Delhi to Kerala

My friend and I (two girls) will be flying into New Delhi in June for 2.5 weeks, and want to go to Agra, Jaipur, and then down to Kerala to go on the backwaters. What is the best and cheapest way for us to get down to Kerala? Is there a good order in which to do these things? Also, is there somewhere near any of these places we might be able to go on a camel or elephant safari?

Thanks :)

Dear Reg
Its nice to hear that u r visiting India.Let me warn u Delhi, Agra,Jaipur, sector will be very hot at that time temp.may go upto 48 degree celcius.However if u r a born tough traveller nothing can stop u. You can take flight directly to Kochi or can even take train the best will be Rajdhani exp it will take more than 48 hrs by train but rajdhani exp is fully airconditioned and fastest.There r many airlines including low cost airlines which fly to KERALA . As regards backwaters u go to Allepy from Kochin and can go to backwaters trip for a day or even hire a houseboat to stay for few more days. Have a nice time.

Dear Reg
Forgot to mention about the camel safari and Elephant Safari.For camel safari u'll have to visit deserts of Rajasthan near Jaipur again it will be too hot but Elephant Safari certainly u can do in Kerala in Thekkady which is near to the place of backwaters in Kerala from Alleppy u can go to Kottayam and from there to Thekkady u can also go to munnar from there which is cool Hill Station and full of lush green TEA ESTATES. Be in touch so that i can guide u in better way

Hi Reg,

Firstly, you're going to have a great time! I spent a month in India in 2005 with two friends as part of our world trip. We spent time in Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and Kerala.

Things I'd say:

Delhi - it's crazy, after a few days you'll want to leave!
Agra - 1 day is probably enough. We hired a driver for the day and saw the sights.
Jaipur - I wasn't that impressed actually, and if you want camel Safari Jaisalmer is a better place to spend your time. Jodhpur is also pretty good for a day, for the Fort if nothing else.

As far as Kerala is concerned you'll love it there too, we spent a night on a houseboat and then headed down to Varkala, travelling again on the backwaters to Quilon (I think!)

I would recommend a place in Wembley (I can get the details if you want) - they can book train tickets before you leave, the advantage is that you won't have the hassle of trying to sort out travel. It's also very cheap and a great way of seeing the country, not to mention an experience in itself.

I have some pics that may interest you on my site: www.worldtravels.fotopic.net<BR><BR>If you want any other info, get in touch: richard.wakefield@gmail.com

Richard

Hi Reg,

Given your short period of time to spend there, you'd be better to fly down to Kerala, rather than taking the train. There are sufficient numbers of low cost airlines that will be able to provide you with a reasonable fare.

Camel safaris - not at that time of year (Jaipur may have some but not in the heat you're going to be experiencing).

Elephant rides - personally, I'd give this a miss. The more I read about the elephants having to walk on hot roads, with nothing to protect their feet, it just seems cruel.

I agree with Richards' comments.

- Delhi is OK for a few days but after that, it'll be time to move on.

- Agra (one of my least favourite locations in all India - the touts have ruined this city). You can either hire a driver to take you around but the chances of getting ripped off are high. Do as many other tourists here do - go to the Taj, maybe the Agra fort and then get a bus out to Fatephur Sikri for an afternoon visit.

- Jaipur is OK for a few things to see/do but overall, I'd rather spend my time elsewhere.

As for the route to consider taking: Arrive Delhi => Agra => Jaipur (fly) => Cochin. You could then either fly from Cochin back to Delhi or take a train to experience the joys of Indian train travel (a quintessential part of travel in India).

Cheers
Zoltan

i agree w/ zoltan. if time is an issue, i would fly directly from delhi to cochin/kerela. if you're serious about agra and jaipur, i would maybe look into hiring a shared van (not a bus), that's what i did when i went from dehli to agra to jaipur. sometimes the timing of the trains screw with your schedule if you have one.

i also agree that agra was my least favorite stop, however the taj is just one of those things everyone has to do i guess.

personally i really enjoyed jaipur because it was the most calm of the northern cities during my trip and i actually extended my stay a few days there to kick back with a local family i met. i took some amazing photos at the amer fort.