NORTH INDIA, THE ULTIMATE PANORAMIC EXPERIENCE

Destinations covered

Delhi (2n) >> Shimla (3n) >>Hoshiarpur (2n) >> Amritsar (2n) >> Jaipur (2n) >> Agra (2n) >>Kolkata (3n) >> Darjeeling (3n) >> Delhi (1)

The tour itinerary is designed for the discerning traveller who, wishes to have a panoramic experience of Northern India, the robust cultures of the Punjab , the Himalayan retreats, the fading glory of Calcutta but nonetheless fascinating and aroma of the Darjeeling tea! On your arrival you shall be received by the company representative and transferred to Hotel The Manor, New Delhi; built in a colonial style and reputedly offering some of the best meals at it’s restaurants! A couple of days in Delhi will not only help you getting over from the jetlag but also give you insight into the hustle & bustle of Old Delhi. Your next port of call is Shimla, arrived at from Kalka, in the 1903c Toy Train, crossing some 103 tunnels on your way. The dense clumps of cedar trees and colonial buildings gives the city a typical Scottish ambience. Your hotel at Shimla is the Oberoi Wildflower Hall, once the private residence of Lord Kitchner. The hotel offers some lovely walks in the forested hillside. After your sightseeing in Simla you shall proceed to Hoshiarpur and stay at the Citrus County. Punjab is a state well known for it’s agricultural produce & the ‘finest peasantry world has ever known’. You shall be taken around on the farm to see the various processes of farming. Also on offer is a short trip to the village ‘chaupal’ (common area) where you can meet village elders and talk to them, seeing daily village activities, walk through the kinnow farm. We can also arrange the traditional ‘Bhangra’ dance of Punjab, as part of the evening cultural programme.

A trip to Punjab will be incomplete without a visit to the Golden Temple, ‘built from white marble and crowned with a gold bengaldar pavilion’. Amritsar is well known for it’s street foods and you shall have opportunity to partake of, as you explore the streets of the old city, throbbing with life! After you have done your travels to Jaipur and Agra, you will proceed to Kolkata (Calcutta). Calcutta comes alive with it’s walking tours organized by our local Guides. You will stay at the Oberoi Grand, built over a century ago, in the classical Victorian & Indian architecture popularly known as Indo-saracenic style, furnished with period artefacts! Your last destination is Darjeeling, where you shall be staying at the Glenburn Tea Estate, soaking some of the finest Himalayan views…with Darjeeling across the valley on one side, and Sikkim on the other! An outdoors tour of the Glenburn tea estate, with the guide giving you insight in the tea plantations, plucking of ’02 leaves& the bud’, how it is transported to the factory & finally categorized after ‘tasting’, packed & sent off to the auction houses, in distant Calcutta. Interact with the tea estate workers doing their daily chores. The best time to travel for this splendid tour is from October to April; December / January being average time on account of the severity of winters in the northern regions of India.

Tentative Itinerary

Destination / Route	Hotel / Stay
New Delhi	The Manor (2n)
Shimla	Oberoi The Cecil / Wildflower Hal (3n)
Hoshiarpur	Citrus County Farm-stay (2n)
Amritsar	Taj Swarna (2n)
Jaipur	Samode Haveli (2n)
Agra	The Trident / Taj View (2n)
Kolkata (Calcutta)	Oberoi Grand (3n)
Darjeeling	Glenburn Tea Estate (3n).