Bonjour ladies, I hope you are well. Here is everything about my recent trip to India with every details you need to know about hotel, transportation, and of course outfit details listed below each photo.
Let me start by saying India has a special place in my heart, I somehow manage to find peace in the midst of chaos. I love going back to my Indian roots and experience it on my own term.
So we flew Qatar airways, it was my first time using this airline. We got an opportunity to check out their newest pods and I have to say the service was excellent. We felt extremely rested once we landed and thank god because we were on a journey as soon as we landed.
The first leg of the trip was with my ex and his family (as you know we all still have a wonderful relation)
Transportation: We took a train shortly after landing. Here is where you can find out about train options. It was such a better option than driving to avoid the crazy traffic, it's clean, and I can confidently say its safe as a solo traveller as well as I took it alone later during the trip to head back to Mumbai.
We go to Surat because this is where our family is from, back to the roots kind of vibe! Once we landed, we used the hotel's transportation to go around.
Hotel: Surat Marriott Hotel
Restaurant: Mostly ate at the hotel and discovered this place called The Boho which was delicious.
Second city: Surat to Jaipur
This was my first time visiting Jaipur so I was rather excited to visit all the historic monuments, I do recommend it for sure if you plan a trip to Rajasthan.
Transportation: We flew with Indigo, it was a non stop flight
Hotel: The Oberoi Rajvillas - It was such a beautiful property as you can see. Very peaceful, great service, loved the spa experience (request Sushma), they offer complimentary yoga session every morning while peacock roam around. Overall a great experience.
Restaurant: We ate in all the restaurants from the hotel and it was delicious. They have a live Rajasthani performance every evening to make the evening even more joyful.
Excursions: Amber Fort - We used Rahul Bhattacharya as our guide and he was amazing, highly recommend using him if you happen to travel to Jaipur. Contact: +91 982 805 3017 - He speaks fluent English (we used the hotel's transportation)
A little side note: after Ranthambore (description below) I returned back to Jaipur by myself and stayed at the same hotel for 3 nights so very much recommend it if you are a solo traveller. I highly recommend using Rahul as mentioned above as well as a car from the hotel to ensure full safety (not going to lie, traveling alone in India as a women can feel overwhelming sometimes and that's exactly why I am sharing these information)
The excursions I did solo in Jaipur: Jhalana Leopard Safari, City Palace, Haha Mahal and Patrika Gate (I suggest visiting it when you head to the airport as its like 3min away from it)
I also ate only at the hotel, I was too lazy to explore by myself for restaurants.
My favorite and most exciting part of the trip. I have a thing for jungles and tigers, they are so majestic, I could observe them for hours and hours.
Transportation: We hired a mini van, the hotel (Oberoi or Sujan) can book it for you. It is about 3:30 hrs drive
Hotel: The Sujan Sher Bhag - I don't even know where to start, we had such a fabulous time in this hotel. From the safari experience to the service to the food, it was all personalized. We stayed in the The Imperial Raj Bhag Suite because it was 4 adults. It included our own private pool, a butler and many more amenities but I have to give a shoutout to our butler Jethu, the kindest human being ever with a beautiful energy and soul. We were spoiled with him, I never had to put an alarm or worry even about my room key (never locked my room) he was in charge and I was perfectly ok with that, it was full vacay mode activated.
I also particularly enjoyed staying at this hotel because of its sustainability and conservation of the Eco system. I love conscious traveling.
For the safari, our guide was Ashlesh Sharma, a wonderful person as well as an experienced guide (very much recommend him)
If you ever head to a safari in India during this time, I suggest packing a warm layer in the morning as it can get very chilly.
And now the city life! I lived in Mumbai for almost 2 years back in 2009 so I was really happy to finally be back. We also visited Pune in between and stayed at the Ritz Carlton.
For the Mumbai part, I was solo and stayed at the The St Regis for 8 nights. I picked this hotel because it's really well located, has several options for amazing restaurants as well as a rooftop bar that plays really good music. I actually ended up doing a collaboration with them, here is the video if you want to see it St Regis Mumbai. I highly recommend this hotel, it is also located close to a mall so it was very convinient if you needed anything like how I needed nail polish remover haha.
Restaurant: Koishii (must try the mango ceviche) Slink & Bardot (weekends are fun) Bastian (World location) , Americano, Cafe by St Regis, Yauatcha
TIPS:
-In terms of fashion, it will all depend on which place you are going. The big cities are pretty progressive so you can dress as you wish but obviously always being mindful. The smaller village, remote areas, temples are more conservative so covering your legs/arm will keep you out of trouble.
-Eat cooked food as much as you can, I personally avoid dairy (I mean I don't consume it anyway even in the US) but I will only eat let's say ice cream or dairy based dessert is hotels or well known restaurant. I also avoid eating salads as it does not sit well in my stomach.
-Don't even bother bringing hair dryer/straightener unless it's the same voltage (230V - 50Hz) To be honest the prices are so reasonable so you can literally go to a salon and get your hair done. I just bought a hair dryer their.
-Always bargain if you are buying something :) I just let a local do it for me.
Et voilà, if you have any questions, feel free to reach out at alpa.rama@gmail.com and I will be more than happy to answer your questions.
