Practical Information

Visa

India

To avoid possible problems at immigration, make sure your passport is valid for a minimum of 180 days at the time of entry into India.

Travellers from the UK, US, CA and EU normally need a visa to enter India. Please note, visa requirements often change and it is your responsibility to obtain any required visas for this trip. Therefore, we recommend that you check with the nearest embassy or consulate of your chosen destination(s), including any countries you may be transiting or transferring through.
Some local governments provide guidance on what visas their citizens need. To help, we’ve gathered a selection of useful links below.

• Australia: www.smartraveller.gov.au/destinations/asia/india
• Canada: www.travel.gc.ca/destinations/india
• United Kingdom: www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/india/entry-requirements
• USA: www.travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/India.html

Travellers eligible for an e-visa, which includes those from the UK, US, CA and EU, can apply at www.indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/tvoa.html.

For more information on applying for your Indian Visa, including details required for your start hotel and local reference contacts, please click on this link: Indian Visa Information

Vaccinations and Health

India

There are no required vaccinations. However, you may want to consider vaccinations for tetanus, hepatitis A, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, rabies and tuberculosis. The risk of malaria is slight, but you may wish to consult your doctor or travel clinic for further advice.

You will also require a yellow fever vaccination certificate if arriving from a country with risk of yellow fever transmission. Proof of a polio vaccination may also be required by some travellers. Please confirm all requirements and recommendations with your doctor or travel clinic.

Additionally, dengue, a viral disease spread by mosquitoes, is a known risk in India. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available, so we strongly recommend you take the usual precautions to avoid mosquito bites.

Some of our India trips spend time at altitude. In regions over approximately 6,560ft (2,000m), there is little risk of mosquito-borne diseases. For trips above 9,840ft (3,000m), 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.

Local Time

India's time zone: Asia/Kolkata (UTC +05:30)

Electricity

India's electricity: Plug types C (two round pins), D (three round pins) and M (three round pins) – 230V, 50Hz

Money

India's currency: Indian rupee (INR). Please note, it is illegal to import or export rupees. Do not accept torn or very dirty Indian banknotes from banks or in change as they will almost certainly not be accepted as legal tender in India. You can normally change money back from rupees into US dollars or British pounds at the departure airport, but you must produce an exchange receipt showing that you changed money in India.

ATM Availability

ATMs are widely available throughout the trip (Visa and MasterCard are best). You can also pay with credit cards in bigger shops all over India.

Please inform your bank before departure that you are travelling to India and carry the relevant telephone number with you in case they put a block on your card.

Please note, you should not rely on cards all the time, so bring US dollars or pound sterling with you too. Money change facilities are available on arrival at Delhi Airport; though exchange rates may be better in central Delhi. You can also change US dollars and pounds in Jaipur and Agra.

Extra Expenses & Spending Money

Many sites now charge a small fee for video cameras and you should allow another 665 rupees (approximately US$9) for these. Also allow at least 570 rupees (approximately US$8) per day for personal expenditures such as stamps, postcards and soft drinks. There are endless shopping opportunities throughout this tour and we suggest you take money for souvenirs; even the most shop-shy travellers often succumb to the tempting selection of handicrafts available.

During your trip, it is likely your local guides will take you to emporiums and handicraft workshops. Guides will often assume that visitors will want to go shopping, it is very much part of the culture, but if you do not wish to go, please make this clear to your guide and Exodus leader at the time. Many people find this a great opportunity to buy local handicrafts, silk, jewellery and carpets.

Tipping

Tipping is a part of Indian culture and usually expected. It can often be an awkward affair, especially when in an unfamiliar country where you are not sure when or how much to tip.

While whether and how much to tip should be a personal decision, we aim to provide a guideline of normal amounts to assist customers who wish to tip. Together with our local partners we have prepared the below guidelines which we hope will be useful to our groups.

Driver: 500 rupees per day

Sightseeing guides in Agra and Jaipur: 500 rupees each

Hotel porters: 50 rupees per person

Restaurants: 10%, if service charge is not included in the bill already

People, Places & Planet

We work hard to create trips which improve life for the people and places we visit, and look after the planet we explore. Find out more about our sustainable travel ethos and practice here, and find out about the work of the Exodus Travels Foundation here.

 

There are many community projects in India that Exodus has set up or supported over the years. Some examples include helping to rebuild houses and schools and providing materials to build a flood barrier following devastating flooding in 2007 and setting up a flood relief appeal following mudslides in 2010.  In 2021 we launched our Covid Emergency Relief Appeal to raise funds to provide support to our trekking staff in Ladakh.

Some sustainable travel highlights include:

People

How this trip helps improve life for local communities.

• This trip brings income and opportunity to the destination community through the inclusion of locally-owned hotels and restaurants, the emphasis on eating locally produced food and support of other local enterprise.
• The hotels we stay in are dedicated to hiring local staff, this helps to benefit the surrounding community by providing employment opportunities and income alternatives where they may be otherwise hard to come by.
• In 2021 the Exodus Covid Emergency Relief appeal was launched and provided food and health essentials for guides, cooks, pony men and other trekking staff for a number of months.

Places

How this trip helps protect and conserve local landscapes and nature.

• Read about our commitment to nature protection and restoration here including our rewilding commitment for every customer who travels.
• By travelling in a small group, led by a local guide, we ‘tread lightly’ to minimise our impact on local resources and the environment.
• Our trips adhere to ABTA’s industry-leading animal welfare guidelines to ensure the best possible practices with regard to working animals and wildlife viewing. Our animal welfare policy can be found here.

• We work with our partners on the ground to proactively eliminate or reduce waste, for example eliminating all single-use plastic water bottles and instead providing refills for re-usable bottles.
• Where possible on this trip paper bags are used as an alternative to single-use plastics.

Planet

How we seek to keep the carbon footprint of this trip low.

• Read about our climate action here, including our carbon reduction and compensation commitments.
• Accommodation and restaurants in the itinerary use locally-sourced food which has not been transported long distances.

 Tips for sustainable travel on this trip

• Leave no trace: We do all we can to ensure we leave no rubbish behind in the wild and beautiful places we visit; we ask that you do the same. If there are no recycling facilities in-country, we’d ask you to consider bringing recyclable materials home with you.
• Plastic waste reduction: Please bring your own re-usable water bottle on this trip; filtered water will be provided where tap water is not drinkable.

Cultural respect

• Sometimes local people may object to being photographed so please ask first.
• It’s polite to use only your right hand when eating something without cutlery and when handing money and small objects to someone else.
• Dress modestly to be polite and avoid stares. Do not wear tight or sheer clothing and it is preferable to have shoulders covered and skirts or shorts below the knee.
• When visiting a sacred site sleeveless tops and shorts are not acceptable for women or men and you need to remove your shoes. You are permitted to wear socks in most places of worship.
• Religious etiquette also includes not touching anyone on the head, or directing the soles of your feet  at a person, religious shrine, or deity. You should also not touch a carving of a deity.
• It is common practice to remove one’s shoes before entering someone’s home and you should tuck feet under if sitting on the floor.
• Making the effort to fit in is invariably appreciated so being aware of these aspects of cultural respect will assist you during your travels in India.