Itinerary Expand all Delhi to Delhi Day 1 Drive to Jaipur Drive from Delhi to the 'Pink City' of Jaipur (approx. 280kms / 5-7hrs). This planned Moghul city of broad avenues is built of sandstone and was painted pink at a later stage. Pre-tour Extensions: If travelling on this extension before your main Exodus tour, the extension starts at Delhi airport and tonight will be spent in Delhi. An arrival transfer is included, provided you have supplied Exodus with your flight details in advance (or have booked flights through Exodus). Hotel Jaypee Siddharth / Hotel Taj Princess, Delhi (or similar) Welcom Heritage Traditional Haveli / Hotel Park Prime, Jaipur (or similar) Comfortable Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 2 Sightseeing in Jaipur A full day’s sightseeing in and around Jaipur including the Palace of the Winds, the City Palace and the Amber Palace. In the centre of Jaipur is the City Palace, formerly the residence of the Maharaja and now a fine museum containing rare manuscripts, paintings, royal garments and weapons. Close to the palace is one of the most intriguing sights of India, the observatory of Jai Singh. This is an assembly of immense astronomical instruments made of marble and brass set in a pleasant garden. We will also see Jaipur's impressive landmark, the Hawa Mahal, or Palace of the Winds. A few miles from the main city is the splendid Amber Palace, rising above a lake. The imposing hilltop fort contains large courtyards and interiors with fine decorations, including inlaid alabaster panels and a Chamber of Mirrors. We can walk up the hill and through the massive gateway to the courtyard. Jaipur is a centre of many handicrafts, such as durries (woven rugs), carpets, printed cloth, semi‐precious stones, leatherware etc. It will be difficult to leave a workshop without buying anything! Whilst you will see elephant rides up to the Amber Fort being offered, Exodus have a policy of not including elephant rides in any of our itineraries. We have a very strict animal welfare policy and after in-depth research, it was decided that this is a type of animal interaction that we do not wish to endorse. Pre-tour Extensions: Drive to Jaipur. Welcom Heritage Traditional Haveli / Hotel Park Prime, Jaipur (or similar). (Breakfast) Welcom Heritage Traditional Haveli / Hotel Park Prime, Jaipur (or similar) Comfortable Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 3 Fatehpur Sikri After breakfast, we set off on the drive to Agra (approx. 240km / 4hrs). About three hours into the journey we stop to visit Fatehpur Sikri, a magnificent abandoned Moghul city. This is an impressive and well‐preserved citadel and served as Akbar's capital from 1571. The mosque, designed to hold ten thousand worshippers, the palaces, residences and halls of audience are all of decorative red sandstone. The magnificence, however, only lasted 14 years, as in 1584 Akbar left Fatehpur Sikri to secure his outlying territories, leaving this city much as we see it today. Due to the importance of the monument, only local guides from the shrine board are allowed to guide tourists - your driver will help to arrange this locally as the guides cannot be booked in advance. There have been instances where the guide has insisted that visitors pay an offering in the shrine - please note that there is no obligation to pay an offering and it is fine to refrain from doing so. Pre-tour Extensions: Sightseeing in Jaipur. Welcom Heritage Traditional Haveli / Hotel Park Prime, Jaipur (or similar). (Breakfast) Ramada Plaza/Royal Residency, Agra (or similar) Comfortable Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 4 Taj Mahal and Red Fort, Agra The day is spent visiting the Taj Mahal and Red Fort, before returning to Delhi. The Taj Mahal's shining white marble walls, inlaid with semi‐precious stones, never fails to amaze a first time visitor. Close to the Taj is the imposing Red Fort of Akbar, third of the Moghul Emperors, whose mighty sandstone walls enclose the beautiful white marble Pearl Mosque and the palaces, halls, courtyards and fountains of his sons and successors, Jehangir and Shah Jahan. It is here that the latter spent his last years, imprisoned by his own son Aurangzeb. In the early evening we transfer to Agra Railway station to board a fast train to Delhi. The train is scheduled to depart at 1750 and arrive at 1930 but schedules change regularly in India so it may be different to this. On arrival into Delhi you will be transferred to the hotel. Pre-tour Extensions: Visit Fatehpur Sikri en route to Agra. Ramada Plaza/ Royal Residency, Agra (or similar). (Breakfast) Hotel Jaypee Siddharth (Comfortable Hotel) / Hotel Taj Princess (Standard Hotel), Delhi (or similar) Meals included: Breakfast Day 5 End Delhi If you have an onward flight from Delhi today, a transfer to the airport is included. However, if you intend to stay in India for longer, the extension ends at the hotel after breakfast. Pre-tour Extensions: Taj Mahal and Red Fort, Agra; train to Delhi, arriving in the evening. If travelling on this extension before your main Exodus tour, the extension ends at the hotel in Delhi this evening. Your main Exodus tour will usually start the same day. However, if your main tour includes activities on day 1, then you will need to start the extension one day early and book an additional night in Delhi after your extension/before your main tour, so as not to miss the first days' activities. (Breakfast) Meals included: Breakfast
India Visas are required if you are British and for most other nationalities. For UK residents full details of the visa process can be found here. Other nationalities should check with their travel agent or the relevant embassies. If your trip visits Ladakh, in the very north of India, or Sikkim in the northeast, do not mention this on your Indian visa application. This can sometimes slow down or even cause the embassy to reject your visa. When you reach immigration, you are required to pick up an immigration form. If you have an e-visa, ensure you stand in the correct queue - please follow the signs to the e-visa booth (in Delhi this is at the back of the immigration hall). You will need to fill out an additional form at the booth - please make sure that you have the details of your start hotel ready (these details can be found on your Final Joining Instructions).
India There are no mandatory vaccination requirements. Recommended vaccinations are: Polio, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Hepatitis A. The risk of malaria is slight but you may wish to consult your GP or travel health clinic for further advice. Dengue fever is a known risk in places visited. It is a tropical viral disease spread by daytime biting mosquitoes. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available for Dengue, therefore the best form of prevention is to avoid being bitten. Some of our India trips spend time at altitude. In regions over approx. 2000m, there is low to no risk of mosquito-borne diseases. For trips going to altitudes of over 3000m there is a risk of being affected by Acute Mountain Sickness. Our itineraries are designed to enable everyone to acclimatise to these altitudes, but you should be aware that it is still possible for you to be affected. Please see the TRIP NOTES for further information.
Comfortable Hotels We stay in good quality hotels throughout. The hotels used may differ to those listed due to availability. In Delhi, we usually stay at the Hotel Jaypee Siddharth, a locally-rated 5-star hotel with a swimming pool and spa. It is very comfortable and is conveniently located very close to the metro, for ease of getting around the city. During high season, we use an alternative hotel in Delhi, the Taj Princess, a boutique hotel located in Karol Bagh, an area of busting markets. In Jaipur we usually spend two nights at either Welcom Heritage Traditional Haveli or Hotel Park Prime. In Agra we generally use the Howard Plaza - The Fern or Royal Residency. A compulsory single supplement may be applicable. We need a minimum of two persons to operate this extension, otherwise a sole traveller supplement will be applied (this is in place of a single supplement not on top).
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