India is an exhilarating place - its cities are buzzing and fast-paced, its scenery is tropical and wild, and its culture is enchanting. This all sounds amazing, but these magical sights and sounds are also interspersed with feelings that are quite the opposite, and I found that my senses were heightened pretty much the whole time, as it really is a shock to the system.
My trip to India really pushed me out of my comfort zone - I thought I was ready for whatever it was going to throw at me, because I'd been to Asia, but India is a whole different playing field. Not to say it wasn't an incredible trip, because I still loved it, but I wanted to pull together a list of things to know before you go, how to travel the country, and my top travel tips for India: a handy guide jam-packed with info (basically what I was looking for before I travelled!).
Research: I am very much someone that tends to think on her feet when she's in a country - I might do a bit of research about a place before I go, but I think the most fun part is figuring it all out when you get there. That is not the case for India: talk to people who've been before, read blogs like this one, research the places you want to go... it'll get you amped up, and will provide you with a bit of an idea of what to expect when you get there.
Don’t try to cover too much ground: I was in charge of the itinerary when me and my friend went to India, and I was way too ambitious. We only had 17 days there and I had us zipping about everywhere (Delhi > Agra > Jaipur > Rishikesh > Varanasi > Goa) I posted about the itinerary here - it was way too much and we were exhausted. Pick north or south, or give yourself longer out there.
Pack loose, light clothing (that covers you up): I packed quite a few pairs of shorts and strappy tops and I barely wore any of them, especially not in the cities. Even when you're fully covered you still get a lot of attention from men, so I can't imagine how uncomfortable it must be if you've got skin out. So, cover those pins ladies!
SIMs aren’t necessary: Don't take this as gospel as I'm sure you might need SIMs in some places in India, but we were fine not buying a SIM card while we were out there. So many of the restaurants and bars had WiFi, and our hostels all had it so we really didn't need it while we were out and about. I guess if you're travelling on your own it might be more necessary, but because we were together and were in pretty busy places, we didn't need one.
Make sure your itinerary includes places where you can relax: I can't tell you how happy we were to get to Rishikesh after Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. It was the perfect antidote to a manic few days in city chaos, so if you're hopping around from place to place, make sure you have a few stops where you can really rest and recharge.
Be vigilant about food: Just like you would in other places in Asia, be smart. Only drink bottled water, don't have ice in your drinks or eat anything that could have been washed in tap water (street food salad is a big no-no - although who's buying street food salad?!) but you get my drift. I went veggie while I was out there as I'm pretty sensitive at the best of times, but it's not 100% necessary as my friend always had meat dishes and she was fine (I actually was the one who wasn't, so there you go).
Keep calm: It's so easy to want to flip your lid when you're out there, whether someone is constantly harassing you, the noisiness of the streets get to you, or people are asking for your photo. It does no one any good getting stressed out, so the aim of the game is to stay calm... and if you're being followed/harassed etc just be firm and assertive without getting angry - and keep walking.
Be aware of the usual scams: This is where tip number one comes in handy - do your research into where you're going to find out about any scams in the area. The one that happens in most places (and someone tried to get us with this one) is to tell you they can take you to a tourist office and get you a SIM card, sort you out with any onward travel etc. They take you to a fake office where they scam you out of your money. We were in a tuk tuk when this was tried on us, and the guy was adamant he should take us to the tourist office, but we were firm in where we wanted to go and eventually he gave up.
Open a Monzo account, even if it's just for travelling: I love my Monzo account - it's great for travel everywhere, but you'll need it to get money while in India. Monzo doesn't charge for withdrawals up to a certain amount, and has really good exchange rates. I've never had a problem and have been able to use my Monzo in most places I've travelled.
Sort your transport from the airport before you get there: I always feel like this is a bit of a no-brainer, but I know people don't always do this. After a long flight I always just want to know I'm sorted all the way to the hostel/hotel, plus this way you know you're not getting scammed for money and that you're using somewhere genuine (book through your accommodation if you can).
You can't take rupees into India, you've got to get them exchanged while you're out there. Don't exchange at the airport as they're the worst for rates, so have a look for an ATM - they're the best for exchange rates on your travels, but hotels will often do it - just be mindful of how much the rate is before doing so.
People will stop you for photos no matter where you are - while it can be endearing and quite funny sometimes (like when we were walking around Rishikesh and we ended up being in photos with about five different families on a 15-minute walk... I felt famous!) it gets old very quickly. So just be polite, say no thank you, and move on when it gets too much.
Cows are everywhere. They're the sacred beast, and are just free to roam wherever they please... it's a bit weird, especially when you're jammed in a narrow alleyway with a stubborn, immovable one, but it made my friend ridiculously happy. I was forced to take photos of her with every cow she met. I did get some corkers though...
It will be a shock to the system, just prepare yourself. It's not a shock everywhere you go, but there will be times where you feel overwhelmed, so just take a breather and carry on.
Scams are rife - just do your research and be on your guard.
This was a bit naive of me, but when we got to Varanasi, I was walking along the ghats and saw all these monks dressed up in orange robes and thought they looked perfect for photos, and when I asked for one they wanted money. I was happy to give them it but then was informed on my walking tour that all of those monks dressed up and asking for money aren't actually genuine monks. Sounds a bit daft writing it now, because obviously real monks wouldn't ask for money, but there we go.
Delhi belly is real, and apparently unavoidable. I've not heard of one person yet not getting some kind of stomach upset on their trip. I went veggie and I still managed it! I got it on day 3 and I felt dodge the rest of my trip - thankfully it wasn't debilitating or anything, but I was in some serious pain throughout my trip (pack probiotics - it's the only thing that helped me!).
The majority of the food isn't actually spicy. I'm a bit of a spice fiend, and love a hot dish so I was a bit disappointed when most of the food I had was actually really mild (although I'm not sure my stomach would have coped with anything but mild) - I guess it's like most places in Asia where they take out the spiciness of a dish for tourists. So if you like it hot, ask for it! Look at my top 7 dishes to eat while you're out there.
India is big. A bit of a no-shit-Sherlock sentence, but as I said in my tips above, don't try to cover too much ground.
You need to dress conservatively, wherever you are. Whether you're visiting a temple or walking along the streets. Some more westernised places are a bit more lenient (and less leery) but I'd still recommend loose, covered clothing.
If you're a woman, you will get a lot of unwanted attention. It's just part and parcel of travelling to Asia unfortunately - I've heard horror stories of people having some scary experiences as a woman in India, but to be honest, ours was minimal. We mainly got a lot of staring, badgering us to talk to them and walking with us, but we didn't ever engage and just kept walking. I did get groped a couple of times, but sadly, it was kind of expected so as much as it pissed me off I kept calm and moved on.
Hand sanitiser and toilet paper will be your new best friends, so stock up and make sure to always carry some in your bag.
It's a place where you really need to embrace 'going with the flow'... India time, as it were.
Be prepared to haggle - if you've learned the skill already in Asia, then you're good to go. It takes a bit of time to get back in to it (I was pretty rusty) but it's fun and the sellers are usually good natured about it.
Most people aren't trying to con you. I hope my list doesn't put anyone off, but I just wanted to be honest and upfront about what to expect - I know I could have benefited from a list like this before I went. But even though I'm saying all these things, the locals in general are really lovely, and as long as you embrace the experience, let go and remain open-minded you'll have a great time!
Vaccinations: Always check with your GP for what you need, but after discussing where I was going with the nurse I only needed Typhoid, Hep A and Diptheria. Malaria wasn't prevalent where I visited either, so I didn't need to get a prescription for that.
Visa: It actually took a bit of time to fill out the form for the visa, so don't expect to get it filled out in five minutes. You've got to apply at least 4 days before you travel, but I did mine a couple of weeks before just to be sure, and it's got to be at least 120 days before your date of travel when you apply. I got the 30 day e-Tourist visa, which cost £25, from this website. I know it looks dodge, but I promise that's the legit site - there's only one you can get the visa from as well so don't use any others.
Medication: Whatever you think you'll need, take. The pharmacies are fine for the most part, but I wanted to make sure I had alllll of the stomach medication before going - not that it helped, and I ended up trying all sorts from the pharmacy, only to end up on my probiotics.
Insurance: This came in so handy while we were out there, as Covid kicked off while we were travelling - unfortunately we're still waiting for the claim to be looked at, so I can't tell you whether it's worked in our favour, but I'm a huge advocate of getting decent travel insurance as you never know what's going to happen. I use Virgin at the moment, but jury's out on whether it's worth it.
Budget: I made myself a spreadsheet with all of the expenses I already knew were coming out on our travels (accommodation mainly, as they were pay at the property) but I also slotted in any tours, flights, visa, insurance etc so I knew exactly how much I needed while out there and how much I had left for all the fun stuff.
By car: So I'd heard from my friend, and read a little bit about the fact that tourists often get around India with private drivers as it's the most reliable and you don't have to faff about with flights, trains etc. So on a recommendation, I emailed Bobby at Kalka Travels and told him our plans and worked out that it was the perfect way to see the Golden Triangle in the short time that we had. It was easy to sort out, and we paid in three increments - once to hold the booking, then in the middle of the trip, and then at the end as this got our driver his food and accommodation. It cost us just under £200 for 4 days and 2 nights from Delhi > Agra > Jaipur > Delhi, including a Taj Mahal tour and a Jaipur guide.
By flight: This was the hardest thing for me, as I'm trying to be a more eco-conscious human, but because of time constraints there was no other option than to fly. We tried to book a sleeper train to Rishikesh from Delhi but they were all sold out, so we did have to fly most places. To give the planet back some TLC that I'd stolen on those flights, I calculated how much estimated carbon the flights were and planted some trees with TreememberMe.
By train: If we'd had longer to travel India, we totally would have travelled by train as you see so much more of the country that way, and it's a proper experience. But we'd heard that trains were really unreliable, rarely showed up on time and there were a few scams to watch out for - unfortunately we had a pretty rigid schedule to follow. But if you can book trains, do - I've heard good things! Look to book on IRCTC or 12GoAsia (and research train scams).
Hostelworld: Perfect for booking hostels on your travels, you just have to pay a little deposit to hold your booking and then pay at the property. The reviews are always from like-minded travellers, and you get a good feel for the prices of accommodation before you go.
Splitwise: This is an absolute lifesaver if you're travelling with other people. Instead of trying to figure out who owes who money, just put in what you've paid and when, and it'll tally it up throughout your trip so you don't have to.
Klook: I'm a fan of Viator, Trip Advisor etc, but I really liked how easy it was to use Klook and the variety on offer. Plus I'd seen loads of bloggers post about it, and was pleasantly surprised.
I hope this has helped anyone considering travelling to India in the future, and honestly, if you have any questions give me a shout and I'll try my best to answer them! You can find a contact form on my contact page :) alternatively if you just want to do a bit more research/reading up, then head on our to my India travel page.
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