India Golden Triangle tour, a journey beyond
Description of India Golden Triangle tour, a journey beyond
This India Golden Triangle tour takes you to the rich plains and mountains of North India, which have drawn numerous visitors from across Asia, Persia and beyond. From luminous figures such as Napoleon to Alexander the Great to the British East India Company, many have vied to control the vast expanses and rich resources of the North.
The journey that we’ve put together was designed with a lot of thought. Thought into the elements that would help showcase North India’s tumultuous and checkered history, and provide insights into its various people, from the great Mughals, Persians and Afghans, to the Rajputs, the Sikhs, the Tibetans and ultimately the English who shaped the region’s more recent history.
Ultimately the North is not only about its people and their cultures but also about the incredible diversity in landscape and vistas. This holiday experience takes you to landscapes ranging from flat plains, to the fringes of the Thar, to agricultural fertility in the Punjab, to high Himalayan vistas.
We typically begin with Mughal history, from Mughal Old Delhi and Agra to the desert state of Rajasthan. Rajasthan is where we look to showcase the incredible diversity that exists, not only in the region’s landscape, but in its people and their cultures as well. Starting with the incredible bird life of Bharatpur with its one of the kind responsible safari experiences, we move into the hillsides of Bundi, through the Aravalli Mountains, and to the lakes of Udaipur, which is also home to incredible Rajput and Jain architecture.
Moving away from the Aravallis we enter the semi arid but incredibly nature-rich regions that border the Thar Desert. From tented abodes that serve us some of the most delectable Rajasthani rural cuisine to rustic and immersive family homestay experiences in the heart of the villages of Osian, this part of the journey is about the discovery of local people and the cultures that form their identities in the present day.
The journey beyond Rajasthan enters a part of Northern India that’s often overlooked. We take you into the fertile fields of the Punjab where through a series of walking trails we showcase the unique customs, religion and way of life of the Sikhs.
The final stage of this journey enters the Himalayan wilderness of Leh with its high altitude lakes and Buddhist beliefs, and moves on to the former summer capital of the Raj at Shimla. Shimla is filled with historic relics from its English past, making it a nice way to wrap up a fantastic set of experiences.
Itinerary
| Days 1-3 | Mughal Delhi & Agra The experiences begin immersed in Mughal history between Old Delhi’s ancient Mughal monuments, it’s gully streets and then onwards to Agra on an express train to experience the fascinating Taj Mahal and it’s environs! |
| Days 4-5 | Bird life of Rajasthan Entering Rajasthan, we’ll begin the experiences with the wonderful birdlife of eastern Rajasthan. You’ll experience them through a series of responsibly led safaris on foot or the unique cycle rickshaws – A first for India. |
| Days 6-7 | The Bundi countryside The combination of countryside, nature and miniature paintings making the hillside town of Bundi a fascinating place to spend two days in. |
| Days 8-9 | Rajputana Udaipur The city of lakes and palaces – this seems to sum up the former Rajput capital of the Mewar Kingdom. However Udaipur is about romanticism, of sunset boat rides and tribal dance performances all brought together with some wonderful Rajputana cuisine. |
| Days 10-14 | Rural Rajasthan The heart of rural Rajasthan is where we’ll immerse you into the countryside and with the rural communities of Osian; traditional durrie (carpet) makers as well as the Bishnoi tribes; pioneer environmentalists and conservationists. From traditional Kalbeliya dancers, to cooking with the locals, we’ll immerse you wholly into these local communities whilst in the regions of Osian and Chattrasagar. |
| Days 15-18 | Himalayan kingdom of Leh We’ll take you to the lofty heights of the Himalayas into the quaint town of Leh; your base to explore the high altitude lakes of Ladakh as well as discover the unique Buddhist heritage of the region. |
| Days 19-22 | The Sikhs of Amritsar From the high altitudes of Leh we’ll descend to the fertile lands of the Punjab. Over the course of these three-days in Amritsar, we’ll showcase the unique traditions of the Sikhs at their Golden Temple, their traditional handicraft and textile heritage and ultimately their rich food and street food culture. |
| Days 23-25 | The Raj of Shimla With the help of the heritage Mountain Train, you’ll corkscrew your way up into the heart of the mountain town of Shimla to experience life and the heritage of the former British Raj. |
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Responsible Travel
Planet
Eco sustainable accommodationIn the rural countryside of Rajasthan we are partnered with a local family whom we have helped build traditional mud Jhopris (huts) for travellers to stay in. Equipped with modern plumbing, it’s the only modern convenience in what is otherwise an entirely sustainable, eco-friendly and traditional accommodation setup.
In another part of the rural countryside, we support a property with wholly tented accommodation. Built amidst the countryside, these hand-stitched tents with local floral motifs stand testament to traditional, sustainable living within these rural landscapes.
Eco friendly safaris only
Despite the option of traditional fuel-powered vehicle safaris in all the National Parks in North India, we only promote safari experiences in the Bharatpur National Park that are conducted as one of a kind cycle rickshaw and walking safaris. We ensure that all our travellers experience such safaris as it promotes this unique form of safari experiences and we hope that more parks across India adopt such kinds of safari forms.
People
Local Families, their homestays, havelis and campsitesBe it heritage homes that belong to local families, to traditional village huts, we work closely with local accommodations and the families that run and manage them. As these properties employ 100% local staff from the surrounding regions and villages, the revenue that these places make has a knockdown effect on the communities that are supported from these incomes.
Support of Artisanal Craft and dance traditions
We encourage local artisanal craft actively and showcase these traditions to our travellers by immersing them in such experiences.
From the Prajapathis or traditional Rug (Durrie) makers of western Rajasthan whom we support by ensuring that our travelers stay with such weaving families and undergo hands on sessions with these weavers in an attempt to understand and promote the craft.
We support groups of traditional Kalbeliya dancer-performers and encourage them to perform their traditional dance forms. We actively encourage them to train young girls from their communities into taking up dance and young boys into playing traditional instruments to help keep the tradition alive and relevant in the present era.
Support of regional and local Cuisine
We actively support regional cuisines through the North of India. Through hands on cooking sessions with rural families in the agrarian countryside, we give travellers a deeper insight into authentic regional cuisine and for them to gain a deeper appreciation for it. This in turn keeps local culinary traditions alive.
Ensuring Local employment
All our Drivers and Guides we employ for our trips through North India are local and more specifically local to that region. For Rajasthan we ensure our staff is local to the state and this holds constant for distinct regions such as Ladakh, or the Punjab or the hill region of Shimla. This not only ensures that revenue they earn goes right back to their local communities but it also ensures the most authentic local knowledge gets shared with travellers.
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