India:

Because of India’s vastness, it is impossible to see everything in just one trip. It is better to concentrate on one or two regions. The most popular region for travelers is the "Golden Triangle" in the north: Delhi, the capital city; Agra, home of the Taj Mahal; and the pink city of Jaipur in Rajasthan. Rajasthan is the most popular state with travelers, who are drawn by its desert scenery, by the imposing medieval forts and palaces of Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur and Bundi, and by the colourful traditional dress.

East of Delhi, the River Ganges meanders through some of India's most densely populated regions to reach the extraordinary holy Hindu city of Varanasi, where to witness the daily rituals of life and death focused around the waterfront ghats (bathing places) is to glimpse the continuing practice of India's most ancient religious traditions. Further east still is the great city of Kolkata (Calcutta), the capital until early last century of the British Raj and now a teeming metropolis.

Kerala, near the southernmost tip of the subcontinent on the western coast, is India at its most tropical and relaxed, its lush backwaters teeming with simple wooden craft of all shapes and sizes, and red-roofed towns and villages all but invisible beneath a canopy of palm trees. Further up the coast is Goa, the former Portuguese colony whose hundred-kilometre coastline is fringed with beaches to suit all tastes and budgets, from upmarket package tourists to long-staying backpackers, and whose towns hold whitewashed Christian churches that might have been transplanted from Europe.

For all its jarring juxtapositions, India remains an utterly compelling destination.

Did you know?

• The Beatles came to visit the Maharishi Yogi in the holy town of Rishikesh on the Ganges. Brush up on your yoga and meditation in an Indian Ashram!
• Camel Trekking in the Thar Desert to Jaisalmer can be a very romantic experience! Camp overnight under the desert stars.
• Dharamsala, perched on the edge of the Himalayas, this is the home of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Buddhism in exile.
• Cricket the nation's favourite sport is played everywhere, from the Oval Maidan in Mumbai to Eden Gardens in Kolkata (Calcutta), the hot cauldron of Indian cricket.
• Movies. Take in the latest Bollywood blockbuster at one of Mumbai's mega movie houses, which feature huge screens, wrap-around sound and rowdy audiences.
• The Taj Mahal is described by a famous poet as a "tear on the face of eternity".
• Pushkar camel mela. November sees the largest livestock market on earth, where 200,000 Rajasthani herders in traditional costume converge on the desert oasis of Pushkar to trade and bathe in the sacred lake.
• Udaipur is arguably the most romantic city in India, with ornate Rajput palaces floating in the middle of two shimmering lakes.
• You can snorkel in the Andaman Islands, in the Bay of Bengal, a lushly forested archipelago that has exotic plant life and a wide variety of corals and tropical fish.
• Varanasi, one of India's holiest Hindu locations on the banks of the sacred River Ganges with its ghats which, at dawn, are thronged with pilgrims and holy men performing ritual ablutions and prayers.

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