We spent two weeks in India at the end of February/first week of March 2020. Read on about our amazing adventure.
Two Weeks in India – Our Itinerary:
Some Facts:
- We flew with only 2 hand luggage/Cabin Zero bags (they weren’t full and had diapers and snacks for kids in them, and an extra Cabin Zero bag for any shopping we would do).
- We visited 7 cities across 3 states, had 6 internal flights and stayed in 10 hotels in 2 weeks.
- Having been to Kerala 10 years ago, I wanted to see the parts of India I always envisioned when I hear its name. I wanted to see the palaces, the beautiful architecture, be present in religious sites and more. Having spoken to ten different people (either from India or had been to India) to consult their opinion and after trying numerous possibilities (with flights, etc.), I came up with this itinerary after six months of research.
- We flew from Zurich to Delhi with Emirates; all our internal flights were either with Air India or Spice Jet.
- A big reason I decided to travel light was because I did not want to pay the exorbitant prices to check in luggage with Spice Jet. It was the best decision ever.
- We originally wanted to do an overland return trip from Jaipur to Agra to see the Taj Mahal but I decided against it one week before we left for India when I realised how much of a toll that would take on the kids (at least 4.5 hours each way within 28 hours).
- We missed our flight from Jaipur to Jaisalmer as Peter did not realise they had sent an email with flight change details last October, and with the cancelled Agra trip, we spent 4 nights in Jaipur, instead of 2, certainly 2 nights too many.
- Connections from Udaipur to Varanasi was only possible with an overnight in Delhi – we wasted so much time.
- Delhi traffic is truly something else. Even hotels supposedly ten minutes away, took us 45 minutes to get to, no thanks to an accident we could not see. Combine that with a flight that was 2 hours delayed and an hour longer due to rains in Delhi and add to that, the traffic jam… it was a long day of getting from point A to B.
- We hired a car and driver for the journeys from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur and from Jodhpur to Udaipur via Ranakpur. We paid Rs 3500 each way for both roughly six hour journeys. 1 USD = 74 Rs.
- The drive from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur through the desert was flat and one where we saw many camels.
- The drive down to Udaipur through the Aravali Range after visiting the famous Jain temple in Ranakpur the following day proved to be more scenic, hilly, with many monkeys instead. For some reason, it reminded me of Sicily, although in a very different way.
- Do not underestimate the traffic in India. I couldn’t understand how 22km from central Udaipur to the airport could take 45 minutes, until I did. It was much worse in Varanasi. Even 2.5km can take 30 minutes.
A Summary of our two weeks in India:
Amritsar
Amritsar was noisy and chaotic, yet calm and serene as soon as you enter the premises of the Golden Temple, one of Sikhism’s most spiritually significant and most-visited gurudwaras (place of assembly and worship for Sikhs).
As our first stop in India and having 3 kids who were recovering from illness, the simple trip to the Golden Temple was not the easiest. Unfortunately they were that unwell that they refused to even look up to see the Golden Temple before their eyes.
It was funny hearing the people on the streets repeating the words Wagah Border super quickly about ten times in one breath, attracting tourists to visit the famous Wagah Border ceremony. This daily military practice undertaken by both the Indian Border Security Forces and Pakistani Rangers involve dance like manoeuvres where they raise their legs high up in the air.
We did not expect to be so entertained by the patriotism of the Indian crowd there, with flags coloured on their faces and flown by many. I will not forget how the crowd went crazy when the famous song Jai Ho (soundtrack from Slumdog Millionaire) went on. People were dancing and having the greatest time. It was as if we were at a concert.
Jaipur
We did the hike up to Amer Fort under the hot sun, with the elephants walking next to us.
Jaisalmer
Sometimes referred to as the Golden City due to the yellow sandstones used to build the fort and the city, Jaisalmer lies in the heart of the Thar desert, close to the Pakistan border. After the bustling city of Jaipur, the quieter Jaisalmer where there was more space to breathe was a welcome change.
A view of Jaisalmer Fort from the rooftop of Crazy Camel Cafe
The Jaisalmer Fort, one of India’s UNESCO Heritage sites, is believed to be one of the few “living forts” in the world. Built on a hill that is 76m raised above the surrounding city, it is grand and imposing, commanding attention from afar. This does mean that every time you venture outside the fort walls, getting back is a slight uphill climb, unless you take a tuktuk/auto.
The boys loved our Haveli (traditional mansion) for the night in the fort which was only accessible on foot from the main square. Walking through the narrow alleys passing shops and intricate Jain and Hindu temples, dodging the many stray dogs, was an unforgettable experience.
The guides outside the Jain temple in the fort were incessant and almost impossible to ignore.
We were told that in the older days, it was possible to cross to Pakistan through the desert with camels. However this is no longer possible as there is a very long electric fence border.
Highlights:
Bada Bagh Cenotaphs situated 6km outside Jaisalmer, is a royal garden carved of sandstones in the middle of the Thar desert. This place is so incredibly beautiful, I could have spent an entire day there.
Our rooftop dinner with a view of the fort at sunset was also truly special.
Jodhpur
Said to be the cultural capital of Rajasthan, visiting this blue city was high on my list. Getting to our accommodation for the night was only possible by tuktuk/auto – a very good reason to travel light in India.
The view of the Mehrangarh Fort from the rooftop of our hotel amidst the blue painted buildings surrounding us was a sight to behold.
This was the place where Ilyas our 5 year old son announced that he wants to stay in India forever because of his love for roti and butter chicken.
Highlights:
The beautiful Veera cafe in the Mehrangarh Fort and Jaswant Thada, the white cenotaph.
Had we had more time, I would have gone for chai at the Umaid Bhawan Palace (where Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas’ wedding was held) and to visit the cenotaphs at Mandore Garden.
Udaipur
Known as the City of Lakes, it took me a while to warm up to Udaipur. But once I did, I fell in love. This city is where I found my love for “hotel hopping”.
I had had enough of visiting yet another temple or palace, and decided to visit the many beautiful hotels (some former palaces) for its wonderful rooftop restaurants and lakeside views.
We also loved the Malai Kofta dish at Yummy Yoga Restaurant – certainly one of the best dishes we had in our two weeks in India. . They even had gluten free chapatis for Peter. The boys also loved the fortune notes they got at the end.
Highlights:
Ahar Cenotaphs – With over 250 cenotaphs and the only place without an entrance fee (but we were asked to pay Rs. 100 so we could take photographs despite the obvious No Photographs Allowed signs everywhere), the Ahar Cenotaphs was my second favourite after Bada Bagh outside Jaisalmer. We could even walk down the stepwell.
Ranakpur Jain Temple – One of the largest and most important Jain temples in the world, this place was truly impressive and should be on your list.
Varanasi
Intense. It is surely the only word to describe the religious capital of Hinduism. An important city for the Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, this is the city where the Hindus come to die. Believed to be Moksha Dhaam (blessed by the Almighty), they believe that a person who takes his last breath in Varanasi, is blessed with eternal salvation, thus freed from the tormenting cycle of birth and death.
I highly recommend you read this article on Varanasi – how incredibly insightful.
We also visited Sarnath, the birthplace of Buddhism, where Gautama Buddha first taught the Dharma (cosmic law and order) and the dilapidated Ramnagar Fort.
Highlights:
Mango lassi from the Blue Lassi Shop.
Sunset boat ride on the Ganges River.
My Favourites:
Bada Bagh, Jaisalmer
Veera Cafe in Mehrangarh Fort, Jaipur
When the monkeys jumped onto our car in the hills of Ranakpur and ate the food offered by our driver.
Some Tips:
- Get a local sim card (tuktuk/auto drivers do not know the location of your hotel and the hotel doesn‘t give you a map) so you have data or can call the hotel to give your driver directions. This however seemed quite complicated to do as they asked for a local person’s reference phone number and your parents details.
- Use Ola/Uber (rental for 6 hours); but not available everywhere (like Jaisalmer)
- Rent a tuktuk/auto for the day (800Rs for the day seemed to be the going rate at most places)
- Travel light: to get to hotels in the fort in Jaisalmer or in the center of Jodhpur, you can only use tuktuk or go on foot.
- never buy the first time you see something, understand what price they are charging (no price tag means you can bargain) and use that info to bargain at the next spot
- Hotel hopping: especially in Udaipur.
- Do not rely solely on Tripadvisor. I never do. Some of the best places I‘ve been to are nowhere near the top of places ranked in Tripadvisor such as Alma in Cartagena, Colombia and Ahar Cenotaphs in Udaipur.
- If you have time, try and visit Chittorgarh and Kumbhalgarh Forts from Udaipur; also Chandra Prabha Wildlife Sanctuary outside Varanasi.
- Finding a hotel near central Varanasi was so difficult, but we found a good one with Stay Banaras.
Two Weeks in India – My Impressions and Random Anecdotes:
- Why do Ola/Uber drivers ask for drop location? Do they not see this on the app?
- Traffic in India is insane. Direction of travel is not respected. Honking is excessive and unnecessary. 95% of cars are white. It takes forever to get anywhere.
- Streets are for people, animals and vehicles alike. Particularly in Varanasi, it seems they are really for people. It was also the only place where we actually saw beggars.
- Stray cows and dogs are everywhere. How is it possible that we only saw one cat in our whole two weeks in India? And it was on our second last day – thanks to Noah’s excellent spotting.
- Toilets: surprisingly clean in airports, restaurants and hotels.
- Food poisoning: Inevitable. The last 4 days, we didn’t eat much. We stuck to french fries and crisps. Never have we visited McDonald’s so frequently as we did in the two weeks in India.
- Tripadvisor: Do not trust the ranking, check reviews. I came across too many fake reviews. Also, do not overlook attractions that are ranked further down the list.
- The locals kept congratulating us for having 3 boys and found it amusing that Peter was always wearing one child in the baby carrier and had another on his shoulders.
- The air quality in India is not great. Particularly when traveling around in a tuktuk/auto, the dust hits every inch of your skin and hair. There was also the time when a sadhu (Indian holy men) in Varanasi decided to spit into our tuktuk and it landed on my face and hair.
- After announcing that he wanted to stay in India forever because of his love for roti and butter chicken, 12 hours later, our 5 year old announced that he wanted to return to Basel as he was tired of walking. By the end of the trip he said he is never returning because India is too smelly.
- Never quite understanding what things are worth in Rupees, I found myself converting everything into Swiss Francs and thinking that everything was cheap, but when I then convert that to Ringgit, I felt that everything was expensive! Case in point – garlic naan was 95 Rs. = CHF/USD 1.30 (cheap) = RM 5.55 (daylight robbery!!!)
- I have a love-hate relationship with bargaining. I was reminded by a friend to always start bargaining at 10% of the price quoted by the seller – HOW does one do that?! Sometimes the prices quoted are just so absurd that I simply walk away. I wish I did that more often, or did better at bargaining. Sigh.
- We LOVE rooftop restaurants. Or just a beautiful restaurant.
- Our holidays are no holiday. We travel. It is a lot of work.
- Why do men pee everywhere on the roadside? Why don’t they in Malaysia or Indonesia? Of course we also saw children defecate on the streets. Click here for this amazing article on the NY Times on poor sanitation in India. UNICEF believes that poor sanitation is the result of more than half of the stunting problems worldwide as the children’s bodies divert energy and nutrients away from growth and brain development to prioritise infection-fighting survival.
- You have to show your tickets and passports to enter the airport (and even a temple in Varanasi!) and keep your boarding pass till after you exit the airport of arrival.
- Peter and the boys had a haircut in Jaipur.
- Good western standard coffee and cakes are hard to come by (Starbucks in Delhi at best)
- Unbelievable amount of people selling fruits and vegetables on carts on the roadside everywhere.
- Everyone thinks I am a local but with no Hindi speaking skills, I get no points for looking like one.
- We did not really see stark poverty as we had expected in India except in Varanasi.
- Coming home to Switzerland from Varanasi (in particular), I have so much gratitude for space. Huge spaces with not many people. Like our apartment, and my office.
Traveling with kids:
- Going out for the best mango lassi just 2.4km away is no easy feat in Varanasi when it takes at least 30mins one way with auto and on foot, dodging men carrying dead bodies to the burning ghat, in the heat, carrying 3 children who continuously complain and refuse to walk.
- When food poisoning inevitably happened on Day 9, I must have slept just two hours that night when one kid after another started throwing up and had diarrhoea.
- The boys loved going up to the rooftop of our home stay in Jodhpur. Mind the stairs.
- The heat made exploring difficult as soon as it’s 10am. By 4pm it gets better again. With kids recovering from fever at the start of the trip and bouts of food poisoning towards the end, it seemed we stayed in quite a lot when we were not on the move traveling from one place to another.
- Food: We have never been to McDonald’s as frequently as we now have had in India. Slowly, the boys started eating more roti (bread) and rice for dinner. Lunch was still McDonald’s where possible.
- Ilyas loved getting into the tuktuk/auto.
- Sushi rice drama: Arriving in Amritsar and later in Jaipur, Ilyas had barely eaten in days by then and wouldn’t eat anything but sushi rice. There were no Japanese restaurants to be found. Everything on Tripadvisor was either closed or falsely advertised. We wasted so much time looking for a Japanese restaurant and finally made him understand it was an impossible task. To appease him, we agreed to ten days of sushi rice as soon as we got home.
- I will not forget seeing Noah dancing to the drum beats of the Jagdish temple music in Udaipur.
- I barely made it on the flight from Delhi to Varanasi as I was so weak after throwing up the night before. Ilyas stepped up, took care of me and let me lie down on his lap the whole flight.
- Ilyas likes chasing the birds and squirrels.
- They kept singing the song Somebody pooped in…
- A pigeon pooped on Ilyas’ arm in Jodhpur. We looked up and saw a hundred pigeons perched on the electric wires and ran away.
- Kion and Noah loved chai so much. They drank so much chai every single day.
- All the boys wanted was the toy tuktuk that the peddlars in front of the royal gardens in Udaipur was trying to sell to us for Rs 300 each (daylight robbery). We searched and bargained high and lo till finally someone relented and sold them to us – 3 for Rs 300 each. The boys loved their new toy and played well till Noah let it go and it fell off the rooftop restaurant into the lake in Udaipur. The incessant crying and drama that unfolded was epic of course. The kind waiters actually fished it out of the lake for him.
- Strawberry ice cream drama: Ilyas loves strawberry ice cream. Unfortunately the strawberry sundae ice cream (Rs. 35 = 50 cents) at McDonald’s isn’t good enough. Nor was the strawberry ice cream sold by the seller outside the Ramnagar Fort. We told him he had no choice but to wait till we got to the Varanasi airport, but of course no ice cream was sold there. Neither could we find any at Delhi airport (after dealing with flights delays and more delays to land because of the rain). We called room service at the hotel and paid a whopping Rs. 750 (USD 10!!) for a scoop of strawberry ice cream which he did not finish. Below is a picture of the kids eating ice cream in front of a little temple in Varanasi.
So how would I sum up our two weeks in India?
Well, there is a reason why their slogan is Incredible India. It truly is an incredible country.
We saw so many beautiful places. The architecture was simply marvellous. The food was delicious.
Yet, as always, it is a different experience when traveling with kids, and trying to pack in as much as possible in two weeks.
Having needed to first deal with the kids recovering from their fever and the minor jet lag at the start of the trip (which proved to be really challenging as they would sleep till noon, yet any sightseeing should be done early in the morning as it starts heating up at 10am) to then dealing with weak kids due to food poisoning the last 5 days, was a slightly brutal experience.
I breathe a sigh of relief that the rest of our holidays this year is in Europe and the US.
I hope this has been informative and has inspired you to plan your own trip to India someday.
If you have any questions, please go ahead and ask in the comments below.
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View the sneak peek of our two weeks in India in the video below:
Really enjoyed this blog.
Author
Thank you Jane!