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Is Amritsar safe?

Yes it's safe.

2

"Is that just way too much?" - no
Delhi - allow 3 days incl day trip to Agra
Jaipur - allow 3 days
Mumbai - 2 days is plenty
Others dont know, as I havent been there.

Dont be afraid to fly internally even for 200km as the roads arer mostly not good and most rail very slow. That said new motorway or fast rail Delhi-Agra is ok.

3

Well, one month is a great deal of time for travelling. But when are you travelling, in which month?
If you are travelling around December and January then visiting Manali may be bit difficult; as roads get blocked due to heavy snow.
However you should plan visiting there while you are in India; you can go through the weather forecast before travelling there.

Amritsar is quite safe place.Quite famous for Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh, food, Jootis (a special footwear) and suits (clothes to wear for ladies).

If possible do add "Jaisalmer" to the list of cities in Rajasthan state (western side of india) like Jaipur, Udaipur.

Varanasi is towards "eastern" side; but its nice place to visit.
I think if you manage to get bookings of flights or train and prepare plan good enough; you will have still much more time left to see some more places.

Train is much feasible in nearby cities like Jaipur; Amritsar, Agra. Although Varanasi and Mumbai also can be reached by train but it takes around a day. If you have time to do so; then sure go ahead with it.

4

You haven't mentioned when you are planing to travel.
September to early November is good time to visit Manali. You can travel by overnight deluxe Volvo buses operated by Himachal Tourism from Delhi to travel to Manali.
I suggest that you go for an open jaw air ticket to fly to India enabling you to fly in to India in Delhi and depart from Mumbai. This will save you time & money.
There are trains from either Varanasi or Mughal Sarai which is near Varanasi to travel to Mumbai.
You can use this to search for trains:
http://erail.in
Flying by budget airlines is also an option.

5

Check this out for staying at Golden Temple.
http://www.goldentempleamritsar.org/accommodations%20in%20golden%20temple%20amritsar%20accommodations%20in%20amritsar%20sarai%20booking%20amritsar.html

Amritsar is perfectly safe.

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Wow! Thanks for the quick responses! As for when we will travel, we are still trying to figure that out. Our window of time is from Oct. 2013-April 2013. Plenty of time to plan. Also, is it best to not book my hotels in advance, instead as we go or....?

Thanks again everyone!

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I don't want to hijack this topic but I have quite the same question MJDale1022 posted. It's my first trip to India (I have lived in Sri Lanka for a while) and I' ll arrive in Delhi on December 25th. My return flight is on January 15th in the afternoon. What do you think about the following itinerary:

Delhi 25, 26, 27 (nighttrain
Varanasi 28, 29, 30 (nighttrain)
Agra + Fatehpur Sikri 31, 1 (stay in FS)
Bundi 2, 3
Udaipur 4, 5
Jaisalmer (Ranakpur on the way?) 6, 7
Pushkar 8, 9
Jaipur 10, 11, 12
Nawalgarh (incl. Dundlod and Mandawa) 13, 14 (nighttrain)
Delhi 15 (fly back in the afternoon)

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I think I sent the message too early. My main questions are:

• Am I not visiting too many cities?
• Is Varanasi worth the de-tour to the East?
• Am I staying long enough in each place to get a proper idea of it and the life its people live?
• Is Pushkar also worth a visit if there's no camel fair?

Thank you very much for your tips! After my trip, I'll give anyone who's interested an update!

Camiel

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A month is good enough time to cover most of north India.
Varanasi is a spiritual experience and if possible go for it.
You will not understand the lives of people in India because there are simply too many of them, spread across various economic strata. You could see abject property next to filthy riches. Just enjoy the experience.
Pushkar is not a place I'd visit outside of the fair, maybe the lake but its not a great spot.
Do visit the Karni Mata temple when in Udaipur. :)

-
ComicProject

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"Agra + Fatehpur Sikri 31, 1 (stay in FS)" - no dont stay in FS its horrible

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MJ Dale: Avoid visiting India during May-August as during these months; climate gets really hot and humid. Only place then to visit is Hills.
Best time is Feb-March & early April and Late Sep - Nov. Plan around these months.
Even if you don't book advance for hotels; but you should book in advance for train or flight or bus tickets; better a month before you travel .

Camiel: Do you have everything travel details booked in advance as you are highlighting in your message. If yes; then its great. But I would suggest go again evaluating the actual time will be spent on travelling ; time needed to see a city or place; time for you to rest.

Three days for Jaipur; its more than it worth actually ( Max. is 2). If you have any other ideas then sure go ahead.
Pushkar is a religious place; you can visit a nearby famous place Ajmer. I think a day or two will be enough for it.

People do like visiting Varanasi; unless you have any other place or place(s) in mind then do keep Varanasi in tour.

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Delhi 25, 26, 27 (nighttrain
Varanasi 28, 29, 30 (nighttrain)
Agra + Fatehpur Sikri 31, 1 (stay in FS)
Bundi 2, 3
Udaipur 4, 5
Jaisalmer (Ranakpur on the way?) 6, 7
Pushkar 8, 9
Jaipur 10, 11, 12
Nawalgarh (incl. Dundlod and Mandawa) 13, 14 (nighttrain)
Delhi 15 (fly back in the afternoon)

varanasi is a nice way to begin ur tour as it will give u the best picture of indian culture..as its the oldest indian city & supposedly the oldest in world (as myth goes)....think 2 days shud suffice..but its gud if u have 3 days to spend...in delhi since u spend 3 days u can cover north delhi (red fort, jama masjid, chandni chowk) one day , south delhi (dilli haat,hauz khas,qutub, mehrauli, tughlaqabad) the next & central/newl delhi(pahrganj,india gate ,cp,lodhi garden, humayun tomb) the third day
agra fatehpur sikri is ok for 1 night stay gives u tym to c taj in dawn & dusk both, take the rear side across the river view...half day for fatehpur sikri & next half day for agra fort ....udaipur one night is gud enuff...jaisalmer needs 2 nights in cse u do a 2 day one night camel safari....pushkar one night is ok, its basically a hippi trail when camel fair aint there.. ,..mandwa along with fatehgarh is must & jaipur along with excurscions to chomu, samod, & amer, jaigarh needs minimum 2 nights...its a gud trip in this season ..avoid mountains...but make sure u do mumbai ,goa & around or central india soon...all the best

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u said - We want to see New Delhi, Manali, Amritsar, Jaipur, Udaipur, Varanasi, and Mumbai. So here are my questions:

Is that just way too much? Too spread out? Anything I should add or take out?
When is the best time to go to Manali? The road closes and I am just not sure if I just can't get through at all or if it's just that I have to take an alternate route. Do I take the train or bus?
Is Amritsar safe? I really want to visit the Golden Temple and I read you can stay there.

i say if its between oct to- april ..from.december to feb is cold here also..foggy at places...is it spread out..well for first timer maybe,,but then one doesnt get chance too soon to visit places...& this is a gud enuff beginning as there much more in india which u can do in later trips...manali unfortunately wont be suggested if u wanna go to ladakh as rohtang pass opens from june to october only...but if u wanna c snow in manali & not go beyond it thn its ok...u can fly to srinagar also as an option isntead of manali ...
anyways amritsar is easy & safest ..its 5 hrs journey from delhi in shatabdi train...& u need one night stay minimum & u can also see the wagah border parade....
delhi , agra, jaipur, varanasi...all these cities can be enjoyed at maximum 3 nights to minimum 2 nights....but when u talk of mumbai...its a culture shock...theres not much to see in a day or two..but the city itself is an experience like the film slumdog millionaire..suggest u atleast 3 nights..with then adding more excurscions like karla caves in nearby hills ..then move on to, ajanta ellora or goa or even kerala for a further trip...goa needs 3 nights & kerala needs 4 nights minimum...so mumbai seems out of the circuit unless ur keen & have a week in spare...rest is ok....

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For OP


Feb/March would be the best time with Amritsar good in March and Manali better in late March or April and other places best in late Feb and early March and a bit hot in April.


Yes, better not to book your hotels too early as your plans might change and in most places there is a good supply of accomodation and you are better off checking out a few places after you arrive in the place.

Trains are more comfortable but train tickets on popular tourist routes generally get all booked weeks in advance of journey day.

Varanasi is interesting but the old city can be a challenging destination for first time India visitors and will be best done after you have travelled in India for a few weeks and developed some comfort level with travel in India