The practical questions that come up in almost every first conversation — answered plainly, without the brochure language.
Most visitors need an Indian e-Visa, applied for online about a week before departure. October to March suits most of the country, though the high Himalaya is the reverse and opens in summer. Our tailor-made journeys start around US$8,900 per person for roughly eleven days, private guiding and transport included.
It means the itinerary is designed around you rather than chosen from a catalogue. There is no fixed departure date, no group to join, and no set route. You travel privately, with your own vehicle and driver, and with guides booked for you alone. Where you go, how long you stay and how fast you move are all decided in conversation before anything is booked.
Four to six months ahead is comfortable for most journeys. Book eight to twelve months ahead if you are travelling between late December and mid-January, during a major festival, or if you want a specific palace hotel or a tiger reserve at peak season — the best rooms and the best naturalists are finite and go early.
It starts with a conversation about how you like to travel, not a list of destinations. We then propose a route and a shape for the journey, refine it with you until it is right, and confirm the bookings. Before departure you receive the full itinerary with contacts for every stage, and there is someone reachable on the ground throughout the trip.
Yes — and each is planned differently. Family journeys use shorter driving days and build in unstructured time; honeymoons prioritise privacy and a slower pace; solo travellers usually want more guiding and more contact on the ground. The route may look similar on a map, but the pacing behind it is not.
As a guide, our tailor-made journeys start around US$8,900 per person for around eleven days — that covers private guiding and transport, and hotels in the heritage-and-design bracket rather than the international-chain one. The figure moves with the season, how remote the route is, and the standard of accommodation; the same itinerary in a palace suite over New Year costs materially more than in a heritage room in September.
Quotes typically include accommodation, private vehicle and driver, guides, entrance fees, internal transfers and the agreed meals. International flights, visa fees, travel insurance, personal spending and tips are normally excluded. Every proposal states its own inclusions in writing, so there is no ambiguity before you commit.
A deposit confirms your dates and releases the bookings, with the balance due before departure. Exact deposit amounts, payment deadlines and cancellation terms are set out in writing in your proposal and confirmation — please read those, as they are the terms that apply, and they vary with the hotels and internal flights involved.
Yes. Comprehensive travel insurance covering medical treatment, evacuation, cancellation and curtailment is essential, and we ask every traveller to hold it. If your journey includes high-altitude regions such as Ladakh or Spiti, check that your policy covers the altitudes you will actually reach — many standard policies cap lower than travellers expect.
Almost certainly yes. Most nationalities need an Indian e-Visa, applied for online in advance at indianvisaonline.gov.in. It comes in 30-day, one-year and five-year forms, and processing usually takes three to four business days once documents are in — apply at least a week before departure. The e-Visa is valid for entry through 31 designated airports and 5 seaports.
For most visitors India is a straightforward country to travel in, particularly on a private journey where transport, guides and accommodation are arranged in advance and someone knows where you are each day. The ordinary precautions apply — look after valuables in crowds, use arranged transport at night, and drink filtered or bottled water. Women travelling alone should expect more attention than at home and are generally more comfortable with a guide in the busier northern cities.
Vegetarian travellers eat exceptionally well in India — much of the country's cooking is vegetarian by tradition rather than adaptation, and the range is far wider than most visitors expect. Vegan, gluten-free, nut-free and Jain requirements are all workable, but tell us before booking so kitchens are briefed in advance rather than improvising on the night.
Cards are accepted in hotels and larger restaurants, but carry rupees in cash for markets, small towns and temple donations. Mobile data is fast and inexpensive in cities and along the main routes, and patchy in the high Himalaya and parts of the islands. Tipping is customary and appreciated — for guides and drivers it is usually the largest single discretionary cost of a trip, and we will give you realistic figures before you travel.
If your question is not here, it is probably one worth asking a person. Tell us roughly how you imagine India and we will come back with a shape for the journey — no obligation, and no template.
Start planning your journey · When to travel, region by region · The full visa guide
