India Guide

[rocky]

plan ko sanang pumunta ng india. aside from taj mahal, ano pang magagandang tourist spot don?

any tips mga sis regarding accommodation, food & pasalubong. ano mga requirements para makakuha ng tourist visa?

[laey]

Wala akong makocontribute dito, pero gusto ko lang din malaman. Mukhang balak mong isaisahin ang asya ah.

[rocky]

^hehe yong friend ko kasi inaaya akong pumunta don. nagresearch na ako ng flight, medyo mahal yong singapore airlines nag-mock booking ako nasa 32k roundtrip. tapos may stopover pa ng singapore.

mga sis, may direct flight ba don?

[trebor]

^Lots of tourist spots and points of interest in India but it really depends on one's interests.  Madaming heritage sites, monuments and royal palaces.  Those who go to Taj Mahal usually take the triangle route of New Delhi -> Agra (where TM is) -> Rajasthan (where you'll find lots of these royal palaces, many of which have been turned into hotels).  Another interesting site in Madhya Pradesh is Khajuraho, known for the Kamasutra sculptures.  If you're into spirituality, wellnes or yoga, go to Varanasi (known for the Ganges).  The backwaters of Kerala is also nice.  Actually, marami ka talagang pagpipilian.  Better you check their website www.incredibleindia.org.
For accomodation, madaming options depending if you want budget or luxury. The Taj and Oberoi are the luxury chain of hotels. May kababayan tayo diyan sa Sushi bar sa Oberoi Delhi. 

Minsan nga lang, sabi nila India is not really for everyone, either you love it or hate it. Daming tao at sasakyan everywhere you go, walang masyadong katulad ng Ayala/Greenbelt/The Fort area. Places you might visit are in crowded places, some dirty or maalikabok lagi. Taxis are the old black cars, none of the new models. You need to be careful on food and drinks. But if you look at it, that's actually one of the richness of India.  I lived in Delhi for two years and found it really an enriching experience. I've been to a lot of places in India as part of my work.  I've taken trains to go to Taj Mahal (even in the lowest class sitting by the open door!).  Taking their local tricycles is easy.  Food, I like also some of the Indian food, specially those with sauce - parang kaldereta sa atin - together with garlic nan bread. Lagi nga lang bottled water dapat.  On safety, I find it generally safe anywhere, not worried of getting mugged or held up even late at night.  But some of my women friends were still wary taking a taxi on their own in the evening.

If you decide to go, I can give you more details and maybe some contacts there.  Until May is still good to go, otherwise, it will get really hot and the monsoon will start.  By the way, on flights, I think there is still no direct flight. We always go via SIN, HKG, BKK or KL. Visa info is on the website, office nila ay nasa Dasma.

[rastagurl11]

India is also one of the places I want to visit. I want to see the Taj Mahal and I wanna go to Goa; I think dun yung magagandang beach nila and kasi there's a hippie town there. I also love the food and I'm fascinated with Hinduism, I am also interested in Ayurveda.

Since we need visa to go there, my question is Is it easy to get one? or ano kaya ang mga requirements nila and more or less how much ang budget. 

[rocky]

^^sis trebor thanks so much

^sis rastagurl, madali lang palang kumuha ng visa.

http://www.embindia.org.ph/visa.php#TOURIST_VISA

[rastagurl11]

^thanks sis, madali nga lang! 

[trebor]

^sis rastagurl11, ang mga beaches sa India actually ay hindi kasing ganda ng Boracay. Goa is a place na para kang pumunta sa Bohol even the surrounding villages as you drive from the airport. Pero, iyon nga, doon lang sa Goa mayroon ng mga parties in the beach at may nightlife din. Doon yon sa northern side ng Goa. Sa southern side kasi ay puro mga malalaking resorts with their own access to the beach. Quiet doon. Kung gusto nyo talaga ng da best na beach, take a side trip to the Maldives. Two years ago, the ticket was about $600 from Delhi to Maldives on Sri Lankan airlines. Then, I got a full board deal of $140 per day at the Bandos resort island. Cheapest na ito dahil yong iba can go from $300 to even $1000 per day. Amanpulo-style ang ibang islands kasi. Pero okay na sa Bandos, mas maganda pa kaysa Bora. Happy vacation!

bro

[cherub.rock]

wow.. i really wanna visit india someday too.

[mrs.jack sparrow]

i wanna go to benares/varanasi to see the rites..the ashrams etc
i wanna see the beauty of kashmir, the lake dal
mumbai of course to meet my soulmate shah rukh lol

[dahon]

India is my first backpacking trip and it was the best! Colorful country - the food is super, either hot or super hot, extreme talaga, even ang pagsuot ng national costume, career talaga. Everywhere, everyone from all walks of life wear a sari. Talk about *national* costume , di lang sa linggo ng wika tulad ng ginagawa natin hehe!

I suggest you attend an Indian wedding, di ko alam pano mo gagawin ito, pero a-must sya! It's an experience!

Taj Mahal by the way, deserves all the hype. Will take your breath away.

[rocky]

^magkano lahat nagastos mo sis? ilang days ka don?

[dahon]

Around 2 weeks, I think I spent a lot sa plane ticket. Minimal gastos lang kasi I stayed with an officemate .  My plane ticket was around 40K ata, there was Mumbai flooding kasi nuon kaya we have to re-book our flights.

[badmonkey]

Wow! I didn't realize na ok din to travel in India. I'm living in the Middle East and ang fare lang namin from here to India is less than 20thou.

Safe ba sya for female solo travellers?

What's with the drinks? Me nilalagay ba sila sa drinks?

[hulawho]

mura nalang ngayon and India with AirAsia

[rocky]

^talaga sis, magkano? kasi plan kong pumunta dito by next year. may tutuluyan na ako don, kaya yong pamasahe na lang siguro shoulder ko.

[beachpatrol]

How easy is it to get a tourist visa?

Must visit ko rin ang India

[rocky]

^madali lang kumuha sis, ito yong site

http://www.embindia.org.ph/visa.php#TOURIST_VISA

[hulawho]

^not sure exactly how much. it also depends if may promo. but its definitely less than 10k

[rocky]

^thanks sis, mura nga talaga yan. kasi usually talaga 40k yong RT.

anyway, next year pa naman plan ko kaya abang lang muna ng promo. mga sis, inform nyo kami ha pag may promo.