xlsx

 

28 minutes ago, An young being said:

Here are some general tips to make your journey better:

1.Buy an Airtel or Jio sim. They have coverage throughout India. You need internet, and it is dead cheap, so please buy those data packs. ( Approx. 200 Rs per month for 1.5 gb/day. If it's over, you can buy extra packs).

2. Avoid eating in smaller restaurants/road side shops/ street food. They will be dead cheap but It will surely lead to stomach upsets. There are hundreds of good quality hotels that are cheap in every city, so use internet and read the reviews to find the restaurant. Don't eat somewhere simply because many locals eat there, because they have a stupid stomach that can digest any food. Use restaurants that Google shows as a bit costly and with good reviews. Costly for us is still cheap for foreigners. Even there are many good quality restaurants that offer tasty and healthy street food. Food will differ in each state you visit. If you can't handle spicy food, stay away from Telungana and Andhra Pradesh or stay in 3 star hotels. Even they could be cheap sometimes.

3. Use booking.com app or Oyo to book rooms. Once again, look for high reviews.

4. There will be hundreds of people everywhere, so please relax and observe slowly. You will get used to it very soon. Natural and off beat places will have less human population. If you want such places, look for places with less popularity but high ratings.

5. Have cash always in hand. 

6. The south and the North and the northeast are completely different zones. You will have cultural shocks in each zone. North East is rarely visited by both Indian and foreign tourists, it had many hidden natural gems.

7. There will be taps in every hotel to wash your hands, so wash it thoroughly before eating. Also, don't drink from bathroom tap, it's not drinkable!

8. There will be people everywhere ready to cheat you and earn some money. Avoid taxis in airport, use Ola and uber apps to book them. Technology is your best friend in India! If you can't avoid, negotiate as much as you can, they will reduce the price to less than half the original. Avoid paying beggars and children, they are mostly scammers. If you want good tourist agencies, look for their reviews in Google. In India, everything has Google reviews!

9. Use the list I provided. All temples have high ratings because of faith and usually overcrowded, so visit only the must visit ones or check the architecture in Google. Most will be similar. If you wish, I can provide personal recommendation of temples/ spiritual sites you can visit.

I will update with more points of I felt anything necessary.

Holy shit, this is OUTSTANDING info! Beyond helpful!! Thank you so much for this, my friend. 

May I ask if you are living in India? If so, where?

[Bazooka Jesus]

1 hour ago, PurpleTree said:

i‘ve been to India twice

Cool.  Any tips for a first timer such as myself?

[An young being]

If you want what is called the real experience, ( which is a  heavily biased word), here are some tips:

1. Say hi to everyone. Children will be very interested in you if you look different from us, and locals will also be mostly friendly. But you might get caught in a selfie frenzy, especially in tourist spots!

2. Visit Mumbai and old Delhi. It will be heavily crowded. Visit slum areas like Dharavi. Just walk through any street, making sure you have phone and Google maps in hand. Ask locals for directions if lost. You will definitely be lost!

3. You don't need to visit modern places like Gurugram, as long as you don't believe they don't exist in India.

4. Use all kinds of public transports. Metros, local trains( research and plan, book tickets in advance, otherwise you may not find your train!), long distance trains like Tejas,vande Bharat, Shadabdhi and Rajdhanis. They are of better quality. But don't expect the toilets to be clean. Also bicycle rickshaws, autos and buses).

5. Visit local markets. Negotiate like a local. Ask for half the price of whatever they are telling.

6. Wash your pooped ass with water in hotels! Don't forget soap to wash hands later.

7. There are some tourist agencies which offer food in local's home. Try that if you have time.

8. Learn a few words in local language and speak with locals. They will be happy to hear it! Although most in North India speak Hindi, south indian states have different language in each state.

9. Avoid barber shops for massage, you might get uncomfortable!

10. Visit a local super market and sweet shops and try local snacks and sweets  Check reviews for sweet shops.

[An young being]

3 minutes ago, Bazooka Jesus said:

 

Holy shit, this is OUTSTANDING info! Beyond helpful!! Thank you so much for this, my friend. 

May I ask if you are living in India? If so, where?

Welcome! The southern most state Tamilnadu.

[Schizophonia]

Why India, are you from this country?

Edited October 7, 2023 by Schizophonia

[PurpleTree]

25 minutes ago, Schizophonia said:

Why India, are you from this country?

good food, cheap, interesting spirituality, huge country, very different from the west so a change of perspective 

[Schizophonia]

2 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

good food,

This is also the case in Europe, with additional food security.

2 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

cheap,

Yes, but you have to pay for the plane, sometimes several thousand euros for the round trip.

2 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

interesting spirituality,

Like everywhere.

2 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

huge country,

Exactly, does even “going to India” make sense?

2 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

very different from the west so a change of perspective 

I'm relatively sure that you meet more conscious people in the West than on the Indian subcontinent.
Just compare the crime rate, environmental awareness...

[PurpleTree]

5 minutes ago, Schizophonia said:

.

Yes, but you have to pay for the plane, sometimes several thousand euros for the round trip.

 

Yea but if you stay a few months you can live soo much cheaper.

but whatever stay in europe, me i love europe but i like  to see other places. Whatever floats your boat

[An young being]

9 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

 

8 minutes ago, PurpleTree said:

good food, cheap, interesting spirituality, huge country, very different from the west so a change of perspective 

All these are valid reasons to visit India. Apart from that, here are some unique things that are here:

1. Religious diversity; Big temples, big mosques, big churches and big gurudwaras. Though the religions may not be united, you can see the religious structures close to each other, big in size. In Kerala, you will be able to find temples, mosques ,churches in the same street. Religious harmony is higher in southern states and decreases when moving North, although there are exceptions.

2. Spiritual traditions: You will be able to see the unique traditions and superstitions performed in temples, which will be curious to look if you are not aware of Hinduism. Fir example, whenever there is a death in my state, people dance and fire crackers.

3. Poverty: Western minds complaining about  in their life might find solace here, seeing the crowd, poverty, noise, emotions, daily life etc. Dalai Lama suggests to compare yourself with people suffering more than you as a way to attain happiness.

4. Culture: Different states have different culture. 

[An young being]

@Schizophonia are you from India? You seem to know very much about it.

[Bazooka Jesus]

1 hour ago, Schizophonia said:

Why India, are you from this country?

Nope, European here. In fact, I have never managed to leave Europe in my more than four decades on this big planet, so I got a feeling that it's about damn time that I do so!

Why India? Well. I could rattle off a lot of superficial reasons, but what it really boils down to is just blind curiosity. A gut feeling which tells me that I need to visit the place, see it with my own eyes and soak in the atmosphere. And all the reasons that people throw at me for why I should NOT visit India just add to my curiosity tbh. Sometimes it's good to leave your comfort zone... especially if you're a spoiled middle class European brat such as yours truly!

[Davino]

I would really recommend:

• Varanasi 
• Rishikesh
• Tiruvannamalai
• Vrindavan
• Auroville

I would really recommend Auroville. It's the city with higher Spiral Dynamics average of the world (late yellow and mostly turquoise). It's just a very different place. It was envisioned by Sri Aurobindo as a conscious centric society. It was presented to the ONU and assisted by Unesco since 1966 for the sake of social experimentation and alternative lifestyle. So if you have the chance I wouldn't miss this oportunity, maybe you decide to live there even.

[Davino]

Be aware that India is in heart breaking poverty. Just go with a strong stomach about that.

This video is great also:

 

[Bazooka Jesus]

6 minutes ago, Davino said:

I would really recommend Auroville. It's the city with higher Spiral Dynamics average of the world (late yellow and mostly turquoise). It's just a very different place. It was envisioned by Sri Aurobindo as a conscious centric society. It was presented to the ONU and assisted by Unesco since 1966 for the sake of social experimentation and alternative lifestyle. So if you have the chance I wouldn't miss this oportunity, maybe you decide to live there even.

Wow... interesting. Thanks for the tip! Have you visited the place?

@An young being As someone who lives in Tamil Nadu, have you ever been to Auroville?

[An young being]

42 minutes ago, Bazooka Jesus said:

Nope, European here. In fact, I have never managed to leave Europe in my more than four decades on this big planet, so I got a feeling that it's about damn time that I do so!

Why India? Well. I could rattle off a lot of superficial reasons, but what it really boils down to is just blind curiosity. A gut feeling which tells me that I need to visit the place, see it with my own eyes and soak in the atmosphere. And all the reasons that people throw at me for why I should NOT visit India just add to my curiosity tbh. Sometimes it's good to leave your comfort zone... especially if you're a spoiled middle class European brat such as yours truly!

I can see that you are very excited, but I would advice you to keep your expectations down. That will help you enjoy India in the natural way.

18 minutes ago, Bazooka Jesus said:

Wow... interesting. Thanks for the tip! Have you visited the place?

@An young being As someone who lives in Tamil Nadu, have you ever been to Auroville?

No, I have never been there unfortunately. But it's a unique and spiritual experience and many foreigners love to visit and stay there. But I have been to Adiyogi statue. Ps: I am not a traveller myself, but I have been to major cities.

 

[An young being]

33 minutes ago, Davino said:

I would really recommend:

• Varanasi 
• Rishikesh
• Tiruvannamalai
• Vrindavan
• Auroville.

@Davino, may I know why you included Tiruvannamalai in the list?