Activities in India
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TOP SELLER
Private Tour: Agra and the Taj Mahal Day Trip from Delhi
12 hours (Departs Delhi, India)
by Viator
Marvel at the world's greatest monument to love, the Taj Mahal and magnificent Agra Fort on this unforgettable private tour. Accompanied by your own private gui…
Not LP reviewed
from USD$118.66 - All activities
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Yoga Training Centre
Yoga master Sunil Kumar runs two-hour classes three times a day (8am, 10am and 4pm; Rs200) at the Yoga Training Centre, on the 3rd floor of a small backstreet building near Meer Ghat. He teaches an integrated blend of hatha, Iyengar, pranayama and ashtanga, and serious students can continue on certificate and diploma courses. This place is highly recommended by travellers.
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Learn for Life Society
Learn for Life Society, which can be contacted through the nearby Brown Bread Bakery has established a small school for disadvantaged children, and travellers are welcome to turn up and help out. The charity also recently started a women’s empowerment group, offering fair-paid work to local women, some of whom are mothers of the school’s students. The women make produce such as jams and pickles which travellers can buy from Brown Bread Bakery. See the website for more details.
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Houseboat
Renting a houseboat designed like a kettuvallam (rice barge) could be one of your most expensive experiences in India, but it's worth every darned rupee. Drifting through quiet canals lined with coconut palms, eating deliciously authentic Keralan food, meeting local villagers and sleeping on the water under a galaxy of stars - it's a world away from the clamour of India.
Houseboats cater for groups (up to eight bunks) or couples (one or two double bedrooms). Food (and an onboard chef to cook it) is generally included in the quoted cost. Houseboats can be chartered through the DTPC in Kollam or Alleppey, or a multitude of private operators.
This is the biggest business in K…
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Vina Maharaj Music School
In Lakshman Jhula, Vina Maharaj Music School offers sitar, tabla, harmonium and flute lessons at Rs200 per hour, and organises concerts.
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Vino Desert Safari
Recommended operator Vino Desert Safari offers half-day to 13-day trips (Rs500 to 1500 per day, depending on how much luxury you require and how much you use a jeep).
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Anjuna Flea Market
Without doubt the most important date in the Anjuna diary, market day sees scores of local and expat vendors descending on the market site at the far south of the beach, to haggle the day away over clothing, jewellery, souvenirs and a good deal, these days, of usual tourist tat. Pick through the rubbish (underfoot, quite literally) to seek out treasure, including sparkling ceiling hangings, dancing dolls, and posh frocks made from dazzling saris. Even if you don’t come home loaded with shopping, it’s an unmissable event, where you’ll find Goa’s old faithful hippies mingling with I Heart Goa–clad Indian tourists, package-holiday Brits and Russians, and young backpackers in…
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Sunset Boat Cruise
A host of floats sets out each evening just before sunset to ply the Mandovi waters and entertain tourists with nothing more sophisticated than the view, a beer or two and a dash of traditional Goan dancing. A number of companies run competing tours from the Santa Monica Jetty, with the GTDC’s being the most serene and least raucous of the bunch. Head to the jetty to compare watery offerings and pick up your tickets.
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Yoga Study Centre
According to locals, this is one of Rishikesh’s most highly regarded yoga schools and runs two- and three-week Iyengar yoga courses for all levels (payment by donation). It’s a small ashram on the river south of the town, off Haridwar Rd.
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Maharaja Sawai Mansingh Sangeet Mahavidyalaya
This is an excellent music school located behind Tripolia Gate. Tuition (per month from Rs500) is given in dance and in Indian instruments such as tabla (pair of drums) and bakhawas (double-sided drum).
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River Trips
A dawn rowing boat ride along the Ganges to view the ghats and former palaces from the Ganges is a quintessential Varanasi experience. The best time to make the trip is from 05:30 when it is cool, the early morning light is particularly inspiring and all the colour and clamour of pilgrims bathing and performing puja unfolds before you. An hour-long trip south from Dasaswamedh Ghat to Harishchandra Ghat and back is popular, but be prepared to see a burning corpse at Harishchandra.
Early evening is also a good time to be on the river, when you can light a lotus flower candle (Rs 10) and set it adrift on the water. You can also watch the nightly ganga aarti ceremony at Dasas…
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Tourist Cruises
The popular cruise between Kollam and Alleppey departs at 10:30 and arrives at 18:30, operating daily from August to March and every second day at other times. Many hotels in Kollam and Alleppey take bookings for one or other of these services; some offer cheaper rates but you'll end up paying the difference on board.
Generally, there are two stops: a 13:00 lunch stop (be aware that you'll pay extra for every element over the standard meal!) and a brief afternoon chai stop. The crew has an ice box full of fruit, soft drinks and beer to sell. Bring sunscreen and a hat.
It's a scenic and leisurely way to get between the two towns, but as a backwater experience the cruise is …
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Salaam Baalak Trust
Near the Hotel Namaskar in Paharganj, Salaam Baalak Trust provides shelter, food, education and other support to Delhi’s homeless street children. You can help by sponsoring a child for Rs28,500 per year, funding individual projects, or donating clothes, toys, blankets, books and computers. Volunteer English teachers, doctors, and computer experts are welcome. Another way you can help is by taking a tour with a street child.
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Cable Car
From midway along the Mall, a cable car runs up to Gun Hill (2530m), which, on a clear day, has views of several peaks, including Bandarpunch. A steep path also winds up to the viewpoint. The most popular time to go up is an hour or so before sunset and there’s a minicarnival atmosphere in season with kids’ rides, food stalls, magic shops and honeymooners having their photos taken dressed up in Garhwali costumes.
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Splash Adventures
In summer, agencies like Splash Adven-tures, offer daily rafting excursions through splendid canyon scenery from Phey to Nimmu (for beginners, grade I/II, Rs650 to Rs850) and from Chiling to Nimmu (grade II/III, Rs1200 to Rs1400). Prepare to get very wet. By pre-arrangement, more serious multiday rafting trips are possible for experienced rafters on the Indus, climaxing with grade IV sections around Skurbuchan.
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Children Walking Tall
- Goa, India
- Activities › Other
Children Walking Tall was founded in 2004, and helps Goa’s street and slum children, with its day-care centre, medical, educational, nutritional and all sorts of other, essential aid. Volunteers can fill a variety of roles, as teachers, childcare assistants and outreach workers, while there are also positions available for qualified doctors and nurses. Check Children Walking Tall’s website for complete details.
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Barracuda Diving
The closest beach to Panaji is at Miramar, 3km southwest of the city along Dayanand Bandodkar Marg. It's far from the cream of Goa's beaches but is a pleasant enough place for a sunset stroll and a good place to aim for on a short bike ride out the city. On the way you'll pass the Goa Marriot Resort, where you'll also find Barracuda Diving, one of the state's most professional diving operations.
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Insight Meditation Retreats
Three nine-day vipassana meditation and spiritual inquiry retreats are held by Insight Meditation Retreats from 7 January to 6 February at the Thai Monastery. Space is limited so book ahead. From mid-November you can inquire at the Burmese Vihara between 15:00 and 16:00. Donations are requested.
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GMVN Tourist Office
Contact the GMVN tourist office which offers Rajaji safaris even when the park is officially closed. These are five-hour trips (Rs1750 per person) that include being taken on a short safari, watching a parade of wild elephants, and visiting a tribal village of Gujjar buffalo herders.
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Andy’s Tattoo Studi
If you’re looking to embellish yourself while in town, try Andy’s Tattoo Studio, attached to San Francisco Restaurant, where the Anjuna cliffside slides down to meet the beach. Drop in to make an appointment and receive a price quote for your permanent souvenir.
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Niranjana Public Welfare School
This school provides education for some 270 local children and runs an orphanage in Sujata Village. Donations, sponsorships and volunteers are welcome. Contact the curator Siddhartha Kumar.
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Sahara Travels
Sahara Travels, by the First Fort Gate, also gets good reviews for its camel tours, and is run by Mr Bissa, alias Mr Desert - he graces lots of Rajasthan Tourism posters.
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