INFORMATION FOR TRAVELLERS ...continued

More on India

We’ve developed an enviable reputation for our series of successful tours to India and, in particular, to delivering what is promised – and more! This is our ninth season and our tours to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway are carefully timed to give us the best chance of finding the full length of line open, as it often suffers monsoon damage during the summer period. If we’re lucky and get some reasonable weather, the memory of the stunning views from the Darjeeling area across to Kanchenjunga will remain with you all your life. On the railway, we have a full two day charter train to allow proper appreciation of this wonderful line, with stops for photography and to see one or two of the local villages along the way. The maximum number of participants will be limited to 30 per tour to allow the photographers and videographers to take all the shots they wish without overcrowding or too much discipline.

Experienced travellers in India will know that, very often, things in India do not go to plan, through no fault of tour organisers. These tours have been planned to give the best chance of being able to complete the tour without major disruption, but it is possible that a major disruption will occur. If that should happen, the tour manager will do his/her best to make alternative arrangements to get the tour back on track with the minimum disruption and making the best of the circumstances to ensure that no attractions get missed unless there is absolutely no alternative. For example, if there is a bad landslide the week before the trip, and the DHR is not operating its full length, we will re-plan to use as much rail travel as possible (both for service and charter trains) but substituting road transport where necessary. In this situation, because we are using Indrail Passes which give flexibility, there is no possibility of arranging refunds. We do, however, have the goodwill of Indian Railways, who in their turn will do their best to ensure that their trains run as we would wish. If we save money because a facility is not available, that saving will be passed back to the tour participants, but that will be the limit of our liability.

Trains

For some tours, rail travel will be provided by an Indrail Pass (first class AC 2Tier/AC Chair Car, AC 3Tier) for each participant, which will leave you free to travel by any train in India during its period of validity, but it must be remembered that reservations (particularly for overnight trips) are not easy to come by at short notice. Experienced travellers in the subcontinent will therefore be able to “do their own thing” for parts of the tour, if they wish.

Preparation for India

We strongly recommend that you read a copy of the “Lonely Planet Guide to India”, which sells for about £17.99. This gives excellent background advice to the country and its customs and offers much useful advice on what to pack, what to buy and what to see. Alternatively, there is “The Rough Guide to India” and the “Footprint” guide, both of which are good.

Useful stuff!

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