Delhi
Butter chicken
Tandoor-roasted chicken simmered in a mild sauce of tomato, butter and cream.
Chicken · Tomato · Butter · Cream · Kasuri methi
A modern classic, created in Delhi by Punjabi cooks who arrived after Partition in 1947.
A blank map.
A single point of light.
Mountain.
Desert.
City.
Forest.
Ocean.
One country. A thousand journeys.
The journey · North to south
Chapter 01 — The Himalayas
01 / 19 · Jammu & Kashmir · 34.0837° N 74.7973° E
Experience
- Dal Lake
- Gulmarg
- Pahalgam
- Sonamarg
- Ladakh
Snow on the peaks, chinar trees in the valleys and lakes so still they hold the sky. The north arrives slowly, at the pace of a shikara.
Morning
Before sunrise the snow holds the colour of the night.
Sunrise
The highest peaks catch the light first, one by one.
Day
At altitude the air is thin and the blue is almost unreal.
Sunset
Clouds fill the valleys and the mountains float above them.
Night
02 / 19 · Himachal Pradesh
Kashmir & Ladakh
Gulmarg
Himalayan rivers
Bir Billing, Himachal
Thar Desert
Andaman Sea
Southern coast
High-altitude roads
Chapter 02 — The Plains
03 / 19 · Punjab · 31.6340° N 74.8723° E
The mountains open into the wide, golden plains of Punjab. In Amritsar, the langar at the Golden Temple serves free meals to tens of thousands of people every day, whoever they are.
Punjab · Winter
Mustard greens slow-cooked through winter, finished with white butter. Flatbread of maize flour, the partner saag was made for.
Stuffed, tandoor-baked bread, crisp outside and soft within, eaten with chole.
Churned yogurt in tall steel glasses, sweet or salted.
Chapter 03 — The Desert
04 / 19 · Rajasthan · 26.9124° N 75.7873° E
Fields thin into scrub, scrub into sand. Then the forts appear: honey-coloured in Jaisalmer, blue-washed in Jodhpur, rose-pink in Jaipur, white on the lakes of Udaipur.
Jaipur, RajasthanThe pink cityPhoto: Aditya Siva / Unsplash Jaipur
The pink city
Jodhpur, RajasthanThe blue cityPhoto: Abhinav Tripathi / Unsplash Jodhpur
The blue city
Udaipur, RajasthanThe city of lakesPhoto: Pranav Panchal / Unsplash Udaipur
The city of lakes
Jaisalmer, RajasthanThe golden cityPhoto: Dario Morandotti / Unsplash Jaisalmer
The golden city
Pushkar, RajasthanA town around a lakePhoto: Vivek / Unsplash Pushkar
A town around a lake
Architecture
Old Delhi
Shahjahanabad
- Chandni Chowk
- Jama Masjid
- Humayun's Tomb
- India Gate
Contemporary Delhi
The new capital
- The Metro
- Galleries
- Cafés
- Nightlife
Chapter 04 — Cities & History · 05 / 19
28.6139° N 77.2090° E
A Mughal garden tomb, a 1920s war memorial, a metro that carries millions, galleries in converted warehouses and bars on old rooftops. Delhi never chose between its pasts and its present.
06 / 19 · Uttar Pradesh
Down the Ganga in Varanasi, one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, the day starts on the ghats. Upstream in Agra, the Mughal empire left its most famous building of all.
Chapter 05 — Craft & Clothing
Every region weaves, prints, dyes or embroiders differently. Scroll across the fabric.
01 / thread
Banarasi silk
Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
Brocades woven with gold and silver zari in Mughal-inspired florals.
Kanjeevaram
Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu
Heavy mulberry silk. The border and body are woven separately and interlocked.
Bandhani
Gujarat & Rajasthan
Tie-dye made of thousands of tiny pinched knots.
02 / colour
Phulkari
Punjab
“Flower work”: darning stitches of silk floss on coarse cotton.
Chikankari
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Delicate white-on-white shadow embroidery on fine cotton.
03 / memory
Pashmina
Kashmir & Ladakh
Fine wool from high-altitude Changthangi goats, spun and woven by hand.
Kalamkari
Andhra Pradesh
Painted with a pen (kalam) or block-printed, using natural dyes.
04 / craft
Block printing
Sanganer & Bagru, Rajasthan
Carved wooden blocks stamped by hand, colour by colour.
Handloom
Across India
From Assam’s muga silk to Odisha’s ikat, millions still weave by hand.
WeavingPhoto: Esha Verma / Unsplash Weaving
CarvingPhoto: Ashwini Chaudhary(Monty) / Unsplash Carving
EmbroideringPhoto: Nasim Keshmiri / Unsplash Embroidering
Throwing potteryPhoto: Balaji Malliswamy / Unsplash Throwing pottery
At the loomPhoto: Apekshit Srivastava / Unsplash At the loom
FinishingPhoto: Esha Verma / Unsplash Finishing
Chapter 06 — Food
There is no single Indian cuisine. There are thousands of kitchens, shaped by climate, faith, trade and family. Here are a few dishes from some of them. None of them speaks for a whole state.
The Table of India
Pull up a chair.
Food, spice, cloth, clay and stone, laid out on one long table. Every object is a story.
North
ChickpeasAnardanaGingerFlourYogurt
Punjab & Delhi
Chole bhature
Dark, tangy chickpeas with a puffed, deep-fried leavened bread.
Chickpeas · Anardana · Ginger · Flour · Yogurt
A breakfast and street favourite, especially in Delhi.
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Galouti kebab
Minced meat kebabs so tender they almost melt.
Minced mutton · Raw papaya · Ghee · Rose · Warm spices
From the Awadhi court kitchens of Lucknow, famous for slow dum cooking.
South
Karnataka & Tamil Nadu
Dosa
A thin, crisp crêpe of fermented rice and lentil batter.
Rice · Urad dal · Fenugreek · Potato masala · Coconut chutney
Udupi restaurants carried the dosa from the coast of Karnataka to every Indian city.
RiceUrad dalToor dalTamarindDrumstick
Across the south
Idli & sambar
Steamed rice-and-lentil cakes with a lentil and tamarind stew.
Rice · Urad dal · Toor dal · Tamarind · Drumstick
A daily breakfast in millions of homes. Every family’s sambar is a little different.
Kerala
RiceCoconut milkToddy or yeastBlack pepperCurry leaves
Kerala
Appam & stew
Lacy rice pancakes with soft centres, served with a mild coconut-milk stew.
Rice · Coconut milk · Toddy or yeast · Black pepper · Curry leaves
A celebration breakfast, much loved in Kerala’s Syrian Christian homes.
AvialOlanThoranSambarPayasam
Kerala
Sadya
A vegetarian feast of more than twenty dishes, served on a banana leaf.
Avial · Olan · Thoran · Sambar · Payasam
Eaten at Onam and weddings, in an order every guest seems to know.
Kerala
Meen curry
Fish cooked in a clay pot with coconut, chilli and smoky kudampuli.
Fish · Kudampuli · Coconut · Shallots · Curry leaves
Coastal kitchens cook the day’s catch. Each village has its own version.
West
Gujarat
Dhokla
A soft, steamed, savoury cake of fermented gram flour, tempered with mustard seeds.
Gram flour · Yogurt · Mustard seeds · Green chilli · Curry leaves
One of Gujarat’s farsan: snacks that are part of every meal and every visit.
Mumbai, Maharashtra
Pav bhaji
A buttery mash of spiced vegetables, cooked on a griddle and eaten with soft rolls.
Potato · Tomato · Peas · Butter · Pav
Often traced to quick suppers for Mumbai’s mill workers. Now it is the city’s comfort food.
East
Odisha & West Bengal
Rasgulla
Spongy balls of fresh chhena cheese, poached in light syrup.
Chhena · Sugar · Cardamom
Both states have a Geographical Indication for their own version, and both love it fiercely.
Rohu or hilsaMustard oilTurmericPanch phoronPotato
West Bengal
Machher jhol
A light, everyday fish curry with potatoes and mustard oil.
Rohu or hilsa · Mustard oil · Turmeric · Panch phoron · Potato
Fish and rice is the heart of a Bengali home meal.
Northeast
Sikkim & the Himalaya
Momos
Steamed dumplings with a fiery tomato-chilli chutney.
Flour · Vegetables or meat · Ginger · Garlic · Chilli
From the Tibetan and Himalayan kitchens of Sikkim. Now loved across India.
Smoked porkFermented bamboo shootRaja mirchaGinger
Nagaland
Smoked pork with bamboo shoot
Smoked pork cooked with fermented bamboo shoot and king chilli.
Smoked pork · Fermented bamboo shoot · Raja mircha · Ginger
Naga cooking is built on smoking, fermentation and very hot chillies.
FishTomatoElephant appleLemon
Assam
Masor tenga
A light, sour fish curry with tomato or elephant apple.
Fish · Tomato · Elephant apple · Lemon
Assamese cooking prefers a clean sourness to heavy spice.
India’s spice route
Cardamom
Elettaria cardamomum
The Cardamom Hills of the Western Ghats. Sikkim grows the smoky large cardamom.
Idukki · Kodagu · Sikkim
Black pepper
Piper nigrum
“Black gold” of the Malabar coast, the spice that started a trade route.
Wayanad · Idukki · Chikkamagaluru
Turmeric
Curcuma longa
Erode and Nizamabad are trading hubs. Meghalaya’s Lakadong is prized for its strength.
Erode · Nizamabad · Sangli · Lakadong
Clove
Syzygium aromaticum
Grown on the southern slopes of the Western Ghats in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Kanyakumari hills · Nilgiris
Cinnamon
Cinnamomum verum
Anjarakandy near Kannur is home to one of Asia’s oldest cinnamon estates.
Anjarakandy
Chilli
Capsicum annuum
Arrived with Portuguese traders and conquered the country. Guntur is famous for heat, Byadgi for colour.
Guntur · Byadgi · Kashmir
Saffron
Crocus sativus
Picked by hand from crocus flowers each autumn on the karewa plateaus of Pampore.
Pampore
Culture
Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist, Jain and tribal celebrations. Harvests, new years, gods and seasons. Every month, somewhere, India is celebrating something.
Across India · October or November
The festival of lights. In much of the north it marks Rama’s return to Ayodhya. Elsewhere it honours Lakshmi or, in Bengal, Kali.
North India especially · February or March
Spring arrives in clouds of coloured powder. Mathura and Vrindavan celebrate for days.
West Bengal · September or October
Kolkata becomes an open-air gallery of pandals and idols. UNESCO lists it as intangible cultural heritage.
Kerala · August or September
A harvest festival with flower carpets (pookalam), the sadya feast and snake-boat races.
Tamil Nadu · Mid-January
A harvest thanksgiving. New rice is boiled in a clay pot until it overflows, a sign of abundance.
Across India · Follows the lunar calendar
Morning prayers at mosques like Delhi’s Jama Masjid, then visits, new clothes and sheer khurma.
Goa, Kerala & the Northeast · 25 December
Midnight mass, paper star lanterns and plum cake, in a country with some of Asia’s oldest churches.
Assam · April (Rongali Bihu)
The Assamese new year is danced to the dhol and the pepa, a buffalo-horn pipe.
Gujarat · September or October
Nine nights of garba and dandiya, danced in great circles until dawn.
Maharashtra · August or September
Mumbai welcomes Ganesha in thousands of public pandals, then walks him to the sea.
Rajasthan · October or November
A camel and livestock fair and a pilgrimage to the holy lake, on the edge of the Thar.
Chapter 07 — Wild India · 07 / 19 · Madhya Pradesh
In the sal and bamboo forests of central India the only sounds are langur alarm calls and the wind. This is tiger country.
National park journey
Choose a landscape.
Hemis National Park
Ladakh · Himalayas
- Landscape
- High cold desert, rocky gorges, 3,000 m and above
- Wildlife
- Snow leopard, Bharal, Tibetan wolf
- Best season
- January–March for snow-leopard tracking
- Experience
- Winter expeditions with local trackers and homestays
Parks set their own seasons and permits every year. Check with the park before you go.
Odisha · Konark
Twenty-four carved stone wheels, often read as sundials, line the 13th-century Sun Temple.
Odisha · Puri
At Rath Yatra, giant wooden chariots carry Jagannath through the streets of Puri.
West Bengal · Kolkata
Howrah Bridge at dusk, trams and yellow taxis, the coffee house debates and the smell of mustard oil.
West Bengal
South of the city the Hooghly fans into the Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest on earth.
Chapter 08 — The Northeast
Eight states beyond the Siliguri corridor: cloud forests, tea gardens, great rivers and more than two hundred communities, each with its own textiles, food and festivals.
Meghalaya
Living root bridges, grown by Khasi communities over generations, cross rivers in some of the wettest places on earth.
Assam
Tea gardens, the broad Brahmaputra and the grasslands of Kaziranga.
Sikkim
The world’s third-highest mountain watches over monasteries and organic farms.
Arunachal Pradesh
The country’s first sunrise, and Tawang’s great monastery at 3,000 metres.
Nagaland
Every December the Hornbill Festival brings together the traditions of the Naga tribes.
Mizoram
Blue hills fold one behind another, and Aizawl is built along the ridges.
Manipur
Loktak Lake’s phumdis are floating islands of vegetation, home to the rare sangai deer.
Tripura
Neermahal rises from Rudrasagar Lake, a summer palace of the Tripura kings.
- Mountains
- Cloud forests
- Tea gardens
- Rivers
- Local cultures
- Food
- Textiles
- Festivals
- Adventure
Chapter 09 — The Western Coast
11 / 19 · Gujarat · 23.2420° N 69.6669° E
In winter the Rann of Kutch dries into a flat white salt desert, and Gujarat’s textile villages fill it with colour.
12 / 19 · Western Ghats
From June the monsoon breaks against the Western Ghats. A thousand seasonal waterfalls appear and the hills turn a green that seems lit from inside.
13 / 19 · Goa
Whitewashed chapels and Indo-Portuguese houses, fish markets at dawn, a café that becomes a bar at dusk. Goa runs on susegad, an unhurried contentment.
Hampi
Vijayanagara
- Boulder landscapes
- Temple ruins
- 14th–16th century
Bengaluru
The garden city codes
- Start-ups
- Breweries
- Mysuru & Coorg nearby
Chapter 10 — South India · 14 / 19
Technology, heritage and nature, a few hours apart: Bengaluru’s start-ups, the palaces of Mysuru, and the coffee hills of Coorg in the Western Ghats.
Architecture
Rock-cut, Dravidian, Nagara, Vesara, Kalinga, Buddhist, Mughal, Rajput, Sikh and modern. Each grew from its own place, faith and time.
c. 600–1000 CE
Ellora Caves
Maharashtra · Rock-cut · Buddhist, Hindu & Jain
Thirty-four monasteries and temples carved from a single basalt cliff, three faiths side by side.
c. 700–728 CE
Shore Temple
Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu · Early Dravidian · Pallava
One of the earliest structural stone temples in the south, facing the Bay of Bengal.
c. 950–1050 CE
Khajuraho
Madhya Pradesh · Nagara · Chandela
Temple spires rise like mountain peaks above walls covered in sculpture.
1010 CE
Brihadeeswarar Temple
Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu · Dravidian · Chola
The granite vimana rises about 66 metres. It was among the tallest buildings in the world in its time.
12th century
Hoysala temples
Belur & Halebidu, Karnataka · Vesara · Hoysala
Soft soapstone carved into dancers and friezes of almost impossible detail.
c. 1250 CE
Konark Sun Temple
Odisha · Kalinga · Eastern Ganga
A colossal stone chariot for the sun god, drawn by horses and 24 wheels.
15th century
Thiksey Monastery
Ladakh · Tibetan Buddhist
Whitewashed buildings stacked up a hillside above the Indus valley.
1570
Humayun’s Tomb
Delhi · Mughal
The first great garden tomb of the Mughals, and the model for the Taj Mahal.
1571–1585
Fatehpur Sikri
Uttar Pradesh · Mughal
Akbar’s red sandstone capital, with its Buland Darwaza gateway.
from 1592
Amber Fort
Jaipur, Rajasthan · Rajput
Hilltop ramparts with mirrored halls and courtyards inside.
from 1581; gilded early 1800s
Harmandir Sahib
Amritsar, Punjab · Sikh
Four doors open to all directions, a sign that everyone is welcome.
1632–1653
Taj Mahal
Agra, Uttar Pradesh · Mughal
White Makrana marble inlaid with semi-precious stone, a mausoleum built from grief.
1986
Lotus Temple
Delhi · Modern · Bahá’í
Twenty-seven marble-clad petals, open to people of every faith.
Telangana · Hyderabad
Telangana
Andhra Pradesh · Araku
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Puducherry
Mahabalipuram
18 / 19 · Kerala · 9.4981° N 76.3388° E
Kerala’s backwaters are a maze of lagoons, canals and rivers running parallel to the Arabian Sea. Villages, churches, temples and paddy fields all face the water.
KathakaliKeralaPhoto: Daniel Pell / Unsplash Kathakali
Dance-drama with painted faces, centuries old, still performed through the night.
NalukettuKeralaPhoto: Anantha Krishnan / Unsplash Nalukettu
Traditional homes built around a courtyard open to the rain.
The tableKeralaPhoto: Suryagayathri C.K / Unsplash The table
Coconut, curry leaves, kudampuli and the day’s catch.
Ayurveda, the traditional system of medicine, is practised widely here as part of everyday life.
Backwaters · Alappuzha
Sit back. Let the water decide.
The train
Swipe the window
People
Language
नमस्ते
Hindi
নমস্কার
Bengali
வணக்கம்
Tamil
నమస్కారం
Telugu
ನಮಸ್ಕಾರ
Kannada
നമസ്കാരം
Malayalam
ਸਤ ਸ੍ਰੀ ਅਕਾਲ
Punjabi
નમસ્તે
Gujarati
ନମସ୍କାର
Odia
নমস্কাৰ
Assamese
آداب
Urdu
नमस्कार
Marathi
The Constitution recognises 22 scheduled languages. Hundreds more are spoken across the country, many with their own scripts and literatures.
Chapter 11 — Adventure
What can I actually do here?
Trek
- Markha Valley, Ladakh
- Hampta Pass, Himachal
- Goecha La, Sikkim
Season · May–October for high passes
Suggestions only. Always check local conditions, permits and licensed operators.
Chapter 12 — Modern India
Start-ups and studios, metro lines and new airports, chefs reinventing regional food, designers reworking handloom. India is not a museum. It is young, and it is moving fast.
Mumbai
Bengaluru
Hyderabad
Delhi
Gurugram
Everywhere
Everywhere
Delhi · Kochi · Mumbai
After dark
Kolkata
12 / 19 · Mumbai, Maharashtra
Marine Drive
Local trains
Street food
Victorian Gothic
Hindi cinema
Midnight
The Arabian Sea
Chapter 13 — Plan
Your journey
10 days — North India
Photo: Laurentiu Morariu / Unsplash Stop 1 · 3 nights · Punjab
Amritsar
The Golden Temple and the greatest food streets of the north.
Photo: Aditya Siva / Unsplash Stop 2 · 3 nights · Rajasthan
Jaipur
Pink-walled city of forts, bazaars and block printers.
Photo: Abhinav Tripathi / Unsplash Stop 3 · 2 nights · Rajasthan
Jodhpur
A blue city beneath the cliff-top Mehrangarh.
Photo: Pranav Panchal / Unsplash Stop 4 · 2 nights · Rajasthan
Udaipur
Palaces reflected in lakes, ringed by the Aravallis.
Best time to visit
January
Cool, dry days on the plains. Heavy snow in the high Himalaya.
Where
- Rajasthan
- Gujarat
- Kerala
- Goa
- Tamil Nadu
Festivals
- Pongal & Makar Sankranti
- Uttarayan kites (Gujarat)
- Republic Day
Do
- Desert camps
- Skiing in Gulmarg
- Backwater cruises
Many festival dates follow lunar calendars and change every year.
Winter · November–February
Snow in the Himalaya, golden light in Rajasthan, cities at their most comfortable.
Summer · March–June
Head for the mountains: hill stations, high valleys and alpine meadows.
Monsoon · June–September
The Western Ghats, Kerala and the Northeast at their greenest and most dramatic.
Autumn · September–November
Festival season. Clear skies return, and the coast and cultural cities are at their best.
Before you go
The practical part.
Rules, fees and dates change. Always confirm with official sources before you travel.
Visa
Most visitors need a visa. An e-Visa is available to many nationalities. Check eligibility, fees and processing times on the official portal before you book.
Indian e-Visa portal ↗Weather
India spans glaciers, deserts and tropical coast, so the right season depends on where you go. Use the calendar above as a starting point.
India Meteorological Department ↗Currency
The Indian Rupee (₹, INR). Cards are widely accepted in cities, QR-code payments are everywhere, and cash still helps in small towns and markets.
Languages
The Constitution recognises 22 scheduled languages, and hundreds more are spoken. Hindi and English are widely used, and English is common in travel and business.
Transport
Domestic flights connect major cities. The railway network reaches almost everywhere: book ahead for long journeys. Metro systems and app-based cabs make the big cities easy.
Indian Railways bookings (IRCTC) ↗Safety
Use registered taxis or app cabs, keep copies of your documents, and read your own government’s travel advisory. Some border and protected areas need permits.
Connectivity
Prepaid SIM cards need your passport and visa. Coverage is excellent in cities and patchy in the high mountains.
Local etiquette
Remove your shoes at temples and in homes. Dress modestly at religious sites. Give and receive with your right hand. Ask before photographing people.
Emergency
Dial 112 for police, fire and medical emergencies anywhere in India. The Ministry of Tourism runs a multilingual tourist helpline on 1363.
Incredible India ↗Responsible tourism
Travel slowly, spend locally, and leave every place as you found it. See below.
01
Respect local customs
A little curiosity and a namaste open more doors than any guidebook.
02
Refill, don’t rebuy
Carry a bottle and a cloth bag. Many hotels and cafés now offer filtered water.
03
Spend locally
Choose homestays, local guides and family-run restaurants.
04
Watch wildlife from a distance
Stay in the vehicle, stay quiet, and never feed animals.
05
Skip harmful animal tourism
Avoid elephant rides, performing animals and photo props.
06
Honour sacred spaces
Follow dress codes and rules on photography, and keep your voice low.
07
Buy from artisans
Look for handloom marks and GI-tagged crafts, and buy directly from makers.
08
Photograph with consent
Ask first, show people the picture, and accept a no.
09
Tread lightly
Stay on trails, pack out your waste, and leave mountains and beaches untouched.
Epilogue · 19 / 19 · 8.0883° N 77.5385° E
Kanyakumari
The route that began in the snows of Jammu & Kashmir is nearly complete.
And then, the land ends.
The journey doesn’t.
India.
- Distance
- ≈ 9,700 kmAlong the route, as the crow flies
- States & regions
- 19Stops on this journey
- Landscapes
- 4Mountains / Desert / Forest / Coast
- Flavours
- 15Regional dishes on the table