Agra is home to the World's ultimate monument to love, the Taj Mahal. Dreamily positioned on the banks of the Yamuna River, its pale dome and minarets seem to float over the river, catching every nuance of light and shade. It was commission...
The largest city in the Gujarat, Ahmedabad is an incredible mix of modern and medieval; tower blocks and factories are interspersed with mosques, tombs, bazaars, bustling residential quarters or pols, Hindu and Jain temples and marvellous s...
This village is rarely visisted on its own. Isolated and hard to access, this village is part of a village walk and home stay itinerary. This little village provides a 'snap-shot' of rural life in India. Acommodation is in ...
The gompa at Alchi is nestled in a secluded, tree-lined spot beside a bend in the milky-blue River Indus amid dramatic scenery. It harbours an extraordinary wealth of ancient wall paintings and wood sculptures which have been miraculously p...
Almora, surrounded by fruit orchards and pine forests is a former hill station which has grown into a thriving town, despite its seemingly remote location. It is also known as a town of temples the most famous is the Nanda Devi temple. Situ...
Once a princely state, Alwar is rarely visited, hidden between the more popular destinations of Agra and Jaipur. Here in the Shekhawati region, craggy hills and knolls are interspersed with seasonal lakes, small rural hamlets, markets, and ...
The Golden Temple in Amritsar, high in the Punjab near the border with Pakistan, is the most important site in the world for Sikhs. A two-storey marble structure with an imposing dome of pure gold, reflected in a surrounding sacred pool, it...
This small town, a little way inland from Baga beach, used to be a quiet, residential place whose high school, St Joseph's, has spawned many famous Goans. It still has charming Goan mansions with wide verandas and pretty gardens, but is now...
Aurangabad has traces of settlements dating to the Stone Age. A distinctive feature of the city is its fascinating mix of cultures and the distinct Muslim aura which it still carries. In 1610, Malik Ambar, the Prime Minister of Murtaza Niga...
Baga, Calangute. Calangute, Baga. Nobody really knows where one begins and the other ends, so they share the distinction of having been the original hippy beaches in Goa, scene of a constantly-evolving party scene that was eventually subdue...
Drive through the gates of Bandhavgarh and a great vista of grassland opens up, sweeping up to a dramatic red sandstone escarpment. These were the former hunting grounds of the Maharajas of Rewa, tucked between the Vindhyan ranges and the e...
Aficionados love the long, tranquil beaches of South Goa, with their waving palms and powerful surf. At Benaulim, roughly at the central point of Colva Beach, government rules have kept development back from the beach itself, but it has bec...
Modern Bharatpur clusters around its Old City, the Lohagarh Fort, founded early in the 18th century by the Jat ruler Suraj Mal. The "Iron Fort" was built for strength, with two mighty gates, and it worked - the British besieged it for six w...
This early 18th-century port on the Gulf of Khambhat (on opposite side of the peninsula to the Gulf of Kutch) is now a major cotton-exporting and ship-breaking town backed by a flat, fertile hinterland. Bhavnagar's charm lies in its old cit...
Set on the edge of rice fields in the Mahanadi Delta, the pleasant town of Bhubaneshwar offers a striking contrast to the architectural legacy of its period of greatness over a thousand years ago. Named after 'The Lord of the Universe', Bhu...
This remote medieval town in arid south-central Kutch entrances visitors with its lively mud-walled buildings, mirror work (one of its most famous sights is Aina Mahal, or the Palace of Mirrors), local dress and crafts, including exquisite ...
Bikaner exists in magnificent isolation in the northern Rajasthan desert, a fortified town founded by Bika, son of the Rathore king Rao Jodha (who built Jodhpur), in the late 15th century as a stop on the trading route between the Punjab an...
Situated on the banks of the Falgu River, Bodhgaya is a place revered by both Hindu and Buddhist faiths. Ghats (steps) and temples line the riverbanks, the most popular being Vishnupad Temple, where there is a footprint of Vishnu in a block...
The quaint town of Bundi, established in 1241 by Rao Deva, nestles in a narrow valley at the base of a large craggy hill, enclosed by huge walls and fortified by four gateways. The town is dominated by the imposing Taragarh Fort, which look...
At the southern end of Baga Beach, Calangute is the place that made Goa a legend in the 1960s - and then gave it a reputation for being overdeveloped 30 years later. Even so, for anyone in the mood to party, it's still great fun. At night i...
Calcutta's streets tell stories. Old mansions dripping in moss and spotted with mildew make it easy to imagine its spectacular trajectory from rural village to Imperial India's most imposing city. Set on the Hooghly River and originally lea...
This is what Goa used to be like: private, peaceful beaches backed by sleepy villages and rice paddy. Even so, Cansaulim, tucked below the headland of Mormugao in South Goa, has a few luxury resorts set back from the dunes of Arossim Beach,...
This peaceful South Goa beach is at the southernmost end of the coastal road from Bogmalo, fringed by coconut trees and overlooking the Sal River estuary It's a place in which to wind down, rather than live it up, but it's not a total backw...
A town and valley of the same name, Chamba is completely landlocked by magnificent Himalayan peaks. Because of this natural fortification it developed a very distinct Hindu culture - Mughal influence never reached this far north - with majo...
This resort, set right in the centre of South Goa's famous fringe of sand beaches, is no longer in its prime, but it has always been popular with the citizens of nearby Margao. There are some pretty colonial-style villas on its edges, a fin...
India's first national park was established in 1936 in the foothills of the Himalayas, in the southern part of Uttaranchal, and was originally named Hailey National Park. It was renamed in honour of one of its founders, hunter-turned-conser...
The tea that made Darjeeling famous only arrived in this hill station in the mid-19th century, soon contouring the steep slopes in rows of beautiful green. In colonial times the town was a popular escape from the heat of the plains, with a ...
A geographically unique landform, the Little Rann of Kutch is a saline desert wilderness offering exciting cross-desert safaris, superb wildlife viewing opportunities especially the endangered wild ass and colourful villages ...
A visit to Delhi is a heady experience. The capital city of India has two distinct personalities: Old Delhi, with its chaotic, winding alleys, crammed with cycle rickshaws, colourful shops and noisy street traders; and New Delhi, built by t...
Located in the Aravali hills of Rajasthan, and home to the Devi Garh Fort Palace, the picturesque farming village of Delwara commands one of the three main passes into the valley of Udaipur. Just 45 minutes drive from Udaipur, it is well pl...
The impressive Deogarh Mahal palace overshadows the small town of Deogarh, situated deep in the rugged and beautiful countryside of Rajasthan. Visitors here can sample rural life amidst stunning scenery which can be explored by jeep, train ...
A very small village which is mainly used as the start of a trek and for our range of village walks and homestays.This little village, is located in the Himalayan foothills with the majestic mountains ever present in the background....
Dharamshala is one of the 80 hill stations established by the British between 1815 and 1847. It has a spectacular setting, being close to the perennial snowline and built along a spur of the Dhaula Dhar range. The town varies in height from...
The old historic city of Dholpur has a very turbulent history. Its strategic location on the main route from Kabul and Delhi to Deccan and its proximity to cities like Gwalior, Agra and Bayana attracted the attention of almost all of the po...
The Damdim Tea Estate was established as Barrons Tea Estate, which later came to be known as Damdim, deriving its name from the flies which the Bhutanese and Tibetans called 'Dema Dema'. The oldest section of this garden or estate dates bac...
The village of Eklingji is centred on a huge Hindu temple complex dedicated to Shiva (Ecklingji), dating from 734BC but rebuilt in the 15th century. The complex consists of 108 shrines and temples, made or marble and granite, with towering ...
Gangtok is the capital city of the Himalayan state of Sikkim, known for its flowers, particularly orchids, and its preservation of Tibetan culture through the many refugees who have been settled there for years. Located at an altitude of 1,...
The 1,150-square-kilometre forest of Gir is the last remaining retreat of the Asiatic lion in India and became a national park in 1975. The gently rolling, densely wooden landscape also harbours leopards and other Asian cats, all of which a...
About an hour's drive from Darjeeling with stunning Himalayan views, this charming tea estate has a long history. Fishing, walking, picnicing and learning about tea can all be arranged....
On the banks of the river Gondali lie the beautiful 17th-century Navlakha Palace complex and two other royal residences, the Riverside Palace and Orchard Palace, both built in the 19th century and now heritage hotels. The rulers of Gondal w...
Gulmarg, originally Gauri Marg was a favourite of Emperor Jahangir and a popular summer retreat since the days of the Raj. It stands in a broad upland bowl-shaped meadow - the name means, "flower filled meadow" as in spring the whole area c...
This town is the gateway to the Brahmaputra River, the Assam region and in particular the Kaziranga National Park. Although there is little to do here, there is a certain buzz in the local bazaars that focus mainly on selling provisions. Bu...
Gwalior is a busy town at the northern tip of Madhya Pradesh, dominated by a thousand-year-old sandstone citadel high on the cliffs above. Within its walls are palaces, temples, gates and water tanks which are illuminated at night by a son ...
This tiny village is located at the top of a steep trail. Here one will find an abundance of culture and history in this Buddhist realm. With lush green surroundings, you may get a chance to see the tradtional Sikkamese celeberations come t...
Hemis, 49 km south of Leh on the road to Manali is the biggest and wealthiest monastery in Ladakh. The courtyard of Hemis is the stage for the famous Hemis festival, which celebrates the birth anniversary of Guru Padmasambahava who is belie...
Nubra Valley is popularly known as Ldorma or the Valley of the Flowers. It is situated to the north of Ladakh between the Karakoram and Ladakh ranges of the Himalayas. Nubra lies at and altitude of about 10,000 - ft. above the sea level and...
Jaipur, "The Pink City", is one of the few planned cities in India and its name comes from the deep pink, lime-plastered buildings. Set in the buff-coloured Rajasthani hills, it was founded in 1727 by the Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II. At the...
There is something magical about Jaisalmer, which rears out of the inhospitable Thar Desert like a mirage from the "1001 Nights". Once a staging post on the trading routes west, it is a walled citadel, formidably fortified, of a sand colour...
The high altitude Manali-Leh road connects the densely fertile Kulu valley to the stark barren region of Ladakh. The first day of the drive is from Manali to Jispa (approx. 6 - 7 hrs), winding up mountain roads to the Rohtang Pass 3,980 met...
On the eastern edge of the Thar Desert, Jodhpur also known as the 'Blue City' was once the chief settlement in Marwar, the largest princely state in Rajasthan. Whilst here, stroll around the bazaars with their spices, tie-dye fabrics and pu...
A remote village located on a forested ridge with lovely views of the mountains. Usually the final stop on the Shakti trekking route, the locals provide a colourful evening of song and dance....
This pretty hill station straddles a ridge above the River Tista, almost on the border between the Indian states of West Bengal and Sikkim, and used to be on the trade route linking Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan. Surrounded by forests of mountain...
One of three sanctuaries in "tiger territory", on the eastern flank of Madhya Pradesh, 945-square-kilometre Kanha (with additional 1,000-square-kilometre buffer zone) started life as a wilderness used by the British for shooting tiger and o...
This remote, peaceful town on the skirts of the Maikal Hills is in a mineral-rich area occupied by a tribal people called the Baiga. Its 1930s palace, still owned and occupied by the maharaja, has a quiet charm that is worlds away from the ...
This national park, sprawling over 430 square kilometres in the eastern state of Assam, is one of the last bastions of the endangered great indian one-horned rhinoceros, whose population was believed to have dropped to just 12 in the 1950s ...
The famous sculptures in the sandstone temples of Khajuraho are truly beautiful, executed with a joy, fluidity and lack of inhibition that is rarely to be found in modern India. Their eroticism shocked the British ("The sculptor had at time...
The city of Kota founded, in the 1264, used to be Rajasthan's principle industrial centre though its focus has recently switched to education and coaching institutes for engineering, medical and scientific research. With an open and spaciou...
A ghost-town rising out of the rugged landscape of the Aravalli Hills, this was the finest of 32 forts built by Maharana Kumbha in the 15th century; its hilltop position meant that it was only conquered once, by a combined force of Mughals...
Leh is the capital of Ladakh, a vast highland desert lying between the Karakoram mountains and the Greater Himalayan range at a height of 3,500 metres. The city sits in a stark, awe-inspiring location on the valley floor, hemmed in by mile ...
Leti is a small village where the hotel Leti 360 is located. It is an hour's walk or a short drive away from the village, which in turn is located around 125 kilometres from Almora at a height of 2,200 metres. Shakti was conceived to share ...
Lucknow, once one of the foremost cities in India was renowned for with its grand Nawabs who loved the arts and architecture and developed a refined court cuisine. For the British, it is more commonly associated with the starting point of t...
This busy little village beneath the walls of Chanwa Fort, which is now a heritage hotel, is full of artisans working with metal, clay or wood using skills passed down through the generations. Those too old to work sit chatting under the sh...
The first sight of the beautiful fort and tiered temples of Maheshwar, shimmering above their reflections in the waters of the sacred Narmada River, is something that no-one forgets. Not many tourists make it this far, which is a shame beca...
This 1,926-metre hill station at the northern end of the Kulu Valley has suffered from over-development, but its setting is superb: the Beas River meanders through town, which is surrounded by deodar and pine trees, tiny fields, orchards an...
Mandawa is just over 100 kilometres north of Jaipur, but it could be on a different planet, Because it is north of the Aravalli Hills, on an incredibly arid, dusty plain, its painted havelis - or merchants' mansions - have been unusually we...
This little village, north of the Chapora River estuary, makes its living from fishing and tapping toddy. It also has a three-mile-long, partially shaded beach and a sandy island with a few trees between the river and the Arabian Sea; it is...
Mandvi is an intriguing port town on the Gulf coast, around 60km south west of Bhuj. It is renowned for its wooden dhow-building industry and huge, clean, undeveloped beaches - and it makes the ideal base for exploring the southern tract of...
Mashobra is only 12 kilometres from Shimla, at 2,600 metres above sea level, and is surrounded by nature on a grand scale: everywhere you look, snow-capped Himalayan vistas dominate the landscape. A trek to the highest nearby peak, Shali, m...
At the southern end of the beach from Cavelossim, on a narrow peninsula that forms the north bank of the Sal River, Mobor is famous for its water sports. The first hotels arrived in the 1980s and since then seafood shacks and luxury resorts...
Rajasthan's only hill station is most famous for its intricately carved marble Dilwara Temples, built between the 11th and 13th centuries, which are hidden in trees north of the town and considered to be some of the best carvings in India. ...
Mumbai has always had style. A port city overlooking the Arabian Sea, it is famous for its mega-population (16 million people crammed onto a curving promontory), its glittering Bollywood film industry, its dhobiwallahs or tiffin carriers an...
This is almost literally the centre of India, the capital of the orange-growing region and a great area for cotton and strawberries. It sounds rather romantic, but sadly is not - it is mainly used as a stopover en route to the game parks of...
Nalagarh sits on a low hill on the flanks of the Himalayas, surrounded by pretty woodlands and orchards and commanding panoramic views of the Shivalik Hills. It has an 18th-century palace, built over a period of 300 years by the Chandela Ra...
This tiny, typically Rajasthani village is in a beautiful area, near the hills that divide the Mewar (in the south) from the Marwar (in the northwest). Dominated by an imposing granite boulder the size of several houses, from the top of whi...
The reservoir at Nimaj is one of Rajasthan's loveliest and most serene spots; the water attracts wheeling flocks of migratory birds, waders and wildfowl during the winter months - hence its former life as a royal hunting preserve - and ther...
Nimoo is a large village situated 36km west of Leh along the Indus valley at the confluence of the Zanskar and Indus rivers. The village is characterised by impressive mountain scenery, and is considered exceptionally fertile in Ladakhi ter...
This section of Goa stretches from Arambol in the north down to Candolim in the south, taking in forts and beaches along the way. This part of the state was quickly colonised by the young Western travellers of the 1960s and is a mature tour...
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Dreamy, isolated and marooned on a bend of the Betwa River, Orchha is a fantastically romantic cluster of stone palaces, temples, towers and gateways surrounded by acres of bright green jungle. From 1531 to 1783 this was the capital of the...
There are 23 temples in this frontier town, one of the final provisioning stops for travellers crossing the Thar Desert by camel. It's a wild, remote location, right out amongst the rolling sand dunes: right up on the top of a privately-own...
Pahalgam lies in a beautiful valley 95 km east of Srinagar at the junction of the Lidder rivers, at an altitude of 2,130 metres. It offers an area of real unspoilt wilderness and has a fantastic location amid gorgeous alpine scenery.Pahalga...
This is a charming little town, sitting below the snowy peaks of the Dhauladhar Range of the Himalayas amongst terraced paddy fields, tea gardens and fragrant pine and deodar forests. There are also numerous waterfalls, streams and pools, w...
These two beaches are in the far south of Goa. Palolem is more famous because of its gorgeous curve of sand, bordered to the south by a forested mountain spur reaching down to the sea. It's no longer a well-kept secret and the sand is packe...
Pangong Lake, situated at 4,267 metres. A long narrow basin of inland drainage, hardly six to seven kilometer at its widest point and over 130 kilometres long, it is bisected by the international border between India and China. A few years ...
Situated just 31kilometres from the world famous town of Khajuraho, Panna National Park is located on the banks of the River Ken in the Vindhya Hills. Panna National Park is the most important protected area in the north-central highlands o...
The pleasant little town of Pelling is famous for its magnificent views of the snow-capped mountains of Kanchenjunga, and is as close as you can get to the mighty range without leaving behind material comforts. One of the oldest and most im...
Pench was the place that inspired Rudyard Kipling to write "The Jungle Book" and, more recently, the BBC series "Tiger - Spy in the Jungle". One look at its mighty tangle of jungle, with huge, pale tree trunks and rich foliage rustling with...
Puri attracts many tourists with its beautiful long beach and world famous Jagannath Temple. There are many ashrams and sacred temples in Puri which attract pilgrims throughout the year. ...
The town of Pushkar sits beside a lake, said to be formed of the petals of a lotus dropped by Lord Brahma. The lake is surrounded by more than 500 whitewashed temples, the main one of which is one of the few in India dedicated to Brahma. Pu...
A 15th-century pale marble temple, rising out of the Aravalli foothills to the north of Udaipur, on the banks of the Magai River, this one of the most significant Jain sites in India, dedicated to the first Teerthkar, or leader, Lord Adinat...
Home to the Kumaon Rifles, and proud of its military traditions, Ranikhet is a hill station about 50kms west of Almora. At 1829 metres, Ranikhet means 'Queens Meadow' as it was said that a Queen once came to the area and built a palace. The...
The Maharaja of Jaipur used this vast expanse of dry deciduous forests, lakes, meadows and mountains for a private hunting reserve until it became a national park in 1972. One of the earliest tiger reserves in India, Ranthambore offers reli...
Rishikesh is really a collection of districts, which became famous as a spiritual centre because of its position on the banks of the Ganges, where the mountains rise out of the plains. Many years ago it was rural and peaceful and its heady ...
The Maharaja of Jodhpur bestowed the fiefdom of Rohet upon Thakur Dalpat Singh 1, Rathore of the Champawat clan, as a reward for bravery in the 16th century. These days it is a bustling, colourful, Rajasthani village surrounded by semi-dese...
Samode is tucked into the Aravalli Hills, around 40 kilometres from Jaipur. It is famous for its restored 18th-century palace, now a luxury hotel and arguably the best of its type in India, which rises above the cobbled streets and stone ho...
Way up north, almost at the border with Jammu & Kashmir, Sarchu is an important stop on the Manali-Leh Highway. After crossing the Bara Lacha Pass, there is one last chance to see truly magnificent, panoramic views of the Himalayan ranges b...
Halfway between Jaipur and Udaipur, the town of Shahpura is full of shops - shoemakers, tailors, grocers - and has a fine stepwell. To the west, set between a cluster of tranquil man-made lakes that are refilled annually by the monsoon, is ...
Shey was once the capital of Ladakh, it is now centred around a Gompa and a collection of Chortens clustered around a large mound the just out of the Indus valley. The four kilometre trek from Tikse to Shey passes one of Ladakh's largest ...
The "Queen of the Hill Stations", once the summer playground of the Raj and now the capital of Himachal Pradesh, sits at 2,213 metres above sea level, right on the edge of the Himalayas. Surrounded by forests of oak, deodar, pine and rhodod...
The charming village of Stok (3650m) lies at the foot of Stok Kangri which at 6120m is not Ladakh’s highest mountain, but one of its most beautiful. The village is home to Ladakh’s royal family and their Tibetan style palace watches over th...
When the Dalai Lama said he would like to retire to Tabo, because of the true holiness of its monastery, this small town in the inhospitable Spiti Valley, near the Chinese border, started attracting the more adventurous traveller. Tabo Gomp...
Thiksey, 19 km southeast of Leh, is Ladakh's most photographed and architecturally impressive monastery. Founded in the 15th century, its whitewashed chortens (stupas) and monks' quarters rise in ranks up the sides of a craggy hillock, crow...
Set in an abundant landscape of paddy and coconut plantations and jungle dotted with temples, Tiracol is the last place before the border with Maharashtra. Its fort, on the far side of the Tiracol River, started life as a Maratha fort, site...
Udaipur has always delighted visitors with its glamorous setting and easy-going, small-town atmosphere. Its position is wonderfully romantic, set beside the blue waters of Pichola Lake, which glimmers against the green of the surrounding hi...
Varanasi is probably the place in India that has the most profound impact on visitors. Formerly known as Benares, it sits on a bend of the Ganges, and its spiritual significance comes from its status as a "crossing place", where gods and go...
One of the beaches to the south of Banaulim, Varca is clean and tranquil, lined with little open-air restaurants serving seafood brought straight into the beach - the slender wooden boats are drawn up on the sand each morning - and backed b...