India is the perfect place to visit if you’re on a budget (the only thing that is likely to cost you a relatively substantial amount is the plane ticket there). It’s hard to summarise such a huge country made up of so many states, each one differing from the next, but here’s my best effort:

 

Visas

We paid a lot for our Visas, but this is because I got an OCI or Overseas Citizen of India Visa, which is valid for the rest of my life (thanks to my Dad being born in India), and Ismael got a PIO or Person of Indian Origin Visa (thanks to me marrying him a few years ago!), the latter being valid for 15 years. If you have at least one parent from India (you need to be able to prove it) you can get am OCI. Bear in mind that if you’re in England it takes about seventeen weeks (maximum) to get either of these at the moment, and you’ll be without a passport for the last two weeks of the process. I got lucky and had mine ready after about twelve weeks or so (Birmingham). Interestingly, Ismael was able to obtain his PIO in just one week from Madrid. I think this might be because he’s the only person in Spain’s capital who needed one and was eligible! A normal Visa costs about half the amount, so just check out the Indian Embassy website in your country for more info.

 

Metro (exclusive to Delhi)

Something that’s completely new to me in Delhi is the metro, which was completed in 2010 - 2011 and has everything you would expect from a modern underground system. The only difference is, you have to pass through airport type security scanners in order to go through to the platforms. What you will appreciate most is the price: a daily travel card can be obtained for a deposit of 50 INR (Indian rupees), which currently works out at about €0.48 or 50 pence. A day pass, allowing you to use the metro as many times as you like, costs a very modest 100 INR or €1 (per person).

 

If you’re not planning on making more than 5 or 6 journeys in one day, there is also a token system which works out even cheaper. You simply state where you want to go and pay the price for a single journey (you’re given a disposable token to swipe at barriers). The most we paid for a single journey was about 20 INR / €0.25 (per person), shorter distances can come in at around 15 INR. The day we took single journeys worked out cheaper, as it takes time to see more than 2 sights in a day in this big city.

 

Do be careful as the metro gets busy - and when push comes to shove, people will push you and shove you to get on or off the carriage. My advice for the fairer sex is to make the most of the women-only carriages, and remember that there are seats in mixed carriages reserved for women; Indian men are generally respectful when it comes to giving up their seat for a woman, so don't be afraid to ask if you find yourself in what feels like a rugby scrum.

 

Accommodation

On average, our accommodation, which was always very centric, worked out to be around 800 rupees per night (currently around €9). This is based on two people sharing a double room. Of course, sometimes we paid as much as €18, and other times as little as €6 - less than 5 GBP. But, I won’t lie… the very cheapest places were okay for just one or two nights but probably no more. Unless you’re planning to spend a month and half in New Zealand and Australia straight after, as is our case, and therefore need to really penny pinch, I would go for something a little more expensive! If you stretch to around €20 a night, you can probably find somewhere very decent. It also depends on where you are - in Goa we paid just over €7 one of the nights and had everything you could ask for from budget accommodation - very clean bed and bathroom and WiFi access. In Agra we paid the same amount and could just about close the door when sat on the loo (I guess you do pay for the view of the Taj Mahal on the hotel rooftop though). Of course, a lot of the time… it’s just luck. We used lonely planet / hostel world and booking.com to find all of the accommodation. For more specific recommendations on where to stay feel free to drop me an email: mika.kohli@gmail.com

 

Food

The food in India is spicy. I’m afraid you just have to deal with it! You think tomato ketchup will help? That’s spicy too. Yeah, you can order a pizza, but if you think it’s not going to have spicy tomato purée you’re wrong. I obviously like spicy food (I’m from an Indian family, so when we were younger, if you didn’t eat spicy food… you didn't eat), and do feel for those of you who don’t if you’re going to spend some time in India. I think with the exception of rice, there is nothing that doesn't have a slight kick. I’m not saying that you won’t be able to find something that isn’t a burning hot vindaloo if you eat out, but don’t expect bland food. Having said that, tourist areas are likely to make things less “Indian” for those of you who really can’t take it, and you can always insist “no spicy”. Remember to eat yoghurt if you’re tongue is on fire, or wash food down with a mango lassi afterwards (a blended drink that consists of yoghurt, milk and sugar). Sweet rice or nan bread can also help ease the kick. When eating out, make sure you never drink the tap water they serve in a jug (always ask for mineral water), and stay away from salads, as they are generally washed using normal water unless they specify otherwise. Actual street food (and I don’t mean the guys selling corn on the cob on the beach) can be quite risky, and I would only recommend it if you don’t have a particularly delicate stomach and really want to try something new. I’ve done this in the past and been sick for days, so do be careful! In terms of price, we often ate in places where the locals seemed to be going, and paid about 180 rupees for BIG portions (about €2), but you might need to be a bit brave to go to such places. Knowing more or less what an Indian menu looks like does help, although I recommend going in and pointing at someone else’s food (that looks good) if you do get stuck! A modest meal for two in a restaurant tends to come in at around 400 - 600 rupees if you go somewhere normal, with mains costing around 300 rupees (almost €4) and generally being big enough to share if you also order a starter or a dessert.When we really tried to blow the budget we ended up paying about 900 rupees (with alcohol). Speaking of which, all of the cities we visited had alcohol, but the majority of restaurants don't have a license. So expect to be served beer, quite literally, under the table, with opaque glasses or mugs. A 1.5 litre bottle of beer generally costs about 200 rupees or less. It will usually appear on your bill as “special lassi” or some other name that will make you silently titter.

 

If you go to Udaipur you must try Millets of Merwar. It’s a healthy, hygienic version of Indian food (at a low price) and I only wish I’d been in this part of India longer so that I could have gone more times. These kinds of places are extremely rare in India, and I want to encourage them by sharing this link because the food was really good.

 

Rickshaws

Of course, you could pay a little bit less, depending on where you need to go, by taking rickshaws and auto rickshaws (what the Thai call tuk-tuks). They will drop you at the doorstep of every monument or restaurant, but be prepared to haggle and be harassed every time you leave a station near an important landmark. Rickshaws will generally bother you no matter where you are (the less Indian you look, and the bigger your backpack, the more they will do this) and are happy to actually waste petrol following you to see if you’ll fall for their ridiculous price and get in. Don’t be afraid, they’re completely safe - just remember you should be paying around 10 INR (€0.10) per km, maybe a little more if it’s an auto rickshaw*.

We always worked out the distance from one place to another before setting off to work out how much we would be willing to pay.

 

*A couple of rickshaws gave us a good price on the condition that we would visit a “government market-place” en route. Apparently, if you go in for at least ten minutes they get a gas coupon and earn 20 rupees from the government for taking you there. The only thing it cost us was 15 minutes of our time (we had to go out of our way to do this). It's a charade that wastes time, and obviously you can pay more and tell them you don't want to play.

 

Overall, the metro is a lot less hassle, as the price is fixed and it’s extremely cheap from a Westerner’s perspective. However, the latter option allows you to really see the city rather than feeling like you’re in a generic underground tunnel back home.

 

Trains (Indian railway, domestic only)

We booked all of our train tickets in advance, so that we wouldn't have to queue in stations and also because tickets for the express trains can sell out. Everything can be done online 2 months in advance of travel, but please note that you need an American Express card to do this. This website was my saviour: seat61.com it explains absolutely everything you need to know about the trains in India (and other countries).

 

This may be obvious for savvy travellers, but a word of warning for first-timers: watch out for “guards", “officials” and just about anyone near a station or barrier who is trying to “help”. They tell you to go the wrong way, send you to tourist offices that are closed etc. so that they can basically solve your problems at a small price. Needless to say, you just need to have your wits about you and keep in mind that, unfortunately, nobody is simply doing you a favour. 

 

Drivers

Most people choose this method to travel within a city or even from one city to another. It’s a cheap and hassle-free option as a price can be agreed for one day, or from A-B. A good driver will also give you a bit of inside knowledge and help you fill in the gaps in a way that only locals can. We hired a driver to take us from Jodhpur to Udaipur, as the only other way to get there is by plane; We were glad we chose this option, if only for the amazing scenery during our journey. We were also able to stop at points of interest en-route and see things we wouldn’t have otherwise. We paid 2000 INR in total for this (approximately) 5 hour journey. The way to get the best price for long distance trips is to catch a driver on a return journey, as they charge significantly less than if they have to get back home after dropping you off. Our hostel manager was luckily able to sort this out for us, but if you have more time you can cut out the middle man and probably pay even less.