hi everyone! i've allllllllways wanted to go to india. and my best friend and i decided to take a trip next year to celebrate a milestone birthday together.

can you guys tell me whats the best time of year to visit the northern areas? thats where i think we will focus our trip on since we won't have a ton of time. (maybe 2-3 weeks) i wish i could stay months and months but i'm sure i will be back a few times to see the rest! anyway, what are some highlights you think are NOT to be missed? cities? activities? sites? amazing food? special hotels? parties? clubs? any cooking classes to recommend? we are both well seasoned and adventurous world travelers and are up for anything! (not squeemish or shy! we like to get ourselves deep into things. culture and adventure) thanks sooooooooo much!

Best time to visit northern India is between September and November. December to February, it can be a little nippy (though rarely sub-freezing) in the Indo-Gangetic plain.

DO NOT visit these areas between March and June.

October and November are good months because of the good weather. December and January are cooler (even cold in the higher mountains/hills); February is nice as the weather is changing over from cold to warmer. March till June it gets hot, and then June to September there are the monsoon rains to deal with.

I loved my visit to the North in the mid 1980's! I went to the Golden Temple in Amritsar and to Waishnodevi in Jammu (a 6-hour trek up a mountain to a mother-goddess cave), which are both culturally rich and endearing places, but I don't know the political situation there nowadays (save to visit or no?). The town of Ayodhya is also rich in culture, it is a charming temple town, birthplace of the King (and worshipped as a god) Rama. Vrindavan (Brindavan) is another town of temples (birthplace of another King/god, Krishna), it is like a swim in the deep waters of Indian culture to walk around seeing renunciates everywhere and ashrams (like convents) on every street corner (and don't forget the many wild peacocks!). Varanasi (Banaras, where people come to die because the scriptures declare a free ticket to heaven upon death there) and Calcutta are also fascinating cultural hubs, though well-tromped by zillions of tourists. And of course how could we forgot Taj Mahal in Agra.

I visited all those places and will treasure my journeys there, forever! (Happily my parents saved my extensive snail mails so I can re-read about my adventures whenever I want!)

In the last year I've taken the trip to India 7 times (yep 7). I was primarily in Delhi most of the time but also visited the South too. In my opinion, the best weather I experienced was my visit in November. The weather was absolutely perfect. Second best was my visit in February. The absolutely WORST was when we lived there last year from May-August. It's like the pits of hell. Even a couple of weeks ago when I was there it was already hot. I hope this helps and gives you an idea of when to travel. If you have questions feel free to pm me.

As far as my must sees, don't visit India without seeing the Taj Mahal. The pictures don't do it any kind of justice at all. My other must sees are in South India which aren't on your agenda. Happy traveling.

In New Delhi you can see Qutub Minar & the Lotus Temple. Also you should see the Taj Mahal in Agra, as someone else said. I also wanted to see Jaipur when we were there, but didn't have enough time and traveling around was hard to do, I felt. I think Sujeet was also overprotective of me there, not wanting to take us on trains or anything.

Have you been to a country like India before? Just wondering. I had never traveled outside the US before I went there. I would never feel comfortable going with only another girl, if I knew no one there. But I am not a well seasoned traveler like you are (tho I wish I was! ). If the person you are going with is a girl, then make sure you prepare some safety precautions. Just a tip that maybe you already know! I may just be over cautious. I went with my dad to India when I went to meet Sujeet.

I went to India in October, it was still warm outside but not too bad.

As for clubs, parties, etc I really would have no idea. It doesn't seem most Indians do that kind of stuff, at least not where I was. It was very reserved and conservative everywhere I went. You'd probably have to ask ppl who know about that.

Like the US, India has many social sub-cultures. Clubbing and partying is quite popular among urban, wealthy, sophisticated English-speaking families.

When we were planning to go to India, Sujeet did most of the planning of what we would do in India.

But still I bought the Lonely Planet travel book about India to read and try to get prepared for everything, and read more about the places I was going to see.

It has a lot of useful info and I think it's worth getting. It tells you about accommodations in different cities from budget prices to five star, what to expect when arriving in India, what to eat or avoid, etc.

It also tells you what is worth seeing, and what are just tourist traps.

Here's a list of books at Amazon incase you are interested.

I had gotten the book about all of India, but they have books on certain regions too. You might be able to find them on ebay for cheaper.

That's the one I used during my travels! I was 19 years old when I traveled ALONE in North India for several months, ONLY on local buses and trains and staying in really cheap hotels (or train station platforms, I was on a budget!). Since I only dressed in a sari pulled over my head, looked down most of the time and did not answer when gents talked to me (in other words, a proper Indian village girl), I was respected and did not have any problems at all.

hey thanks for the advice everyone! i'm sooooo excited i could jump out of my chair! it sounds like september is the best time to go if i want an overall good experience. i think we've upped out trip to one month so we'll be able to see more in that time. maybe even try to make it down south?!

i've never been to a country like india before...meaning south asian style. but i've been to other poverty stricken and hot countries if thats what you mean? hehe. i think i will definitely be able to handle it.

since its a big birthday bash for us, i think we will splurge a lot of the time on hotels. we're looking for really special hotels... maybe palaces turned hotel? with amazing old architecture and designs. any advice on which ones anywhere around the country?

and advice on jewelry? furniture? textiles? i want to buy some nice gold, maybe some furniture, pottery, etc while i'm there.

also, do you think all the immunizations are necessary when going there? which ones could i leave out and be fine?

About the immunizations-As many times as I have gone to India, the only thing i've taken are anti-malarial medications. When my children and I lived there last year i had them take the Hepatitis A vaccination but we've had no problems. I'm also thankful that for every trip I've taken there I've only gotten the Delhi Belly (that stomach bug) once. I was fine within three days. Thankfully my doctor sent me with a prescription of Ciproflaxin for any tummy bug I got.

If you do decide to go to the South, don't leave kerala and Goa off of your list. They are two of my favorite places to go. I've been to Goa four times (even got married there on the beach at Sunset). The Kenilworth hotel is an excellent place to stay. The only drawback is that they are a bit out of the way so only taxis serve their property. However, they have these cool luxury beach tents you can stay in and if you choose all of your meals can be included which was a plus for us. It's a great place to go if you just want to relax in a more upscale place. By the way they have a spa, a nightclue and they have the best pool with a swimup bar. All of their rooms also have a small veranda area where you open the window and enjoy the sea breeze.

The other place we've stayed when we've gone to Goa is the Bogmallo Beach Resort. All of their rooms are sea facing and the atmosphere there is a little more Bohemian.

In Kerala if you have time, make sure you do the backwater tour which is on the national Geographic 1000 things to do before you die list. I'm proud to say I've done it and it was an incredible experience. Also take in a Theyyam performance. It's quite interesting to see and can go on for hours. In Kerala we stayed at the Costa Malabari Beach Resort. It's basic living quarters but they have two locations, one which is right on the beach and the other which is only a five minute walk from the beach. The food was INCREDIBLE. It was the Malabari style of cuisine and as an admitted picky eater, I was pleased. All meals are included in the price of the lodging. There is not a whole lot to do in the evenings at this location. It's generally quite quiet with the ocassional sound of a wolf or jackal howling in the night or someone playing the bongos or some other type of instrument. If you need relaxation this is the way to go in my opinion.

As far as jewelry/furniture etc, there is a place in Agra that sells some of the best pieces of furniture with inlaid precious gemstones. At this moment I can't recall the name but I'll call hubby and ask him. All of the pieces of furniture are handmade and I have to tell you that the prices are quite reasonable. Supposedly the people who are making these (they do a demonstration for you) are decendants of those artisians who helped build the Taj Mahal I have some pictures if you want to pm me your address and I'll email them to you. This place also sells beautiful jewelry. However, the prices were way to steep for me but may work for you.


Sorry for the long post but hopefully this will help you and others who one day plan to visit this beautiful country. By the way, you will inevitably notice a huge difference in life in the North and life in the South of India. From my perspective, life is slower and more laid back in the South. This is a great area to go if you want to relax a bit. Good luck on your trip. Btw, it's still hot in September. I go every other month (sometimes more if I miss hubby so much I can't stand it) and the best period for me was my trip in November. The weather was quite pleasant (not too hot or cold) but if you aren't as heat sensitive as I am you should be okay. Also during September of last year when I visited there were still some monsoon rains in the south. Just FYI

Don't forget to get the tourist visa before you go!! It can take up to 6 weeks sometimes depending on what embassy in the US you are sending your passport to....

I am from North India so I am of course biased when I say it has some of the most beautiful history and culture available. :-)

If you can get to Punjab, the Golden Temple of Amritsar is a must. And then if you want to hit some clubs, Chandigarh is very metro and hip city. And across all of North India you'll find a McDonalds here and there, Domino's pizza and Subway (if you want to be on the lookout for chains that is!). Definietly stop at least once to have a cup of tea at a Dhaba on the side of the road (your driver will know where to stop) and ENJOY!!!!

i definitely don't see mcdonalds or subway in my future...but if we stay at least a month like we plan, it might happen. i was in morocco for a few months before and i went to pizza hut and mcdonalds thereto get an american food fix! (places i NEVER go here in the us)

i'm so excited about trying all the indian food. i've been reading more about the cuisine and i've come to find out the majority of the indian food here in the us is punjab. am i right? there's sooooooo much for me to try!

You should definitely go to a McD's in India just to experience it. They have a very different menu, with different vegetarian sandwiches that are yummy. My favorite there was the aloo tikka burger (or something like that, made from potatoes). They didn't have any beef burgers when I was there. It's a lot different!

Here's a link to McDonald's in India with a menu. I wish they made some of that stuff at our McDonalds!
http://www.mcdonaldsindia.com/ourfood/index.html

wow, yum! i will definitely go try the potato burger. LOL thanks!