Geography

  • Rajasthan Forts, palaces and the desert

    Rajasthan

    Rajasthan: Forts, palaces… and the desert

    — Magnificent forts and palaces, some of them now fabulous hotels

    — Deserts stretching to the horizon, replete with turbaned camel herders

    — The fabled ‘pink’ and ‘blue’ cities of Jaipur and Jodhpur

    — The ‘living’ fort of Jaisalmer and camel treks in the Thar desert

    — Accommodation in heritage hotels, Maharaja’s guesthouses and grand palaces.

  • Kerala Houseboats, beaches and rainforest

    Kerala

    Kerala: Houseboats, beaches, and rainforest

    —    Lush tropical forests and plantations

    — The famous backwaters and their luxury houseboats

    — Deserted beaches and unspoilt nature reserves in the north of the state

    — Intriguing remnants of Portuguese, Dutch and British rulers

    — A thriving and highly refined culture of performing arts and cuisine

    — Unique accommodation in lovinglyrun guest houses and family homestays, as well as five star luxury resorts.

  • The Hindi heartland Punjab to Bihar

    The Hindi heartland

    —    Dynamic, restless, chaotic, proud and simply amazing Delhi

    —    The one and only Taj Mahal

    — Ancient Varanasi, one of the longest continuously inhabited cities in the world

    — The beautiful Golden Temple of Amritsar.

  • Himalayas Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim & Uttarakhand

    Himalayas

    Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Sikkim

    — Trekking in the mighty, mighty Himalayan Range, the
    world’s highest

    — Stay in simple retreats to luxury spa resorts, set high in the mountains

    — Home to many Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and Tibetans in exile, including the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala

    — Remote valleys deep in Ladakh, where people subsist on barley and Buddhism

    — Houseboats on Dal Lake in beautiful Kashmir, and skiing in the nearby mountains

    —    Sikkim, a Himalayan melting pot, squashed between Bhutan, Tibet and Nepal.

  • Tamil Nadu Temples, tradition and culture

    Tamil Nadu

    Temples, tradition and culture

    — Thousand-year-old temples, still in use for daily worship and rituals

    — Small seaside villages, with locally caught seafood served fresh in beachfront restaurants

    — Distinct regional cities, former capitals of vast south Indian empires

    — Madurai, the famous ‘fish-eyed goddess’ Sri Meenakshi temple, the largest in India

    — Kanyakumari, the southern tip of the sub-continent where three oceans meet

    —    The French colonial town of Pondicherry, with its luxurious heritage hotels and fantastic hassle-free shopping.

  • South India Palaces, ancient ruins and breakneck development

    South India

    Palaces, ancient ruins and breakneck development

    — Bangalore and Hyderabad, vibrant IT centres bursting into modernity

    — Goa, India’s party and holiday hot spot

    — The Maharaja’s palace in Mysore, with its 97,000 lights

    — Yoga, meditation and Ayurvedic health resorts

    — The ancient ruins and haunting, mysterious landscape at Hampi

    — Wildlife sanctuaries with elephants, big cats and abundant bird life

    — Accommodation on private beaches, in coffee plantations and in tree top cottages!

  • Central India East to West - Bollywood glitz to Kolkata culture

    Central India

    East to West: Bollywood glitz to Kolkata culture

    — Mumbai, cosmopolitan and commercial capital, straining with growth

    — Gandhi’s home state of Gujarat, with a thriving cottage arts and crafts industry

    — Madhya Pradesh, largely unexplored by tourists, but famous for its tiger parks

    — Orissa, ideal for exploration by trekking, with many distinct indigenous tribes

    — The famously erotic carvings at Khajuraho – a Karma Sutra in stone

    —    West Bengal, from the tea plantations of Darjeeling, to India’s most soulful city, Kolkata.