For solo travellers or family adventurers, small group holidays are an excellent way to see any country. We sent Jerrine, one of our helpdesk experts, on a group adventure in India to see first hand what a group holiday is all about. "Having always travelled independently on my globe trekking adventures I was curious to see how a small group adventure would compare. India has always been high on my must-do places to visit so I was delighted to take up the challenge. Here´s a little bit about my adventures and what a small group holiday is really like...
Always happy when the flight is over, but usually apprehensive about tackling the language barriers and over-zealous taxi drivers I was more than happy to be greeted with a smile by an Exodus representative. I was soon whisked off to the hotel where I met what was to be my new family for the next 8 days.
My main concern was: would I like the people I was travelling with? I needn’t have worried, we were made up of a good mix of solo travellers and couples - including a doctor, an IT trainer, several teachers and a rather intrepid 72-year old Gran off on her first volunteering experience to the remote Himalayas after the tour - and I knew that I would never be short of someone interesting to talk to!
The tour itself was Exodus’ Highlights of Northern India trip, a jam-packed itinerary of Northern India´s must-sees, including the awe-inspiring Taj-Mahal, a trip to the tiger reserve Ranthambore, Jaipur, Delhi and Varanasi.
Jaipur was our first stop - we arrived at a rather splendid fortress-looking colonial hotel, tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the main streets. We were greeted by a team of porters, drinks and flower garlands whilst our rooms were arranged, our bags taken away and our food prepared for us. So all we had to do was sit back, share stories and point excitedly at the gang of monkeys scurrying along the inner-courtyard walls above us!
I realised quickly that not only that we were in safe hands but that we were being led by people who knew the locals and all the best places to visit. This, for me, was one of the main perks of being on a group tour.
I've definitely learnt that a good tour guide is worth their weight in gold. Our guide, Bali, an organized, mild-mannered Sikh had been working with Exodus for many years and was really passionate about his work. So not only did we have the expertise of someone who knew the culture and the language but would also say “no, £20 really is too much to pay for a wooden fan, I’ll do the haggling for you!” and to let us know what we were really ordering on the menu.
Bali always went out of his way to help and to make sure we had the best holiday. For instance when my camera memory ran out half way through the holiday - thanks to the handfuls of smiling kids, colourful women, cows ambling about on highways (or sitting in shops!) and the thousand other picture-postcard moments - our guide went into town to haggle for a new new memory card for me, saving me hassle and money. He also kept us entertained on many a long journey with his quirky stories and Bollywood music tapes!
Our first full day was spent seeing the highlights of Jaipur, the ‘Pink City’, and acclimatising to the sights, sounds (and smells!) of an Indian city. Thanks to our guide we got to see hidden corners of the city definitely off the usual tourist trail.
Next day we made our way over to Ranthambore Tiger reserve, one of India’s main reserves. We had time in the evening to take in a game drive through the spectacular jungle-book scenery and almost immediately we were eagerly spotting Samba deer and Langur monkeys all around. Passing fresh tiger footprints showed us that we were close to our main goal but, for that evening, not close enough.
The next morning we bundled into our open-top truck for our final game drive. In Ranthambore reserve you get allocated one of 5 routes to take, and luckily with a bit of negotiation from our guide we managed to get a good tiger spotting route. After a while we met another guide who tipped us off, and as we came out into a clearing in the forest...there she was! A beautiful tiger lying half-submerged in a shallow pool, guarding a fresh Samba kill just metres away. The whole group rippled with hushed excitement as we passed around the binoculars that the more organized travellers among us had thought to bring. Our guide, a keen wildlife enthusiast himself, couldn’t emphasise how lucky we were, especially when a couple of frisky tiger cubs emerged from under a bush!
The rest of the tour took us to the spectacular Taj Mahal in Agra, then onto Varanasi, one the holiest cities on the Ganges which bears witness to the constant pilgrimage of the dying and the families of the recently deceased. The evening boat cruise up the Ganges was something that I will never forget. The combination of glowing funeral pyres dotting the riverbank, the sound of evening prayer calls and the spectacular sight of hundreds of tiny floating candles drifting down stream behind us was an experience so overwhelming it almost brought me to tears. The overnight train journey back to Delhi was also an unforgettable experience. Sleeping in an open carriage on what seemed like a never-ending train can be quite a daunting experience for any solo traveller so having the added security of a resourceful guide and being part of a group of 16 was enough to calm even the most nervous amongst us.
All in all I had a fantastic trip to India. To be honest being part of a small group had more perks then I had really expected. You get to meet people from all walks of life all of whom are there for one reason – to make the most of their holiday. There is no way that I would have been able to cover such large parts of India in such a short time as an independent traveller, and I learnt more of the culture and the places we visited from our guide then I could have read in any guide book. Group tours simply take the hard work and preparation away from you, so all you have to concentrate on is having a good time.
I have no doubt that it won´t be long before I take another group tour, so I guess the only thing I have to worry about now is . . . where on earth to go!
Read about the trip Jerrine joined, our
Northern India holiday
Or take a look at all our
India holidays 
