Luxury safari in India----tigers, oh my!

[cruisinred]

A new joint venture between Taj Hotels and Conservation Corp Africa has opened several new safari lodges in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.



http://www.tajsafaris.com/

[kyshel]

INDEED!! Wow--I never really had that much interest in India but with the safari combination, it looks no less than ab-fab! As soon as we get to/from Thailand and Amazon, this is going to the top of the list.
My husband used to fly JFK Mumbai and had the pleasure of getting "stuck" with some sort of premium suite at the Taj in Mumbai for a 2 day layover. Poor thing--he still talks about having to leave his room!! I was ecstatic that he brought all the fancy spa toiletries back for me.
So, hoping to see Taj Safaris here at LL. I'm thinking GRRRRRRR--start saving all that loose change?
Thank you for sharing with us.

Message Edited by kyshel on 10-18-2007 03:41 PM

Message Edited by kyshel on 10-18-2007 03:42 PM

[Syrene-1]

This is a dream of mine! I would love to see tigers in the wild! I am afraid of going to India though - anyone I've ever known who has been there came back deathly ill. Might be worth it, though.



Cruisinred, have you been or are you planning to go?

[cruisinred]

Syrene- I've not yet been to India but it is definitely on my top 5 list of places. A dream trip would beIndia, and concluding will some chillaxing time in the Maldives at the end....

[claassenam]

Syrene,

You don't know me, but I spent three weeks in India last January and returned in one piece, no illness, not even Montezuma's revenge, I ate Indian food every chance I got...and it was honestly my favorite place I've ever been. Don't miss it!

Plus, the tiger safari we did was the highlight of the trip. The Taj places look fantastic, but the Oberoi safari resort Vanyavilas is within a train ride of Agra and is absolutely my favorite hotel/resort in the world.

[Syrene-1]

claassenam, please tell me more about your time in India. I want to know everything - what made you go, where did you stay,is it as poor/depressing as people say, were you with a tour or on your own, was it very expensive and most imp., did you see tigers? What was that like? I've seen lions and other big cats but (as I said) to see tigers in the wild -wow.

[claassenam]

Syrene,

I love talking about India. However, I've already posted quite a bit about it which you can find under VIP blogs and the Asia/Worldwide Destinations sections (you can probably find it under a search for India) - I just don't want to bore everyone by repeating what I've already said!

Some basic answers for you, though:
1) We went on a private tour only through Rajasthan and a couple other cities in northern India with a private guide who traveled with us everywhere - he was really excellent. Although we are fairly independent travelers and we definitely don't enjoy traveling in a group I was happy to have somebody else handle all of the logistics of our trip since everything is spread out and you need a lot of car, plane and train access.
2) Yes, India is the dirtiest place I've ever been. It is amazing how dirty it is as the culture is becoming more and more sophisticated. Of course, it is worse in the more impoverished areas which are definitely very sad to see. It is a strange dichotomy between the poor areas and the incredibly lavish tourist hotels and areas - dealing with that dichotomy is really an essential part of the trip. And it's also amazing how you can get used to seeing the dirt and trash everywhere. You really begin to look past it and see the color and beauty and wonderful people.