[kenyan_sun]

Hi Everyone,

I need to make some sort of a plan to know where to be during the monsoon season. I have finished my undergrad and want to travel/backpack for two months through India and somehow manage to avoid getting flooded. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I should plan it. I am going to be solo backpacking and I would like to visit as many of the UNESCO Heritage Sites as possible. I will travel mostly by train and take the plane when I move from the south to the north or vice versa. I also dont care what city I start from as I will be flying from Toronto to Delhi sometime in Mid June.
Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated and if anyone is going the same way, I dont mind having some company where convenient.

Cheers

kenyan_sun

[jyotirmoy]

Welcome to the tree kenyan sun.
Delhi in mid June is like a furnace, occasional squalls are the only relief from the opressive heat. So you should head for the hills. Since you seem to be interested in heritages, head for Shimla where you will find old buildings, cottages dating back to he Raj days. The whole of Himchal, Uttarakhand & Kumaon are available for you. In July the monsoon strikes the hills and planes of India. It is the time to head for Ladakh which remains dry. You can also try Rajasthan which doesn't have too much rain during the monsoon and the summer heat some what abates in July.
Some other member will help you with your south India itinerary.
Do keep few things in mind:
Monsoon rain and consequent flooding etc. can cause transportation delays, so plan accordingly.
Water borne diseases are common during monsoons so be careful about what you drink & eat.
Mosquitoes breed rapidly during monsoon and so does Malaria.

[Shajara]

Hi kenyan_sun ,
so there's someother crazy one who's going to visit India during monsoon!!!
I'm also willing to backpacking in North of India in August. It's my only opportunity to take some weeks off, so no chance to choose a better period   I'm very doubtful about the destination : either going on himalayan hills (i'm not the one to go to Leh or do mountaineering all the time, i'm not trained) like Uttarkhand or Himachal Pradesh or visit Rajastan.... or join both destinations, perhaps. I'm happy to know from jyotirmoy that the desert is less striken by the monsoon during that time of the year. Does anyone else have suggestion to share? It's my first time there and I dunno what to expect...apart malaria!!! But if I get bacteria deaseases all the time, at least I wish it's for something that's worth of!
So if someone has ever visited these areas in the above mentioned months, please help us get the idea, with practical infos and examples....
thanks on advance,
Shajara

[kenyan_sun]

Hi,
I am not too keen on the whole trekking thing right now. I actually want to see all the UNESCO world heritage sites and am planning accordingly. My only concern is how difficult is it to get train tickets on the day of travel. Otherwise I will have to get a more structured itinerary if I book them from now online. I am not too worried about the monsoon and diseases. I am going to get all my shots and if I get sick, I get sick. I believe that if a million people can live in the rain and heat, why not me. Right now I am thinking of doing the delhi, agra, little bit of the east, then head to amritsar and then to rajasthan. After rajasthan I will head south and do the whole circuit there and then go relax at Goa and Mumbai for a few days.
Please let me know how that seems. 10 days for agra/delhi/east circuit, 2 days at amritsar and the wagah border, 3/4 days in rajasthan (more if needed), 10 days in south (kerala backwaters and all) and 4/5 days in Goa and 10/15 days with family friends in Mumbai and Ahmedabad and get some shopping done at this point.

Thanks

[kenyan_sun]

Hi Shajara,
you can pm me if you want to meet up at any of those points. I can then communicate with you some sort of a map that I should have by this weekend. Going to look up the sites I want to visit and then figure out the routes and days to make the trip. I am also talking to a tour company and will keep you posted on that. I might get them to make some of the reservations and stuff for me if I need to take the train or a car to go from one area to the other over short distances if booking trains is going to be a real nightmare. the lonely planet guidebook is going to be my primary source and I will make bookings and reservations at hotels suggested in that.

cheers

kenyan_sun

Edited by kenyan_sun, 09 May 2008 - 09:20 PM.

[jyotirmoy]

Allocate at least 6 days in Rajasthan.
Part of June is school/college holiday time in India so Ireccomend booking long distance train travel in advance. Use online booking facility.
For Goa and Mumbai sector in July I again remind you of heavy rains, water logging and flooding so plan accordingly.