INDIA travel guide | EVERYTHING to know before you go
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- čas přidán 16. 05. 2024
- Everything you need to know about India before you go is covered in this video. From the best time to visit, what to pack, where to stay, what to eat, apps to download, things you should skip and things we recommend.
We hope you found this guide informative. We'll see you in the next one!😁
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#india #indiaguide #indiatravel #indiatravelguide
Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
1:07 - How to get to India + visa's
2:15 - Requirements
2:50 - Currency in India
4:33 - Best time to visit India?
5:29 - What to pack for India?
8:55 - Apps to download
7:59 - Budget
10:21 - Accommodation in India
11:48 - Transportation in India
15:57 - Budget
18:20 - Traffic in India
19:13 - Language and culture
20:15 - Where to go in India
21:30 - What to eat in India
22:40 - Water & Ice
23:19 - Alcohol
24:02 - Travel insurance
25:28 - Vaccinations for India
26:22 - Length of stay
27:07 - Electricity in India
27:32 - SIM cards and internet
28:36 - International driving permit
28:50 - Tipping
29:33 - Laundry
30:01 - Natural disasters
30:30 - What to skip
33:27 - What to do
35:01 - Safety in India
25:36 - Scams
39:07 - Other tips
40:24 - Outro
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I was there recently for two months. It was my first visit and like you, I can't wait to go back. The people are some of the friendliest, most hospitable I've ever met (I really immersed myself in their culture by staying in a village for half my time), the culture is incredible and I got to eat Indian food three times a day. What could be better?
Nothing! Nothing could be better😍🥹🙏🏻
Every thing is fair and lovely in terms of gaining subscribers by india
Thanks 🙏
And wellcome again
@@scarlet33333n Making nasty comments , won't bring more tourism to Bangladesh or Pakistan ?
Feeling great that you are promoting India.... thanks a lot...💐💐💐💐
As an Indian🇮🇳 i wanna say there is not only north india for knowing the ancient India 🇮🇳 but there is also many place in south india like Tamil Nadu, kerala, west bengal , assam in west india
Because in our india there is different cultures, different people, different histories
Having different taste of food in different places 😊🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳
Bro north India has lot of Mughal monuments and related stuff but south india only has what you can say that depicts real india, ancients Hindu temples and what not. South India is great - from north indian
@@amoebicdysentery5846 Are you saying Mugals are not part of Indian history?
@@prajeeshprasannakumar mughals are definitely part of our sad history. Indian civilisation is the oldest, when one talks about Indian history we should not limit ourselves to just pathetic last 200-400 years.
@HinduViews🇮🇳 Like Portuguese, Farance, Dutch & British?
Mughals left India? When? To Where?
Other places to visit as an Indian (apart from delhi and agra)
Forts and palaces: jaipur, jodhpur, udaipur, jaisalmer (basically the whole of Rajasthan)
Mountains : you can visit ladakh Or go to kashmir (which is one of the most beautiful place ever) or you can go to north-east india. Missouri, shimla, darjeeling, places in Himachal and uttarakhand are some of the most beautiful hill stations.
Best scenic beauty : entire india but def go to Kerala and the islands(lakshwadeep and andaman which are often compared to maldives)
For colonial architecture and food : Kolkata is the best place. It is also the birthplace of indo-chinese cuisine.
For partying : Goa
Best forests : Gir in gujrat (only place for asiatic lions), Kaziranga (only place where one-horned rhinos can be found) and sundarbans( largest mangrove forest)
You’re the beeeest! Thank you for this comment and for assisting travelers🥰🙏🏻🙏🏻
I think still lots of things are in India to explore..... 😂😂
Manas is heaven too!
@@RhettandClaire if you travel then welcome to seen cleanist city of india called INDORE ,with lots of food and more amazing forts like jaipur .eg mandu m.p. 56 food shop,etc
All clips are from north part of india most tourists , the south part of india in unexplored by many foreigners , explore the unexplored what you showed have been shown by many till date , hope you show the unexplored palces
Guys we just watched this whole video and took SO many notes. This is the perfect guide as we plan to visit India this year!
Amazing guys! So so happy we could help!🥰
please try to avoid Delhi city in India. plenty of negatives. haven't seen many foreigner like Delhi. most of Indians don't like Delhi. Delhi is less than 0.03% of India by area. so you have whole of India to see even you avoid Delhi.
If you want peace and many other recreation areas ,try to visit South India .
Hi in india dont miss out (Kerala tour) , its the best foreign destination in india followed by Goa which has international beaches and ladakh, rajasthan , u can check the kerala tour vlog by Allison Anderson (My Trip to India | Exploring Kerala)
Trains i will recommend vande Bharat express, gatimaan express, Tejas express, Shatabdi express, rajdhani express, double dekar.
As an Indian, sometimes even we also got scammed in places like that😂.
But you guys made it like a pro...
One thing i may suggest that whatever city you're visiting just take help from a local friend maybe through Instagram or other local CZcamsrs. They would be more than happy...
I visited India twice and absolutely loved it, but that was before the day of the BJP. Now I wouldn't visit India if you pay me. I would no more visit Hindu nationalist India than Germany under the Nazis.
@@Kwippy Let me assure you, nothing has changed since 2014. We only changed few things:
1. Stopped bootlicking of the West.
2. Stopped islamisation & cross border terrorism of a Hindu majority country. (Now, you can't kill Hindus in the name of God and be praised, you get actual punishments!)
3. Technological/Infrastructure advancement. (So glad my village got electricity and internet in 2017 )
This freaked many foreign media/business because an independent India can threaten their Global position. Don't believe bullshit media, and I hope you come again.😊
@@Kwippy Yeah, how much did you get paid to say that? Because literally nothing has changed, except we are developing at a faster pace and I also don't think you ever visited India.
True 😆
Thanks for the advice! I am looking for an Indian local to join me in Delhi. I am coming on the 6th of June. Anyone interested? 😊
When i went there from London people really asked me not to telling its not safe. I went there anyway and those cant be any wrong. It was a brilliant experience, people were really friendly especially the sikhs. Went there with my wife nd would love to take my child there too once he gets a little older. Definitely a beautiful country (especially the southern part of the country)
I'll be visiting India for the second time in a few days, can't wait!
Have the best time!😁
Avoid Old Delhi at all cost.
@@matgranger5061yea lmao fr.
Visit South India
Visit new delhi then come to Village are in rajasthan Haryana
1) As an Indian, the best advice I can give to foreigners coming to India is to avoid old Delhi (paharganj like areas) at all costs and stay in New Delhi NCR region like Gurgaon, Noida, Aerocity, Connaught place, etc.
2) Eat at small hotels/restaurants rather than street food to avoid stomach issues.
3) Visit the state of Gujarat. You can find statue of unity and glow garden there.
4) Better to first visit the other places first, before going to Delhi or Mumbai.
Thank you for this wonderful advice for other travelers 🙏🏼
I suggest completely ignore Delhi. Just land in Bangalore or Chennai and then visit Pondicherry. Slowly get acclimatised to India and just travel in TN. Karnataka, MP, Kerala, Goa. Big cities just ignore.
And also Hyderabad
TN, MP and Karnataka have barely anything to see, you can completely skip all of them
@@alokm1233318 well delhi is actually over criticized but it has lot to offer.
This was so helpful! We are planning on going to India in December and can’t wait to go. Thanks for the tips ☺️
So happy we could help🥰
As an Indian I can say, whatever happens avoid going to old Delhi as much as possible.
As an Indian i would suggest you guys to not believe in golden triangle or quadrilateral concept. You can explore north, South, East, west of India and you'll find different climate and food and culture.
Some suggestions - Jaipur, Varanasi, gurgaon, Goa, Mumbai, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, indore, dharamshala, kerala, Bengaluru, jaisalmer
You mean you are planning to come to India in December 2023? Err...not the worst time but not the best either. Early next year its the Indian General Elections. And foreign vested interests are bound to pour a lot of money into creating some protest or even a riot like situation maybe. Because otherwise, it'll be very hard to convince Indians to unseat the current government. Some foreign nations don't like the current Indian government and have tried this same playbook on multiple occasions in the last few years alone: such as the CAA/NRC protests (Dec 2019-March 2020) and then the "Farmer's" protests (Aug 2020-Dec 2021) . And although its possible to quell these protests and riots with police forces like the CRPF's Riot Police, the current Indian Prime Minister seems averse to doing that because he is already being called a "Nazi" by foreign media. There is an entire ecosystem of foreigners and Indians who are ready to nail his reputation to the cross if he gives them any excuse to print atrocity literature. This has resulted in current police being ordered by Indian Government not to use force even in extreme circumstances. This was highly visible during the way the "Farmers'" Protests were handled by allowing the so-called farmers to drive right into the Capital almost unopposed to plant their flag on the Red Fort. Meaning that a protest could easily end up being uncontrolled due to lack of political spine in Central Government.
But since these protests are manufactured for political purposes and are not really people's movements or popular uprisings, they will be limited in size and usually mostly centered around Delhi, specifically Jantar Mantar in Delhi. You'll likely be fine if you avoid those areas (which is a shame because Jantar Mantar is amazing).
TL;DR Not telling you to cancel the trip (far from it). But I'd suggest keeping up with the news and keep your plans a bit flexible to avoid troubled areas if they pop up. Enjoy your stay in India :)
@@death_parade remove farmer protest from your list
India!😍 really India is very unique, beautiful, & amazing country..and Indian people are so cute and lovely❣ specially visit in Calcutta🌈 from Mexico
The best India travel guide! Thanks so much.
Wow, thanks! Glad we could help😁
Kerala is the spice capital of India. You can get organic spices, tea, honey and home made chocolate.
Uk couple travelling around India in march, after seeing your jaipur vlog , we booked All seasons home stay, we can’t wait for the holiday, so excited 😊thanks for all you tips and advice holidaying in India, love your channel 👍🏻🇬🇧
You’re welcome Gary! Have the best time😁😁
Umm March?.....starts getting hotter by March's end.
@@pauline6005 Uttar Pradesh is bad. Even we Indians don't visit that place as tourists. Don't know who suggests foreigners to go to such places lol. The only thing worth visiting there is Taj Mahal, that's it. Places to visit in India are Ladakh, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Sikkim, North East 7 sister states, Darjeeling in West Bengal, Goa, Pondicherry, and then the other states follow.
Not March bro😢
@@pauline6005 noo..... Ghaziabad, Sitapur are not even a tourist place 🤦. UP has a quite a few good tourist places. Even Agra is in UP. One place that is impossible to miss in UP is Varanasi. It's the oldest city in the world and also the cultural capital of India. You can visit Mathura too but many good places to visit in India before that.
If you love to see wild animals, visit the National parks like Kaziranga, ranthambore for one horned rhino, Bengal Tiger, etc
I AM FROM NORTH INDIA(Jaipur) BUT I ALSO RECOMMENDED TO VISIT SOUTH INDIA because original Indian culture you find there.
Culture is culture nothing like original or fake
As an Indian, I can vouch for this video completely! Absolute gold! Every point is important and genuine.
@@canopus_reborn Born and broughtup in WB. Lived across the country in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, MP, Pune, Orissa.
@@canopus_reborn haahaaa! No I'm recently married! But iv got to admit, getting this question even from an absolute stranger brings back so many memories from my college days! 🤣
India is the most diverse country anywhere in the world so if you're a foreigner do visit India 🇮🇳
I've been planning very thoroughly for six months now and I still found additional good info here. Excellent video very informative. Next month I will be India for the first time! I'll be doing the golden triangle of course and I also added Varanasi as my first stop for 3 days I'm most excited about that. While in Jaipur, I'll be making a day excursion to Ranthambore Park for a tiger safari. Ladakh sounds wonderful, but instead I will be going to Kathmandu, Nepal for 4 days after India. Then finishing off with a stop in Seoul, Korea on the way home. धन्यवाद!
Sounds amazing! Have a great time!😃
Instead of Varanasi, you should plan a trip to south (kerala etc.). Varanasi will be too much of a culture shock and you may not like it.
@@rajkiran1982 Its not your trip
I highly recommend visiting States like Sikkim, Kerala, in place of Varanasi.
If you really plan on take a relaxing Vacation, avoid Big cities at all costs.
And visit Andaman And Nicobar Islands
Good to add Fatehpur Sikri on your way. Amazing abandoned little historical city.
Thank you so much for loving my beautiful motherland. Welcome to India. 🙏❤️🇮🇳
I have travelled to each and every state of India, my suggestions would be
1 sikkim
2 kerela
3 Rajasthan
4 Goa
5 leh & ladakh
6 Himachal
Thankyou India for everything ♥️
how do you not add meghalaya lol
They loved Jaipur, which is the capital of Rajasthan.
@@friendlyvimana I know i have travelled too , suggestion is for the people who don’t know :)
Uttarakhand?
@@intelligentakt3918 yes Uttrakhand too i got confused btw himachal and uttrakhand
Next time you guys should go to the north east and visit the hills and cover the different cultures of the seven sisters of India. Much love guys, love your content and energy ❤️
GUJARAT, GOA, MUMBAI AND KERALA on the western coast would be a great trip in my opinion. Places like Bangalore can be skipped as it is more of offices and industry related metro city, with traffic even worse than Delhi.
Mate, Bangalore has so much to see. You clearly haven't been to the south haven't you? There's metro there as well BTW. I'll skip starting to talk what's worse in Delhi. 😀
@@ShashankCG he did mention Kerala, that’s a par of south no?
what the hell,you have so much to see in banglore let it be areas like mg road or tipu sultan summer palace,there are beautiful gardens like lalbagh and cubbon park,you have all kinds of restaurants,malls, theaters,.......it is one of the most developed and advance city of india. you also have so many resorts near banglore....its like how new york is for US,.missing banglore when you come to south india would be a terrible decision. by the way i reside in banglore. and banglore is also known as the garden city of india.
yeah i also forgot to mention vidhan saudha lol.
What's there to see in Gujarat? Never heard of it as a tourist destination.
Great... feel proud about you....we love foreigners.... because we respect them like God...(Athidhi Devobhava)💐💐💐
We're in India now and love it here! The food is so good!
Seeing guests describing our country like that made my heart grow 100 folds❤
Thank you. Himachal Pradesh is a state usually overlooked by foreign tourists. Manali, Shimla, Nainital are brilliant, scenic, mountainous cities in Himachal Pradesh with tremendous eye candy to savour. Some hill stations scattered all over India are good places to visit as well.
So when did Nainital shift from Uttarakhand to Himachal? 😂
Never watched such informative video on this topic.
Really?😁😁
As an Indian, I would say you covered pretty much everything. India is really diverse. If you just drive 400-500 kms from one point to another point, you will see many differences in culture.
Regarding the sea food, you should go to coastal areas like Maharashtra, Goa and Kerala.. Infact, the whole south India is beautiful. Also you must try North East part. Its untouched and pretty much close to nature.
Guys this is the best guide I’ve seen on India (north) . As an Indian I 100% agree with everything they suggest.
This is probably the most detailed video I’ve seen on travelling in india.
We would love to see you guys back.
Try south and east india (they will feel like a different country)
Here’s EVERYTHING you need to know if you’re planning your trip to INDIA 🇮🇳 Be sure to let us know in the comments if you have any other valuable information for other travelers 😃
Like in any other Country .pls don't involve in local politics, religion
ok sister
@@atritrikavansa430 Good Advice ✌️
I'm glad U guys enjoyed India and Indians but I'm concerned that didn't mention the emergency numbers like 911(for example) I actually think that whenever tourists visit India they have emergency number like 100 for emergencies where it connects police nearby police stations whenever they are bullied by scammers, anyone,, that never meant that India is not safe but I wish all tourists to do this... India is a vast country i wish U all to travel to the entire country and enjoy,, the greens in the South , history in the north, cuisine from west and vast hilly and tribes tradition of north-east ,they are very friendly...... Being a South indian I would wish you to visit the backwaters and green hills of South India The taste and culture changes every 100 miles where U can enjoy the sea foods and friendly people ,,visit India again ☺️☺️
Congrats for this video! I'm planning mi trip to India and it was very usefull.
Welcome to India when you come India come my home I invite you I show you my culture
Welcome to India
🙏🙏🙏
Don't go to Delhi or Agra. Go to South India first.
India is like a treasure maze with serious challenges built in. And you guys handled it really well. Respect ❣️✨🫡
Thank you for saying that🥹🙏🏻
@@RhettandClaire atm's swallow cards?! Lol you retrieve your card after your transaction is over . Wth 😂😂😂
@@priyak7384that's how they are in the US as well. Idk if it was a scam or just never used that type of atm
Being indian, i found this guide is perfect for us also, thank you for your guidance
Amazing! We’re happy to hear that😁
If you want to see India in a different way and enjoy the natural beauty, come to North-East india (assam,Manipur, nagaland, mizoram, Tripura,sikim, Arunachal, Meghalaya) you will love it ❤️
I'm glad that you visited not only Golden triangle but Ladakh too because some people after visiting golden triangle only claim to visit India fully and that's so wrong. If you ever come to India in future , your target should be absolutely 'South India'. Note this places for future-
from Goa to Kerala , and from Danushkothi , the last land of India which ends in a tri-junction of Arabian Sea , Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean to a beautiful city call Vizag. You must visit tropical side of India , south India.
After that if you have more time , you can visit East India like Odisha , West Bengal which is mix of North and South India I think , a little bit chaotic and charm. And at last you can visit North-east India too , the most ignored part of India but tourism is not very much developed there which is a problem. And because u already live in Bali , so I'm not recommending Andaman islands in Indian ocean but you can visit Lakhshydeep islands near Maldives too if you plan to visit further.
This was absolutely lovely, thanks from the travelling community for such a comprehensive take on India Travel.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Namaste from India🇮🇳 🥰🥰🥰
Wow this is one of the most comprehensive and accurate guides to traveling to India. Well done!!
Thank you Rhett & Claire for your valuable feedback about India and people of India. Yes it is important for us as an to Indian to know that how foreigner looks through thier lenses and think about India as whole. We Indians are hospitable but some people surely make irritate and its a small numbers but believe that's just every Society has good & bad people but Indian's are truely Incredible... believe me . I hope next time when you visit India ....your Love towards india expands more and more and that is i am sure ...you will get by visiting again....once again thank you for your gratitude and love towards us Namaste 🙏
kudos for calling out on Chandni chawk..it is really a stereotyped destination most foreigners show when they even narrate "INDIA" or Delhi in particular and u NAILED IT by calling out the BS
Honestly as a Indian I wanna suggest you the north east side of India, Uttrakhand, and many more like Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya ect.. as in uttrakhand do trekking, explore majestic peaks and mountains, people, food . And real peace in India those places are heaven on earth.... instead of hectic lifestyle in cities 🤍
Sometimes I also get upset with the noisy traffic in NYC I miss my India honestly 🥺
Watched every second. You guys were so fantastic. I am Indian and i still found it so interesting and informative. Loved the calm and peaceful explanation. You guys were point on. New subscriber. ❤
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed ittt and thank you for subscribing🥰🥰
@@RhettandClaire if you guys ever come to goa will be happy to meet you’ll. 😊
@@RhettandClaire You guys are fantastic❤. You're welcome anytime and if you plan to visit Goa, @moses j Saldanha is the perfect guide for you in Goa.
@@MosesJSaldanha hi!!! Sub here 😁
@@MosesJSaldanha wait....are you Indian?
Thanks for visiting our country and promoting. It's a perfect destination which can offer you everything (mountains,river,beaches, desert, lakes,landscapes,monuments,spirituality and lot more) . Everywhere have good and bad peoples but you will get a amazing experience in our country.
This is a wonderfully comprehensive Video that touches all the important things to know, we have shared this video with some of our friends who are going to India next month. The timing of this video was perfect for our friends. We have been. Thank you so much for all the hard work you put into your videos. Sending you much love❤️❤️❤️ from Richmond, Va. Harriet, Jim and Yuki
Brilliant! We hope your friends have an amazing trip😁🥰
avoid delhi & Agra.....try Ladakh, Himachal, south India and North East India.
Good point... Visiting Chandni Chowk in Delhi is similar to going to New York and visiting the ghetto, not sure why tourists do it
The funny thing about the Taj is that's it's a gem located in the middle of a horrible cesspool
Agreed!
The whole city agra is unbearable. I dont like that city. Taj in agra is like lotus in waste water pool.
Ah! I’ve been (not so patiently) awaiting this video! And wait to get stuck in and watch it! ❤
Yay! Enjoyyyyy😁😁🙌🏻❤️
Great video Rhett and Claire, very informative and not sugar coated. As an Indian who has been living in Canada for more than 25 years, I found this video to be very informative. Enjoy your travels.
Being an Indian from Delhi and living abroad, I appreciate your video and how you captured the details exactly. However, I smiled at how you pleasantly mentioned beeping and cows on streets, which usually annoy us, and we want to see it changed. It is true that anyone visiting India has choices for a luxury experience or to experience the fun in chaos. Very well done.
try to speak 'I' instead of 'We'
Having my wife's family in India, I've been 5 times in the past 20 years. I agree with most of your video.
Allergy - Nut products are used everywhere. We were guests at a private hospital center during one trip as the family had donated a fairly large sum to the organization. My son has a peanut allergy. The director of the entire facility told us not to worry and that all our meals would be managed. My son got violently ill. In talking with the staff, we asked about the nuts using the local names and when we hit 'sing', they said it was there. So, even when you are in a medical facility and the bean counters are bending over backwards they can still sneak in nuts. It was difficult dealing with this on a daily basis, but with care, you can manage. One benefit of getting sick while staying in a medical complex is the care was amazing.
Some places I loved - Rathambore Tiger Reserve, Darjeeling Tea Estate stay and the Toy Train, Just about everywhere in Rajastan, especially Jasilmer and participating in camel races out in the Sam desert. Best meal I ever had was in a little cafe next to mountain fortress in Jaipur. I don't remember anything about the place, but I'd order Jagar's Special again. Or, maybe it was the Maharaja Tali in Aminabad. And you have to try Jain dishes. It's amazing what they can do with only a few vegetables. Try staying in an ashram, it is an amazing experience. The food is bland, but the experience is unlike anything.
A note about the Tea Plantations. They are not cheap. Each one offers a different vibe, so be sure to read up. We stayed at the Glenburn estate. I like the family dining, the vast excursions they offer, and the very personal touches. I very much want to go back. I wonder how many US Boy Scouts earned their Hiking Merit Badge in the foothills of the Himalayas? All I can say is that the 20 mile hike was killer.
Things are not as open as they once were. When my oldest was only a year old, we visited the Taj Mahal and I have photos of him standing for the first time on one of the alcoves of the Taj. When we returned 16 years later, that same area was railed off. The same with various forts. While I understand the issues, the amount of access is amazingly less than it once was and some of the most incredible rooms are off limits.
While I agree that Agra is barely a day's adventure, if you want to buy a rug, the finest dealer I know is located there. I think our extended family has purchased 30+ rugs over the years. Ask your hotel to get you to a high end rug dealer and you'll be taken to the right place. And I'm talking high end wool and silk. On our last trip, we commissioned a large rug with specific designs, colors, etc and it was shipped to us in the US 8 months later exactly as we asked. We also have a beautiful inlay marble coffee table from an associated dealer and had that shipped. Everything was packaged bombproof. Just for a comparison, the new rug cost us about $2700 and we had it appraised for insurance at $14,000.
You need some local help in finding the right place, but all kinds of bespoke arts like rugs and jewelry are possible. Indian gold is typically 22 carat and is sold by weight plus a little bit for the work. We brought a couple older items to trade for a new necklace for my wife and they simply put it on a scale and multiplied the weight by the price of gold, and that was our credit.
My wife will spend a day shopping for fabric. Hand spun Khadi cloth in both cottons and silks are not terribly expensive. Recently, finding quality has been an issue, there is a lot of lower stuff sold now. I've had many shirts made over the years and even a full suit. Typically, fabric and custom made shirt is about $15. I even had one made overnight. We found an amazing iridescent silk fabric that changed from blue to green depending on the light angle. Must have been 8pm when we were in the shop and I commented how it would be cool to get a shirt in it. But we were leaving the city the next morning and there wasn't time in our trip to drop the fabric anywhere. My wife had just bought 15 yards of various cottons to use for quilting. The person helping us overheard the talk about the shirt and assured he would make the shirt and have it delivered to our hotel by morning. As it was only $12, I took the chance and when we checked out the next morning, the clerk handed over the shirt all nicely packaged. It's one of my favorite shirts for special occasions. On our last trip, we brought 2 checked bags. Going to India, they were full of various gifts for family. Coming home, they were stuffed with fabric. All our clothes and such were in hand carry packs which is how we traveled around the country.
Cash is king. In specialty shops like rugs, jewelry, etc where you are dropping $100 or more your credit card will typically work, or they have arrangements with a banker nearby that can process the transaction. For everything else, use cash. Keep about 3000 rupies handy and the rest well hidden. I like pants with zippered pockets. Columbia zip-off pants typically have a nice pocket for this and I can wear them as long pants or shorts. They pack well too. One lakh (100,000) rupies isn't unreasonable to have. (a bit more than $1200) Always try to keep your available bills small. If you plan to ride rickshaws a lot, you need 10's. Many drivers will balk at 200R or even 100R notes. Breaking a 500R note is hard unless you are in a store. My typical method was to buy a diet coke in a store with a door. That said, it's weird to count out 20,000R when your wife buys fabric, but the cashier doesn't even bat an eye. And yes, that can be a lot of fabric or some really nice silks.
Just about everything is negotiable. Probably the only place this is not true is government shops. Most things I don't bother like restaurants, small shops, etc. But for any crafts, larger purchases, or stuff like guide services, you can and should haggle.
Each time we visit, it is getting harder to find certain items. High end wool shawls with fancy embroidery are some of my wife's favorite gifts. These start about $40 and just go up. She owns one that I think we negotiated down to about $200 that is just beautiful. There are plenty of lower quality, but each time we visit, finding the really nice ones is harder and harder. This wool is just amazingly soft and you can tell just touching the low end versions its not the same. Another favorite is a certain cotton blanket that is perfect for curling up on a sofa. Again, we tend to give these as gifts - lately to kids going off to college. These are not expensive at about 500R, but most of what we see now are much lower quality and lower prices. This last trip, we tried everywhere we went to find them and when we did, the 3 women in our group bought the store out.
This is getting to be book length. It is an amazing country. The people are generally wonderful and the food is amazing. I'm spoiled in that I have family to help, but many of the trips my wife and I have done we researched and organized ourselves. A few times, we used a company named Wildspace (www.wildspace.biz) to help with the logistics. If you contact them, say hello to Iain for us.
Thanks for the Info, can't wait to visit India 👍
beautifulll! India is on the top of our list for sure. Thank you for answering so many questions we had
Thank you for the very helpful info. Loved it.
Thanks you for visit to India 🇮🇳❣️🙏🏻
Love from Gujarat
I've been doing two trips a year to cover India for around 8 years now. It's still gonna take me about 7 years to visit each place. A few tips for first time travelers :
1. Please visit the northeastern areas like sikkim, meghalaya, arunachal pradesh etc. They have tons of natural beauty and are way less crowded.
2. Visit places like Kerela aptly named God's own country and while Jaipur is a very beautiful city Rajasthan as a whole is so beautiful. I've been there three times.
3. Take a one day trip to Lucknow. It's very close to Agar and the food there is to die for.
4. Ditch the shorts. I know that's controversial but wearing sports is an easy way to catch diseases and also screams tourist.
5. Zostels have the most beautiful properties with some of the best people you'll meet so try and book that instead of expensive hotels.
Lastly I appreciate the quality and hardwork you put in the video. There were some excellent tips in their and I loved your energy and watched the whole thing even though I didn't need to 😂.
really helpful info. love that ❤
You guys did an amazing job with the video, thank you so much
lowest recorded temperature in Ladakh India is -60C. Indian soldiers, heroes of the nation who are posted in Siachen Glacier of Ladakh has said that it gets as cold as -70c. in my experience swiggy is much better food ordering app than Zomato. latter is running on loss for last few years and about to get bankrupt.
Omg😱😭. They’re so brave! Thank you for the suggestion🙏🏻
Maybe Swiggy is good and profitable company but Zomato is better and wide service.
Next time when you come, come here:
Odisha (eastern state of India)
To visit here:
1. Konark Temple
2. Bhubaneswar (airport)
3. Puri
4. Chilla Lake
5. Bhitarkanika
6. Gopalpur
7. Deomali
8. Vizag
Hello Mr. Vizag is in andhra pradesh not in odisha
@@sudheerpanyam8004 it's near to them that's why he said.
r u supporting odisha tourism ?
@@AnuragSingh-zz8iz yes sir
This give the best information anybody could get.I love their explanation .i loved it ❤
Thank u, we give u warm welcome
You people grabbed so much of information about India.Thats awesome.Good explanation.Tq
The best guidance for foreigners to visit India. You both do good job 👍.
Love From India.
Thank you 🙏🏼
I am glad you guys loved 🇮🇳 😍😍😍😍
super informative, I'll be taking my first trip there next week. Thanks :)
This video is very informative & helpful.❤👌👍
i already saw all your indian vids, i am actually in new delhi and will visit india for one month, but in case i miss something i am jumping on this resume ! i love your video ! looking for some you will make in south africa with your next tour.
Amazing!😁😁. Thank you for watchinggg🙏🏻
please do not stay too long in Delhi. plenty of negatives. haven't seen many foreigner like Delhi. most of Indians don't like Delhi. Delhi is less than 0.03% of India by area. so you have whole of India to see even you avoid Delhi.
@@israr144 3 days in Delhi is enough😁
@@RhettandClaire i myself live in new delhi and i think new delhi should only be used for airport purpose to arrive in india that's it nothing else 🤣🤣
@@ayushranjan3861 i feel like lucknow is ignored too much that place is an absolute gem in history and sightseeing
As a Indian.I would say you covered pretty much everything
WONDERFUL VIDEO Rhett & Claire!!! Very informational video. India needs more visitors / tourists like you! You totally skipped South and North East. Make sure you plan for that in your next trip!!!
You are welcome to the North East India (the Seven Sisters States) - Assam, Arunachal, Nagaland [plan for the Hornbill Festival (check pictures-vlogs) in the first 10 days of December], Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya and the eighth state Sikkim. September to April should be the best time for visit.
Hi Rhett & Claire, loved watching your entire videos and thank you for making India Travel Guide for our beautiful travel community across globe. Looking forward to welcome our friends again at HOME.😍
THE BEST HOSTS EVER🥰🥰🥰
thanks for update. India so beautiful . different state , different culture , different language , diffrent food dishes all states , enjoy trip with smile.. love to all.....
Thank you for such great tips!
Your always welcome in Indian 🇮🇳 I proud to Be indian .... And All indian are always support and Welcome to Our guest.. because Guest Is like a God ❤
Are you sure about that?
YES 100%@@invisibleman4827
Explore more INDIA 🇮🇳
The beautiful country!
And tell people about the incridible place in the 🌎 world
thank you guys, this is crazy useful!
thank you for coming to our country and helping in changing the untrue stereotypes about india ...its a beautiful country with great people
As a South indian, i havent visited any of these places. But You should probably try and visit south India sometimes. if not for ancient buildings but for tropical weather, beaches and a little quieter environment. And yup eating fish where there are no coasts is definitely a bad idea.
Great tips guys👍 I've been to India a coupe of times myself. It's such a fascinating and amazing country with so much to explore. I can't wait to visit again🙂 Greetings from Poland🇵🇱
Good to see, foriegn people to love our India soo much
Thank you so much for loving my beautiful motherland. Welcome to India. ️🇮🇳
If you come again, definitely visit the eastern states of India like Patna, Kolkata, Assam, North Eastern states like Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Sikkim, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya and yes, my city Lucknow must come, here you will find very nice people and world famous food. Love you guys 💓🌹👍👌
Avoid Patna and Kolkata
And add Gujrat and Andaman and Nicobar Islands to that list
Patana or lucknow lol 😂😂😂
Patna lmao 😂😂
@@tweetmemes5015 Why are you laughing btw ? I am a resident of Patna I don't find anything funny here. Well yeah there are not many place to visit but Rajgir has its better than any other places and much more peaceful and there are many places to visit enough to take whole day.
@@sourav3853 So you believe that one should visit Patna in the limited amount of time that they have, neglecting the already popular places that are touristy? If yes, then that's funny to me.
Seen your entire video and glad to know that you like India. About sea food I would recommend you to try to go to western and southern India as it has a coastal line. Also each state is different from another and you will see different culture, traditions and language in every 100kms. Basically start from Mumbai ( BOM ) and take a road trip through Konkan region up to GOA ( GOI ) + Karnataka + Kerala and so on.😁
Love From India🇮🇳
Good job, I am an Indian but never travelled even in local places, I only know about city Pune, Nashik and Mumbai, after watching your video I also thinking to travel across the world. Thanks
Please visit again.. and show more about India to world
Going solo in two days! Super excited and nervous. Your video was awesome, got a check list just by watching you. Thanks!
Good luck!!
Planning on playing Professional Golf Tour of India in 2024 as an American, found this video very helpful! Really looking forward to it
Thanks you for come India sharing your experience to other people. 🇮🇳🤗
You guys are awesome !! One suggestion, try to visit eastern and north eastern part of India, these are less explored areas by foreigners. You will get mountains , beaches and beautiful villages.
"Cover up from stares". Being an Indian I understand what you mean. Men in India do stare a lot, especially when a bit of skin is showing. Something we've to surely work on. Hope things changes though. Thank you for visiting our country. Hope to welcome you both again.
Thank you for having us!🙏🏻❤️
Thank you so much for this, I also live in South Africa and am planning to visit India soon! Really insightful information!
Thanks guys good to hear you about India.
Indian govt is actually trying to make UPI global. Very soon international tourists can use UPI in India and also in their country. Indian govt and Singapore govt agreed to join hand to make payment efficient between two countries.
One more advice- always have two sim card of different companies. Airtel and jio work everywhere in india. I highly advice to use jio because jio work almost in every cornor of the country and also it is cheaper and faster. It will cost you only 4 dollar for monthly plans with 2gb data per day. Recently they launched 5g in India and by end of 2023 they will cover entire India with 5g.
So next time you will come to India keep in mind all these things.
Great Guide to India! 💯
Thank you 🙌
So good and informative!
Your travels are so beautiful. Thanks for sharing your words about Bengaluru
Very interesting video. Well done 😁👍❤
5:10 this actually completely depends on where you want to go.
If you're going to the North, the winter may just be too cold (Especially in Ladakh) and roads, as well as mountain passes may have too much snow to travel on.
Very helpful tips! I'm visiting India in a week and I'm so excited after watching this!