Spas, Shops, Spices – An Exotic Tour to India from Canada
Experience the diversity and beauty of India on this incredible journey. Accommodations are at remarkable resorts and hotels which have received rave reviews in magazines such as Architectural Digest and Conde Nast. Elegant furnishing, unique architecture, extraordinary hospitality and fine dining make this tour a truly memorable experience. All the hotels have spas which are a part of the ‘Leading Spas of the World' and the hotels themselves are members of ‘Leading Hotels of the World'.
Sept 18 (Mon) Depart TORONTO
Welcome on board this Incredible journey to India. We meet at Toronto's Pearson International Airport at 8 pm – precisely at Terminal One in front of Area G on the 3rd floor (Departures Level). Click on the link below to see a map:
http://www.gtaa.com/Documents/travellers_visitors/TerminalGuideT1.pdf
We will check in as a group. Our Etihad Airways flight EY 502 departs at 2340 hrs (11:40 pm).
Sept 19 (Tue) En-route to ABU DHABI
After a 7h 30min flight we arrive in Brussels, Belgium and deplane. After a 1h 15min technical halt we continue our 6h 45minute journey to Abu Dhabi, UAE. We arrive at 2310 hrs (11:10 pm).
Sept 20 (Wed) ARRIVE DELHI BY AIR
We board our onward flight EY 213 departing at 0145hrs (1:45 am) en-route to Delhi, India. A short 3h 15minutes later we arrive in Delhi, India at 0630hrs (6:30 am) local time.
We will be met on your arrival by the representative of Exotique Expeditions with fresh flower garlands. We are then transferred to HOTEL THE OBEROI. The rest of the day is at leisure to relax and catch up with the time difference. In the evening enjoy a welcome dinner at one of Delhi's specialty restaurants.
Sept 21 (Thu) IN DELHI
India's capital and major gateway to the country, contemporary is a bustling metropolis which successfully combines in its folds both the ancient and the modern. The division between New Delhi and Old Delhi is the division between the capitals of the British and the Mughals respectively. The walled city (Old Delhi) is all traditional and culture where one shall be able to glimpse a past lifestyle. New Delhi on the contrary is a city trying to live up to the 21st century standards.
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning city tour of Old and New Delhi, visiting Qutab Minar, Humayun’s Tomb, India Gate (War Memorial), Lakshmi Narayan Temple – a modern Hindu Temple, drive past President’s House, Parliament House and Secretariat Buildings. Also visit Raj Ghat – the cremation site of Mahatma Gandhi, Jama Masjid and drive past Red Fort and Chandni Chowk.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 22 (Fri) DELHI – AGRA BY COACH
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning drive to Delhi (204 km / 128 miles / approx 6 hrs drive).
q Upon arrival at Agra, check-in at hotel OBEROI AMARVILAS.
q Afternoon visit the Agra Fort (Halls of Private and Public audience) other palaces.
q Near the gardens of the Taj Mahal stands the important 16th-century Mughal monument known as the Red Fort of Agra. This powerful fortress of red sandstone encompasses, within its 2.5-km-long enclosure walls, the imperial city of the Mughal rulers. It comprises many fairy-tale palaces, such as the Jahangir Palace and the Khas Mahal, built by Shah Jahan; audience halls, such as the Diwan-i-Khas; and two very beautiful mosques.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 23 (Sat) IN AGRA
The Taj Mahal was built by the third Mughal emperor of India, Shah Jahan in the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died during childbirth. Although it is not known for sure who planned the Taj Mahal, the name of an Indian architect of Persian descent, Ustad Ahmad Lahori, has been cited in many sources. As soon as construction began in 1630, masons, craftsmen, sculptors, and calligraphers were summoned from Persia, the Ottoman Empire, and Europe to work on the masterpiece. It took 12 years of hard labour and 20,000 labourers to build the mausoleum.
q Early morning (at sunrise) visit the world famous Taj Mahal built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jehan in 1630 for his queen Mumtaz Mahal to enshrine her mortal remains. (Closed on Fridays)
q Return to hotel for breakfast.
q Later visit local bazaars for shopping.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 24 (Sun) AGRA – FATEHPUR SIKRI- JAIPUR BY COACH
Fathepur Sikri was founded by the Mughar emperor Akbar 40km southwest of Agra. The third Mughar emperor Akbar who started constructing Agra fort in 1565 launched a construction of a new capital, Fathepur Sikri, in 1569. The town forms almost rectanglar, 11km of the periphery, whose northwest side is an impoundment. On the other three sides are city walls. On a plateau extending from the northeast to the southwest within the city walls, an axis of north, south, east and west is set upon which the great mosque and palace buildings are built in diagonal arrangement. The capital was transferred because Akbar, who was not blessed with a child for a long time, became the father of Prince Salim, later on called Jahangir, by a benefit of a saint of Chisti order Shaikh Salim, who lived a village located Fathepur Sikri’s sight. In 1571, when Shaikh Salim died, the great mosque was completed and Akbar came to live there for a short period of 10 years from 1574. In 1584, the capital was moved to Lahore, and this city was abandoned. After the conquest of Gujarat in 1574, from which this city name meaning “City of Victory” came, craftsmen and techniques were brought to this capital. Thus, strong mixture with Hindu architectural style is seen in buildings. The private visiting room with center pillar symbolizing the reign, and Panch Magal, five storied open hallbased on Din Ilahi of Akbar is especially well known.
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning drive to Jaipur (234 km / 146 miles / approx 6 hrs drive)
q Fatehpur Sikri (38 km before Agra) built by Emperor Akbar in 1569 and abandoned after 15 years due to scarcity of water. Built during the second half of the 16th century by the Emperor Akbar, Fatehpur Sikri (the City of Victory) was the capital of the Mughal Empire for only some 10 years. The complex of monuments and temples, all in a uniform architectural style, includes one of the largest mosques in India, the Jama Masjid.
q Upon arrival at Jaipur, check-in at hotel OBEROI RAJVILAS.
q Rest of the day at leisure.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 25 (Mon) IN JAIPUR
The capital city of the state of Rajasthan is popularly known as “Pink City” because of the pink paint applied to the buildings in its old walled city during the visit of Prince Albert of Britain in 1883.Jaipur has been like that since 1727 when Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II had it built. The palaces and forts of yesteryears that were witness to royal processions and splendour are now living monuments, accepted quite naturally into the lifestyles of the people of the pink city. Except for the busy traffic of bicycles, cars and buses, little seems to have changed.
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning city sightseeing tour of Jaipur, visiting Maharaja’s City Palace, the Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds), the Royal Observatory, Ram Niwas Gardens, Albert Hall and the Museum. Later drive through this Pink City’s business and residential areas
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 26 (Tue) IN JAIPUR
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning excursion to Amber Fort with elephant/Jeep ride. Amber Fort the ancient capital of the State until 1728. Visit the Jagmandir or the Hall of victory glittering with mirrors, Jai Mahal and Temple of Kali. Ascend on Elephant back, the hill, on which the fort is situated.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 27 (Wed) JAIPUR – UDAIPUR BY AIR
q Breakfast at hotel.
q In time transfer to airport to connect flight 9W-3401 at 0715/0810 hrs for Udaipur.
q Assistance on arrival and transfer to hotel OBEROI UDAIVILAS.
q Rest of the day at leisure.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 28 (Thu) IN UDAIPUR
On the periphery of the great Indian Desert State of Rajasthan is the City of Lakes – Udaipur. Founded in 1599 by Maharana Udai Singh, son of the legendary Maharana Pratap of Mewar; this “Venice of the East' is a jewel tucked away in the Aravalli hills. Its places and forts, interesting bazaars put Udaipur on the “must see” map of tourists to India. Its places in the lakes have been the location for many films and fashion magazines and a destination for honeymooners. Udaipur's palaces speak of a by-gone age when chivalry was above life and royalty and culture flowered.
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning city sightseeing tour of Udaipur, visiting the City Palace, Jagdish Temple, Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandir (Folk Art Museum), Fatehsagar Lake, Pratap Smarak, Sajjan Niwas Garden and Sahelion-Ki-Bari (Queen’s resort for her friends).
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 29 (Fri) IN UDAIPUR
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Day to relax – yoga and the spa.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Sept 30 (Sat) UDAIPUR – MUMBAI BY AIR
q Breakfast at hotel.
q In time transfer to airport to connect flight 9W-3401 at 0840/1020 hrs for Mumbai
q Assistance on arrival and transfer to hotel THE OBEROI.
q Rest of the day at leisure.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Oct 01 (Sun) IN MUMBAI
Bombay, renamed Mumbai, could well be any other metropolitan city in the world, with its skyscraper-filled skyline. However, that is where the comparison ends, for the integral part of Mumbai lives and works at sea level and at the street level- in its old crumbling homes flanking lanes and even narrower bylanes. Like all big cities, Mumbai too shows its seamy sides in the slums. It has the ‘honour' of having Dharavi, the largest slum in Asia, in its folds. ‘Jhuggis' (hutments) exist cheek-to-jowl with ‘ivory towers,. For its teeming population, home in Mumbai could be along the railway tracks, under bridges, in massive, unused pipes, nesting against the walls of textile mills – or in the plush highrises along the western front the island.
q Breakfast at hotel.
q Morning city tour of Mumbai, visiting Gateway of India, Prince of Wales Museum, Fish Aquarium, Jain Temple, Hanging Gardens on the slopes of Malabar Hills offering nice view of Marine Lines & Chowpatty Beach, Kamla Nehru Park, Mani Bhawan (Where Mahatma Gandhi used to stay) then to Dhobi Ghat. Also drive past Afghan Church, colourful Crawford Market and Marine Drive.
q Overnight stay at the hotel.
Oct 02 (Mon) LEAVE MUMBAI
q In time transfer to international airport to connect flight EY-208 at 0845 hrs for Abu Dhabi, continuing on to Toronto.
COST: C$ 7,400 per person on twin sharing basis. (Reduction if flying Economy Class)
Single Room Supplement C$ 1,500
INCLUDED
∑ Business Class Airfare on Etihad Airways Toronto – Delhi & Mumbai – Toronto
∑ Business Class on Domestic flights Jaipur – Udaipur – Mumbai (where available)
∑ Accommodations at Deluxe/Luxury Accommodations at THE OBEROI (Premiere Rooms) , Delhi / AMARVILAS (Premiere Rooms with Balcony), Agra / RAJVILAS (Premiere Rooms, Jaipur / UDAIVILAS (Premiere Rooms, Udaipur & THE OBEROI (Premiere Rooms), Mumbai including breakfast and all applicable taxes
∑ Arrival and departure transfers to/from the airport
∑ Sightseeing and tours as specified with an English speaking guide in an air-conditioned vehicles.
∑ Entrance fees to the monuments
∑ 25% discount on spa treatments
∑ Cookery / Yoga demonstrations
NOT INCLUDED
∑ Visa Fees for India – presently C$62 (Exotique Expeditions can acquire it for you – there is a service charge of C$38 per person).
∑ Items of a personal nature e.g. laundry, telephone calls, drinks etc.
∑ Meals not mentioned
∑ Gratuities for guides & chauffeurs
Climate: Tropical. Temperature in each destination ranges as mentioned below:
New Delhi 33C – 25C 92F – 78F
Agra 34C – 25C 93F – 77F
Jaipur 36C – 25C 97F – 77F
Udaipur 31C – 24C 87.8F – 75F
Mumbai 30C – 25C 87F – 77F
May 31, 2006
Posted in: India