Never been to the subcontinent? Charles Miller tries out a tour that gets you off to a golden start...
Silver wedding anniversaries call for something special. As my wife and I had never been to India, nor partaken of a coach party holiday, we decided to give both a go. I’m not sure which one worried us more.
Swallowing our trepidation, we chose an eight-day trip to the so-called Golden Triangle of Delhi, Agra – site of the Taj Mahal – and Jaipur, limbered up with an Indian meal in Gloucester Road and touched down in Delhi two days later.
First impressions? It was as if we had stepped into a TV documentary. There were the bikes loaded with comically enormous loads; the overcrowded buses; the mopeds carrying whole families. And then there were the two girls, perhaps six or seven years old, deposited by a car at traffic lights to beg with tin cups at drivers’ windows.
Our party numbered roughly 15, mostly Brits and Australians, masterfully cajoled into promptness by our able guide, Yusuf. The coach, he warned on day one, would not wait for more than five minutes – after that stragglers would have to find their own way back.
Thus chastened, we headed out for a photo op at Delhi’s massive Red Fort, before piling onto rickshaws for a ride through the old city. It was tourist catnip: narrow lanes, colourful fruit stalls, even a snake charmer. For anyone trying to do business, however, it must have been intensely frustrating: pasty-faced tourists clicking away, their money firmly in their pockets as they hurried on back to the coach.
Two more stops – at the elaborate tomb that inspired the Taj Mahal and at Gandhi’s austere memorial garden – and we were done with Delhi. Next day we left for Agra, a five-hour drive lit up by the warmth of our driver and his assistant. Neither spoke English, but they smiled and dished out bottled water with such charm that words were somehow superfluous.
Yusuf, meanwhile, used these journeys to expound on Indian history and culture, from colonisation to the caste system and the Mogul kings. The British had “benefited” India, he said, through three main bequests. In order of importance: the English language, cricket and industrialisation.
On a more personal note, there was the gripping tale of Yusuf’s arranged marriage. He had struggled against it, he confessed, but in the end – reluctantly and for his mother’s sake – he’d agreed. His work had taken him to Switzerland and to Disneyland in Florida, but his wife and children remained at the family home, not far from Jaipur.
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The highlight of the trip was undoubtedly the Taj Mahal. Whiter and more elegant than one would ever imagine, it exudes an impossible beauty against an empty blue sky. Inside, it’s a gloomy tourist traipse round a tomb, but outside it’s magical. We stayed for hours, watching the changing colours as sunset approached.
Another vivid memory is of animals wandering around: not just cows and goats, but pigs and monkeys too. Horses and camels pull carts, and in Jaipur I saw an elephant transporting packages. In India, amid the chaos, poverty and noise, the human and non-human worlds converge.
On the last day, Yusuf announced that we’d been to seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites in a week – impossible elsewhere, he said. Nor did we feel that the intensive tourism had shielded us from the real India. Indeed, we were with Indians all the time: waiters, souvenir hawkers, craftspeople and hotel staff.
One day we went to a down-at-heel village, miles from any city, and attended a Hindu morning service. A real privilege. The locals sat outside their houses, watching visitors take photos while endeavouring not to seem too intrusive. One of our party, a builder from Somerset, was asked by a young man whence he came.
“England,” he replied, before adding with a twinkle: “And you?”
Laughter all round. It was, I hoped, an intervention that made us seem more human.
All in all, the ‘Taj Express’ is a great starter pack for India. The hotels are good and the organisation exemplary. If you want to spend your time doing what you came for – not on research, logistics and the avoidance of being ripped off – it’s unbeatable. Rather like India itself.
TOP TIPS
- Avoid the Golden Triangle between June and October, when it’s extra hot and humid.
- Don’t take elephant rides or pay snake charmers. Both are cruel and only continue because tourists pay.
- If you have a sensitive tummy, consider avoiding meat. An Indian vegetarian diet is delicious.
- A tip is often expected, even in the loo. You’ll want to give, so have an accessible supply of small change.
- Many Indians speak good English, especially on the tourist trail.
- If you want a relaxing tour, don’t go it alone. Find a good guide and you’ll get more from your trip.
- Cashpoints work, but warn your bank about your trip. You may still also need to call the bank from India.
This trip with On The Go Tours costs £695 pp (incl hotels, transport in India and some meals etc, but not flights to Delhi, tips or all entry charges). Visit: onthegotours.com
