Indian Tourism

If you want to explore India, read on for information on when is the best time and what is the best place to visit to experience the best that India can offer.

India travel information: festival calendar

The Indian calendar is full of festivals. So whatever time of the year you decide to visit India, you would surely get the chance to experience the celebrations in India. In January, there is the Republic Day. This is India's greatest national festival. In April and in May is the famous Spring Festival. The celebration actually starts on March when the first almond blossoms appear. The Baisakhi or the Hindu solar new year is also a very popular celebration. This is the time when people bathe in rivers and go to temples. Throughout the year, there are many other festivals held in India.

Tourism India: top vacation spots

One of the top vacation spots in India is Agra. There you will find the majestic love monument which is the Taj Mahal. The structure is really a beauty to behold. Delhi is also a great place for tourists to explore. One of the most popular structures here is the India Gate.

India is really an interesting place. A trip to India can be a memorable and enjoyable experience.

A horse riding tour may sound ambitious and a bit odd, but if the venue is the Himalayas, then it becomes something special. Just imagine riding a horse while traveling the mountain ranges. To complete your great Himalayan dream, have yourself cradled by the lush forests on the foothills and the wild fauna found only on this side of Asia.

The horse riding tour starts at Kumaon, the home of endangered animals. Snow leopards, wild sheeps, black bears, wolves, antelopes, goats, foxes, and wild birds could be spotted here. Although they comprise the major attraction of Kumaon, tourists are guaranteed safe passage to this area.

Kumaon is a peaceful town comprised of four districts. Its geographical structure is dominated by sierra. Most of them have ridges with vast woodlands, snow peaks, or clear streams. Visitors will likely to be enticed by the sound of the rippling waters or the white-capped mountains. However, horse riding is very tiring and the horses are not allowed to enter some of the safaris. In cases like these, there are vehicles where tourists can ride to tour the safari. Here, in addition to the wild animal diversity, tourists are given the opportunity to experience the magic of Himalaya.

Any information technology professional will definitely recognize Karnataka, the town in India whose capital, Bangalore, serves as the center of computer researches. Because of the efforts of the computer geeks in this side of Indian subcontinent, it has become among the fastest Internet providers. But, I look at Karnataka as a favorable tourist spot.

Alright, so I have not yet been there, but I am planning to do so some time next month. Just what is so interesting about this city? It is where the finest silk and aromatic spices could be found. Besides, the place has a western aura. So, I do not think that I will feel lost in this city that has a staggering population of 49 million.

Karnataka lies opposite Arabian Sea and is bound by Decca. What is good about its location is that it is cold and humid all throughout the year, thanks to the plateaus. Also, you'll get to feast on the lush gardens in the avenues of the city. Add to that the majestic office and government buildings. If you are thinking about places to hang out aside from the temples, beaches, and parks, there are also discos and pubs in the central capital. However, the most awaited event here is the Dussehra festival. I wish I could go to Karnataka on that day.

There are divers beliefs surrounding the cities in India. I have already been traveling for quite a long time, and I guess I have already become superstitious. Anyway, I do not mean to say that I already cleaved to Hinduism. I deeply respect it, and every time I go to India, I make it to a point that I visit a temple first and ask Krishna to guide me.

Last month, I was able to go to Tripura. It is among the famous places to discover if you are deeply interested with Hinduism. As expected, I saw a great number of tourists who paid homage to the gods. Actually, Tripura is just a couple of kilometers away from Bengal. Some say that long ago, Bengal is included in the territory of Tripura. By the way, the name of city is derived from its position in the map. This piece of sacred land adjoins the Bay water so it was named Tuipra, and years have gone by, it was changed into Tripura which still bears the same meaning.

The capital of the city is Agartala. It could be reached by plane from Calcutta. It is where the greatest architectural structures in Tripura are built. Most of them are temples and mansions. Also, there are traces of foreign influences. I was surprised to find chapels as well as European establishments. I took the chance to have a Portuguese food trip which was absolutely sumptuous. But, what I liked most were the dome structures and the tiled floors. By the end of the day, I got to see a dazzling Agartala. Traditions have it that the pillars of the infamous palace built by a certain Manikya should be lit every single night. That only made Tripura more consecrated.

Have you been to Kerala, India? If you wish to travel by boat, this piece of a paradise is located on the southwestern part of the Indian coast. I got to visit the place when a friend of mine, a chef, invited me to tour Kerala and discover the alluring beauty of this land of spices. Literally, all sorts of spices grow in Kerala. The spices and cashew trees made the place known all over Asia and neighboring European countries.

Kerala is known for its beaches where sunbathing is most relaxing. Or, if you want some adventure, you are allowed to dive the ocean or have a great fishing experience. Unfortunately, I did not have any of that because my destination would be far to the north. I was dragged to the Church of Saint Francis. That was kind of creepy since villagers say that the sarcophagus of Vasco de Gama is found in the church. Outside, the ceremonial dance for the gods were being performed by the villagers. They usually do that twice a year.

At last, I finally reached Sabarimala, the sacred place in Kerala. That time, probably all the tourists have gone to that shrine that it was the most jammed spot in Kerala. While on the other side, people are paying homage to Vishnu in the temple called Sri Padmanabhaswamy. Lastly, I was amazed by the great architectural design of the temple of Krishna or Ambalapuzha in Allapuzha.

When I first heard of this place, I literally thought of it as a garden of rocks or a place wherein the figures displayed are made of rocks. Well, partially I was correct because rocks were used to make the human-like figures featured in the garden. As we all know, rocks withstand the test of time, and they can survive bad weather. But, the highlights of the garden are the garbage used in creating the figures.

Yes, you got that right. Garbage or trash was the foundation of this project. The idea came to the Chandigarh government when it realized that garbage is piling up the city. It turned out that the effort of the authorities to minimize waste and to teach people proper waste management resulted into a beautiful tourist spot called the Rock Garden that is annually visited by thousands of travelers all over the world.

According to the engineer, the garden symbolizes hope for human kind. He is well aware of the fuel from garbage that India has already benefited from. But, this could be extracted from biodegradable garbage. So he thought of other ways to use the non biodegradable ones. In actuality, curiosity led him to the garden. Using broken glasses, wood chips, plastic bottles, tin cans, and rocks or bricks to strengthen the foundation of the figures, he was able to create a community of men, women, and children doing household chores, preparing for a parade, and praying. From afar, save for the immobility of the figures, the garden seemed alive with the colorful bits and pieces of garbage from which it was made.

I like adventures. I mean, there is no harm in daring oneself to try unusual things or visit strange places. But, when asked where I prefer to have a unforgettable adventure tour, I said I would rather go to a tribal community. You know what, I almost got what I wished for, but its only in writing.

I learned about Orissa in India. Well, according to the article that I got from the Internet, it is a tribal land composed of mainly sixty-two groups. Amazingly, the peoples in Orissa survived the tests of time and have maintained their traditions. Typically, their rituals include dances and chants participated by all the members of the tribe. The whole area is surrounded by hills and arable land.

What I liked about Orissa is the fact that each of the tribe in the land is tasked to do their parts in maintaining the antiquity of the land. I would rather say that they are civilized, for that matter, because unlike other tribes, they do not just live spontaneously, but have a definitive set of maxims that they faithfully follow. Just how the tribes work together? Let me give you an overview. The people of Koya are cow breeders; the Mahalis and Loharas weave baskets; the others participate in industrial activities like mining. Each tribe has its unique characteristic that sets it apart from the rest. For example, the Parajas are famous for the wedding dances; the Souras are renowned for walkathon and are very concerned with hygiene; the independent Bondos practice the exchange system or barter; the Kondhs are feared for their practice of sacrificing humans.

When asked what the three countries I want to visit before I die, without a blink, in no particular order, I'd say Greece, Jamaica, and India. I choose Greece because it is filled with history and I want to visit the places where the development of civilization started and the roads where philosophers walked on. Jamaica, simply because it's the homeland of Sir Robert Nesta Marley and Rastamen.

I chose India because of its rich cultural traditions and all the beautiful people in that country. I am enchanted with the way of life India has. They are tall and slim with beautiful, smooth brown skin. Indians have tall noses and mesmerizing eyes. They are deities personified. I truly believe that these people are very beautiful.

It is known that many international artists has also been mesmerized by India, this includes The Beatles and Alanis Morissette. They are also hardworking people and they believe in loving their own. They have Bollywood and the stars here are more popular than foreign ones. They keep their traditions, in marriage, in business, in raising kids. No matter how the world changes, they still maintain the qualities that make them truly India.

My mom once told me that India is one of the most magical places she had been to, with all the wonderful people, the colorful, exotic sights and palaces, and the diverse animals, flowers and plants in the wildlife. In Andhra Pradesh, India's fifth largest state, the array of exotic animals in its wildlife safari is just amazing.

I have never seen a real tiger in its natural habitat before, and I have never seen a hoard of elephants bathing in the river. Andhra Pradesh's wildlife has never been touched or renovated by the Indian government. That's why it's a unique type of safari. It's an exciting journey through the real world of India's beautiful animals.