Hi there, MOST Travel Agents have connections with Travel Insurance Companies.
Strongly reccomend a Lonely Planet Guide Book, there's a lot of Helpfull & Usefull info in them.
As a First Time Traveller to India I also suggest to TRY & Keep your travel in India to a Minium for your first Trip.You will see what I mean when
you get there.
Use Bottled Water even when you Brush your Teeth and even keep your Mouth Closed in the Shower.
Your Guide Book will be Handy Reading on the Plane Journey, use a Highlighting Pen, whenever you find something in the book you feel could be of
Use and or help to you.
As mentioned in an earlier post, having someone meet & greet you on Arrival will be very comforting & Reassuring as the initial culture shock will
no Doubtly take effect as soon as you arrive. Please don't let this put you Off, Different people Adjust to India in Different ways,some first time
travellers to India adjust almost Immediately, whilst some may take a few days.
You will no Doubtly see many other travellers in India, if you are not sure about something ASK them, 99.9% of the time they will assist you IF
they CAN.
rgds & happy planning
vandy
2
Never Traveled Before
Started by
CanadianMom
, Jan 11 2008 10:22 AM
31 replies to this topic
#22
gautam
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- Blogger
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- 182 posts
Frequent Flyer
Posted 14 January 2008 - 02:25 PM
Dear Mom,
Re: Medical Insurance, since you already are on Canada's National health plan, you need to sit down with whoever is the grand pooh-bah in your area and get it down in writing and signed by him, what your right and liabilities are as a Canadian citizen traveling in India. That is, how far will your Canadian govt. system's care extend in India.
Specifically,
1.Will it cover urgent medical visits to private doctors? [You must not ever visit govt. facilities, make sure you tell your pooh-bah, and get his response]
2. Will your Canadian govt. coverage coverge Urgent visits and stay at private clinics including best hospitals like the Apollo chain? [these offer care equal or exceeding that available in the Canadian system] If so, for how long? What will it NOT COVER? Diagnostic methods like X-rays, CAT scans, MRIs? Sometimes it is yes to the cheaper, no to the more expensive like MRI. Have them write down piece by piece, procedure by procedure, everything they will or will not cover. Please do not let me scare or worry you: it is just that you have a family, and bureaucrats are necessarily non-cooperative unless you force them. This is an important issue, that may never need to be addressed but if it does, could end up costing serious money. So why risk it, when the Candian govet, already is there as your primary insurer?
3. Ambulance and other unforseen emergency charges.
4. Charges to evacuate you out of India back to Canada, or from somewhere in India to a decent hospital in India.
Please, please don't let me scare you out of going to India. It is not a wild, malarial jungle!! These issues are anyway ones you should know about the Canadian system and yourself before traveling anywhere, especially because you have a child.
Hospitals and doctors can be tricky, at least in the US: a friend's grandmother was ill, and in hospital. They asked if the family [a very humble blue collar one] wanted X treatment, and the latter were so overwrought and confused at the time, they did not stop to think, nor did they know or would ever understand as laypeople (!), nor did the doctors ever inform them otherwise, deliberately, it seems. Anyway, the insurance company refused payment because that allegedly was an"experimental" treatment and they were more than tens of thousands of dollars in debt, and no way to escape the situation. Things are very tricksy in the US, not so in Canada perhaps, but it pays to be careful and know one's rights exactly, don't you think?
What I meant about Vacation Insurance was Insuring against the inability of your being able to undertake your trip. That happens, especially for a mom with a small child. This way, you don't lose your shirt, in lost plane ticket money and other things you have paid in advance. Again, people are tricksy: make sure it includes compensation for the air ticket!!!!
Vandy has some excellent advice, except I would suggest, don't leave reading that guide till the airplane, rather start reading NOW. See if you like what it says, choose some places, and come back here, discuss your itinerary, how much to spend per day, what types of accomodations will suit you. As Vandy suggested, don't travel too much in-country. However, PLEASE, PLEASE, don't just go to GOA or a Kerala international hideaway, sit in a resort where hundreds of Caucasians of all types of morals and drinking habits gather, and return. For some, that is India. I feel your money would be better spent, yourself put to less hassle, if you went to Mexico, Cuba or Costa Rica instead, if that was to be your sole exposure. Same scenery, ambiance, cleaner!
There are some group tours that arrange everything, travel and hotels included that may be an option for people like you. Members here may know a lot about them, which are nice, which not. Some of these can be joined in India, for a smaller cost, than those arranged from the US. Drop this Vini person and see what he has to say. No obligations, just exploring.
Also keep an eye on this thread to see how it develops:
http://www.gourmetin...?showtopic=4401
Please read the this:
http://pleasuremount...faint-of-heart/
Please disregard the opening photograph, because our friend has a quirky sense of humor, at great odds with the beauty of the place and the fabulous time he had there. Trust me, you wont get bitten, if you wear shoes and calf-length socks, which i always strenuously advise for everywhere in India, as people here have grown tired of hearing, i believe! Old, comfortable, broken in, Basketball sneakers, ankle-high for good support, and the socks. Don't take your expensive Newports or Teva sandals, but older used sneakers without recognized brand names. New Balance is excellent yet not coveted by thieves, unlike the flashier NIKE and Reebok.
Please trust me on a few things. I err on the side of safety and comfort, YOURS, not minimalism and demonstrating a great facility of surviving in India like an Indian. This becomes an overt or subconcious badge of honor/triumph or call it counting coup on India, among many seasoned travelers, a sign of having achieved conquest over an alien land and culture. I find it amusing or upsetting, depending on my mood. But I am Indian and do know my land pretty well, and can help safely even by remote suggestions, as friends have found time and again. Read the blog above from one such recently returned. Not hubris, but being extra cautious and having lived in the US for a long time, understanding where a person from here may have problems there!!!
If you don't, and find your vibe quickly, fantastic, and then you may indeed throw caution to the winds and become an "India hand" like so many here. But until then, pursue each step methodically.
Re: Medical Insurance, since you already are on Canada's National health plan, you need to sit down with whoever is the grand pooh-bah in your area and get it down in writing and signed by him, what your right and liabilities are as a Canadian citizen traveling in India. That is, how far will your Canadian govt. system's care extend in India.
Specifically,
1.Will it cover urgent medical visits to private doctors? [You must not ever visit govt. facilities, make sure you tell your pooh-bah, and get his response]
2. Will your Canadian govt. coverage coverge Urgent visits and stay at private clinics including best hospitals like the Apollo chain? [these offer care equal or exceeding that available in the Canadian system] If so, for how long? What will it NOT COVER? Diagnostic methods like X-rays, CAT scans, MRIs? Sometimes it is yes to the cheaper, no to the more expensive like MRI. Have them write down piece by piece, procedure by procedure, everything they will or will not cover. Please do not let me scare or worry you: it is just that you have a family, and bureaucrats are necessarily non-cooperative unless you force them. This is an important issue, that may never need to be addressed but if it does, could end up costing serious money. So why risk it, when the Candian govet, already is there as your primary insurer?
3. Ambulance and other unforseen emergency charges.
4. Charges to evacuate you out of India back to Canada, or from somewhere in India to a decent hospital in India.
Please, please don't let me scare you out of going to India. It is not a wild, malarial jungle!! These issues are anyway ones you should know about the Canadian system and yourself before traveling anywhere, especially because you have a child.
Hospitals and doctors can be tricky, at least in the US: a friend's grandmother was ill, and in hospital. They asked if the family [a very humble blue collar one] wanted X treatment, and the latter were so overwrought and confused at the time, they did not stop to think, nor did they know or would ever understand as laypeople (!), nor did the doctors ever inform them otherwise, deliberately, it seems. Anyway, the insurance company refused payment because that allegedly was an"experimental" treatment and they were more than tens of thousands of dollars in debt, and no way to escape the situation. Things are very tricksy in the US, not so in Canada perhaps, but it pays to be careful and know one's rights exactly, don't you think?
What I meant about Vacation Insurance was Insuring against the inability of your being able to undertake your trip. That happens, especially for a mom with a small child. This way, you don't lose your shirt, in lost plane ticket money and other things you have paid in advance. Again, people are tricksy: make sure it includes compensation for the air ticket!!!!
Vandy has some excellent advice, except I would suggest, don't leave reading that guide till the airplane, rather start reading NOW. See if you like what it says, choose some places, and come back here, discuss your itinerary, how much to spend per day, what types of accomodations will suit you. As Vandy suggested, don't travel too much in-country. However, PLEASE, PLEASE, don't just go to GOA or a Kerala international hideaway, sit in a resort where hundreds of Caucasians of all types of morals and drinking habits gather, and return. For some, that is India. I feel your money would be better spent, yourself put to less hassle, if you went to Mexico, Cuba or Costa Rica instead, if that was to be your sole exposure. Same scenery, ambiance, cleaner!
There are some group tours that arrange everything, travel and hotels included that may be an option for people like you. Members here may know a lot about them, which are nice, which not. Some of these can be joined in India, for a smaller cost, than those arranged from the US. Drop this Vini person and see what he has to say. No obligations, just exploring.
Also keep an eye on this thread to see how it develops:
http://www.gourmetin...?showtopic=4401
Please read the this:
http://pleasuremount...faint-of-heart/
Please disregard the opening photograph, because our friend has a quirky sense of humor, at great odds with the beauty of the place and the fabulous time he had there. Trust me, you wont get bitten, if you wear shoes and calf-length socks, which i always strenuously advise for everywhere in India, as people here have grown tired of hearing, i believe! Old, comfortable, broken in, Basketball sneakers, ankle-high for good support, and the socks. Don't take your expensive Newports or Teva sandals, but older used sneakers without recognized brand names. New Balance is excellent yet not coveted by thieves, unlike the flashier NIKE and Reebok.
Please trust me on a few things. I err on the side of safety and comfort, YOURS, not minimalism and demonstrating a great facility of surviving in India like an Indian. This becomes an overt or subconcious badge of honor/triumph or call it counting coup on India, among many seasoned travelers, a sign of having achieved conquest over an alien land and culture. I find it amusing or upsetting, depending on my mood. But I am Indian and do know my land pretty well, and can help safely even by remote suggestions, as friends have found time and again. Read the blog above from one such recently returned. Not hubris, but being extra cautious and having lived in the US for a long time, understanding where a person from here may have problems there!!!
If you don't, and find your vibe quickly, fantastic, and then you may indeed throw caution to the winds and become an "India hand" like so many here. But until then, pursue each step methodically.
Edited by gautam, 14 January 2008 - 02:31 PM.
#23
CanadianMom
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- Member
- 10 posts
Posted 16 January 2008 - 10:40 AM
Thank you all so much for your help, I have decided to book a trip for Nexy year during January when the climate is a little more bearable to what I am accustomed to. I will be staying in a resort, because I need to relax this time around, but I am actually planning 2 seperate trips, another one for later on in 2009, to explore the 'real' India. Thanks for all of your help everyone in getting this trip started for me!
I went today and got my picture taken to get a passport, and by this time next year I will be kicking back in India, relaxing and enjoying myself in place I have always wanted to be. And trust me after the year I have had- I deserve it. SO, only like 3 million things left to plan right? lol. Great, it will so be worth it.
And after leaving the Country, when I go back Iwill have more courage to venture out. Part of the reason I am making 2 trips now really. I have never left my province, let alone the country! The airplane alone seems a bit overwhelming, let alone going somewhere where the language is different, the food, the climate, the culture ect ect... I think I will take baby steps, lol. I do afterall, want to enjoy this. Otherwise what's the point? I have nothing to prove to anyone, other than I can have a good time
Thanks everyone!!
I went today and got my picture taken to get a passport, and by this time next year I will be kicking back in India, relaxing and enjoying myself in place I have always wanted to be. And trust me after the year I have had- I deserve it. SO, only like 3 million things left to plan right? lol. Great, it will so be worth it.
And after leaving the Country, when I go back Iwill have more courage to venture out. Part of the reason I am making 2 trips now really. I have never left my province, let alone the country! The airplane alone seems a bit overwhelming, let alone going somewhere where the language is different, the food, the climate, the culture ect ect... I think I will take baby steps, lol. I do afterall, want to enjoy this. Otherwise what's the point? I have nothing to prove to anyone, other than I can have a good time
Thanks everyone!!
#24
vandy
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- Blogger
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- 603 posts
Senior Member
Posted 16 January 2008 - 11:02 AM
ALL mothers deserve a Relaxing Break, All the best & have a Wonderful Holiday. You'll be Fine.
Rgds
vandy
Rgds
vandy
#25
gautam
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- Blogger
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- 182 posts
Frequent Flyer
Posted 17 January 2008 - 05:19 PM
Have a fantastic time. When and if you feel comfortable, do tell us what region you chose and where you might be going. Some of us are infernally nosey, a super-dominant genetic trait in India [read the hilarious pinned thread on this site about traveling in an Indian train where your newspaper and magazines get pulled out of your fingers etc. It will make you roll on the floor: India through another's eyes].
But we would love to suggest yummy stuff to eat and things not to miss.
Don't forget your 15+ Sunblock, (and DEET 50% mosquito repellent) if you will be on the beaches, and please do not sunbathe too much, if at all. Sun, sans protection of glass, is a bad thing for skin. Sit in the shade and watch life go by. You will never find Indians sunbathing, ever [the traditional people at least]. There is an instinctive reaction to get out of the Sun: genetic & race memory based on survival. In Northern India, on cold mornings people "sunbathe" only while thickly wrapped up!
But we would love to suggest yummy stuff to eat and things not to miss.
Don't forget your 15+ Sunblock, (and DEET 50% mosquito repellent) if you will be on the beaches, and please do not sunbathe too much, if at all. Sun, sans protection of glass, is a bad thing for skin. Sit in the shade and watch life go by. You will never find Indians sunbathing, ever [the traditional people at least]. There is an instinctive reaction to get out of the Sun: genetic & race memory based on survival. In Northern India, on cold mornings people "sunbathe" only while thickly wrapped up!
#26
Somerset
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- Blogger
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- 509 posts
Senior Member
Posted 17 January 2008 - 08:16 PM
Yes, do have fun and enjoy the warmth of the sun.
Edited by Somerset, 17 January 2008 - 08:19 PM.
"The sea is dangerous and its storms terrible, but these obstacles have never been sufficient reason to remain ashore." Ferdinand Magellan
#27
CanadianMom
-
- Member
- 10 posts
Posted 18 January 2008 - 06:52 AM
gautam, on Jan 17 2008, 03:49 AM, said:
Have a fantastic time. When and if you feel comfortable, do tell us what region you chose and where you might be going. Some of us are infernally nosey, a super-dominant genetic trait in India [read the hilarious pinned thread on this site about traveling in an Indian train where your newspaper and magazines get pulled out of your fingers etc. It will make you roll on the floor: India through another's eyes].
But we would love to suggest yummy stuff to eat and things not to miss.
Don't forget your 15+ Sunblock, (and DEET 50% mosquito repellent) if you will be on the beaches, and please do not sunbathe too much, if at all. Sun, sans protection of glass, is a bad thing for skin. Sit in the shade and watch life go by. You will never find Indians sunbathing, ever [the traditional people at least]. There is an instinctive reaction to get out of the Sun: genetic & race memory based on survival. In Northern India, on cold mornings people "sunbathe" only while thickly wrapped up!
But we would love to suggest yummy stuff to eat and things not to miss.
Don't forget your 15+ Sunblock, (and DEET 50% mosquito repellent) if you will be on the beaches, and please do not sunbathe too much, if at all. Sun, sans protection of glass, is a bad thing for skin. Sit in the shade and watch life go by. You will never find Indians sunbathing, ever [the traditional people at least]. There is an instinctive reaction to get out of the Sun: genetic & race memory based on survival. In Northern India, on cold mornings people "sunbathe" only while thickly wrapped up!
Thanks! I am so pale that I glow in the dark, so I definately won't forget my sunblock! lol I fully intend to sit and watch the world go by, or the breeze anyhow...The resort I picked is The Kurumba Village Resort,
http://www.kurumbavillageresort.com/
Reccommended by a person here actually! (THANKS!)
I am so looking forward to going and just relaxing with absolutely no purpose or agenda (for once). I look forward to the food!! I love Indian food, yummy....There are so many things they will have there that I have never even heard of! I can't wait!
#28
priya
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- Moderator
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- 2,232 posts
Discombobulated Elsewherean
Posted 18 January 2008 - 12:28 PM
Your excitement is palpable CandadianMom - I'll bet you can't wait to feast your eyes on all that delicious food, as well as the wonderful ambience of your resort 
- I'll bet you can't wait to feast your eyes on all that delicious food, as well as the wonderful ambience of your resort
'Their people will judge them on what they can build and not what they destroy.
To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent,
know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are
willing to unclench your fist." ~ Barack Obama.
Zimbabwe News!
City of Kings! Photos.
Our Shame.
To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent,
know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are
willing to unclench your fist." ~ Barack Obama.
Zimbabwe News!
City of Kings! Photos.
Our Shame.
#29
john.sw
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- Blogger
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- 1,079 posts
Guru Member
Posted 18 January 2008 - 05:26 PM
www.nilgiris.asia your guide to the Nilgiris, Ooty, Coonoor, Kotagiri and Gudalur
#30
CanadianMom
-
- Member
- 10 posts
Posted 18 January 2008 - 09:22 PM
john.sw, on Jan 18 2008, 03:56 AM, said:
Oh NO!!!! Now I want to go RIGHT NOW lol. It looks beautiful and your review was very nice, it really does look like a paradise doesn't it? I can't imagine not being able to relax there. So different from the regular pace of life, and so beautiful! And a buffet, I didnt realise they had that, ohhh......Im coming back to Canada fat! lol
#31
gautam
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- Blogger
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Frequent Flyer
Posted 19 January 2008 - 02:56 AM
No, no, Canadian Mom, not fat. John was a nice English boy until he partook of Kurumba village with all his senses. Now look at his photograph affixed above his name: that's how you wil look! Fair warning!
#32
CanadianMom
-
- Member
- 10 posts
Posted 19 January 2008 - 04:29 AM
gautam, on Jan 18 2008, 01:26 PM, said:
No, no, Canadian Mom, not fat. John was a nice English boy until he partook of Kurumba village with all his senses. Now look at his photograph affixed above his name: that's how you wil look! Fair warning!
