India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [75]
LANDING THE BEST ROOM
Somebody has to get the best room in the house; it might as well be you. First, make sure your room has air-conditioning (unless you’re in the cool mountain regions where it isn’t needed). Ask for a room with split air-conditioning (an air-conditioner with a separate indoor and outdoor unit); it’s far less noisy—and ugly—than a window air-conditioner. If there’s no air-conditioning, ask whether there is a ceiling fan or a water-cooling system. Be sure to request your choice of twin, queen- or king-size beds. Ask for rooms with views (many hotel staff don’t understand this concept in India, so it’s best to look around on arrival), and specify if you prefer a shower or tub (tubs in medium or budget category are usually old and stained, so don’t shy away from shower-only options—which are far more environmentally friendly anyway). Ask for one of the most recently renovated or redecorated rooms—bathrooms in particular seem to suffer heavy wear and tear in India.
Tip: Indians often use the term “hotel” to refer to a restaurant or eating place, so don’t be surprised if someone suggests you eat at a hotel down the road, and you arrive there to find a five-table shack.
Chapter 4: Suggested India Itineraries
India is such a vast country and has so much to see that visitors are tempted to pack in as much as possible. Begin any trip to India with the knowledge that no matter how long your vacation, it will not be long enough. Knowing this can help you make the best of your time here and prevent you from planning a punishing schedule that will leave you not only thoroughly overwhelmed, but with an uncomfortable feeling that you’ve rushed through most of what you did see.
Despite greatly improved accommodations and transportation options, India is still a challenging destination, and you should always be prepared to take in stride a delayed flight, slow check-in, or upset tummy on, say, a long-distance train. Set aside time to acclimatize and simply unwind—this is, after all, a vacation.
Ideally, you should use this book’s “Best Of” chapter to work out a route that covers those experiences or sights that really appeal to you, as the range of possible itineraries is endless; what we’ve suggested below are three rather full programs covering either North or South India over a 2-week period. If possible, extend your trip—2 weeks is not enough time to come to grips with India—and set aside more time for those destinations that sound most appealing to you. The fourth itinerary is for those who want to experience India at a languid, easy pace while still taking in key attractions—and there is no better place to do this than in southern India.
You could, of course, combine a trip to both the north and the south, but then you really should stick to one state (even one hotel!) in each area. For instance, you can arrive in Delhi, travel through Agra and then Jaipur, Bundi, and Udaipur, covering this region in 8 days, and then head south to Kerala. In Kerala, you can cover Cochin and Kumarakom (cruising the backwaters) and finish off with a couple of days south of Kovalam (or, better still, in the less-discovered far north of Kerala), before flying out of Bengaluru or Mumbai.
None of the itineraries below include a trip into any of the fabulous Himalayan regions covered in this book. If you do in fact extend your time in India, make your way from Delhi to the Golden Temple in Amritsar, and then explore the remote valleys of Kinnaur, Lahaul, and Spiti before heading into surreal Ladakh; alternatively, you can take a road trip from Delhi through the picturesque Kumaon in Uttarakhand, or take off from Kolkata to Darjeeling (book the famous toy train there) and Buddhist Sikkim.
Whatever you decide to do, we highly recommend that you end your trip in one of India’s natural paradises, at least to recover from the sensual assault you’ll experience exploring the crowded and often polluted urban areas. These oases include the beaches on the Malabar coast and Goa, the backwaters of Kerala, the lunar landscapes