So you are looking for a great at a bargain price. India is a poor country, so things there must be pretty cheap, right? Unless you are an intrepid backpacker or like to travel like a refugee, think again! Here is some advice to keep in mind when choosing the India tour that is right for you. Once or twice a month someone comes to us waving an itinerary they received from another tour company. Let's call him "Cheap Charlie in Chennai." "Tell me what you think about this?" they always ask. "Can offer the same tour? Can you do it cheaper?" Nine times out of ten, the answer is a resounding and emphatic NO. Although we could offer the kind of low-cost, low-quality tours that many Indian tour companies sell, we politely decline. Before we tell you why, however, we want to congratulate you for bothering to read this. For most travelers, India is a one-time destination, so most are not able to tell the difference between a good tour and a bad one. In the end, they simply choose the one with the lowest price. Chances are, you are reading this because you understand the difference between price and value and want to decide more carefully. There are four major differences between a fantastic tour and a mediocre one:
There are a few really good hotels in India, a lot of bad ones, and very little in between. The result is staggering hotel prices comparable to London, New York and Tokyo. The Indian government maintains a star rating system for hotels. The peculiar rating system somehow awards five stars to hotels that would not receive three stars elsewhere Some hotels ("lodges") do not get star ratings at all. The highest rating is five stars. However, there are five star hotels and there are FIVE star hotels in India, so top hotels are not always comparable to each other. While we do not put a lot of confidence in the advice given in most guide books, there are websites like Trip Advisor that show candid photos of hotels and publish comments from guests. If your tour company hotels that are not mentioned anywhere online, that's a bad sign as well.
Price is not always a reliable
gauge of quality in India. We have heard plenty of stories about (and even seen) about stinky $200
hotel rooms with dirty sheets, refrigerators that have not been in working order for
years, one towel for two people to share, upholstery with cigarette burn holes,
and bathroom sinks that drain on to your feet. Yet, we have also stayed in
delightful "heritage" hotels in the same price range that we would love to see
again.
One of the most wonderful things about a journey through India is that you also have a chance to stay in really fascinating
"heritage" hotels, many of which were once palaces
or fortresses. A program that misses such opportunities, may cost less but you
will miss truly memorable cultural experiences in the process.
There is no established standard for amenities in India. With few exceptions,
in-room internet access, WiFi, health clubs, and 24 hour room service will be
found only in the top hotels. You can not expect to find satellite TV, in-room
safety boxes, mini-bars or IDD telephones in budget hotels.
Above all, resist the temptation to try to do to much in too little time or
you may end up with what we call a "drive by" tour. Well, technically
it is possible to drive from Delhi to Agra and see the Taj Mahal
just before dark. Or try to see all of Delhi in a single day. Or be dragged through Jaipur
so fast you barely remember being there. We have seen itineraries that are
virtually impossible to accomplish. A neophyte usually has no way to know what
is possible and what is not. (Incidentally, we think the itineraries on our website offer the optimum amount
of time to travel from place to place and see things comfortably, so we hope you will compare our itinerary with others you receive.)
Your itinerary should include the places you want to see. While this sounds a bit ridiculous,
Cheap Charlie may actually skip places that charge a fee to enter in favor of places that are free. On the other hand, you can see the Taj Mahal from the window of your car perfectly well, so why trouble yourself to go inside? If you expect a custom tour you should actually be able to customize it, and not just choose between a series of sample
itineraries that are not exactly what you want. An itinerary that does not name specific hotels or states "XYZ Hotel or
similar" is a sign of trouble.
Even if the itinerary looks great, will it actually be
followed? Sadly, some companies in our industry, particularly in
one-time destinations like India, do not follow their own programs carefully. Once they have your
money and put your bodies in their vehicle you do not have much choice but to
go along.
"Ground Operations" includes guides, drivers, vehicles and those odds and
ends that are or should be included in a tour. Guides. Practically all tour
operators in India use local guides, which means you will have one guide in
Delhi and a different guide in Varanasi. You can usually arrange to have a
single guide throughout, although that increases the cost substantially. Many
tour companies in India use unlicensed guides who lack the training and
experience of a professional guide. Guides not wearing an emblem that shows they
are licensed are frequently stopped and ejected at monuments. This can be both
embarrassing and inconvenient in addition to a waste of money. Vehicles. Make sure your tour will use late model air-conditioned vehicles.
Some Indian cars are much smaller than Westerners are used to, so it pays to
confirm the make, model and age of the car you will be getting. Cars used for tourism require
special permits and insurance. Some tour operators cut corners by using
unregistered private vehicles. If noticed by the authorities, drivers are
arrested and passengers are temporarily stranded. Cars without the necessary
commercial permits are not subject to commercial safety standards. You definitely do not want
to watch the road speed by through the rust holes in the floor. Hidden Costs
are a major scam some tour operators use to make you think their prices are very
low. Make sure
you get a written statement from Cheap Charlie about what is and is not
included in your program. Exactly which hotel and what kind of room? How about
breakfast? Admissions costs? Road tolls? Special transportation? Just because
your tour includes entry to the game reserve does it also include the elephant
or jeep necessary to take you around. Are admissions to the places you will
visit also included? How about the cost of overnight accommodations for the
driver or guide? Of not, you will be digging into your pocket quite a bit while
enjoying your Cheap Charlie Tour. What
happens before you travel plays a big part in the success of the trip.
Responsiveness and willingness to answer any and all questions are both essential. Incomplete or evasive
answers to your questions are a bad sign.
Cheap Charlie should be flexible enough to make small changes in your program
as long as they are not done at the last minute, and not requested every time
you read a story in a travel magazine or meet someone at a party who went to
India once and wants you to take a trip exactly the one they took. When
unlimited service is available it will not be at a bargain price. The way a company represents itself
should give you important insights into what you can expect from them. If they
promote themselves as a low-cost tour operator, you will probably end up with a
tour that leaves you wishing you had made a different choice. On the other hand,
a company with a reputation for producing a first class program and is proud to
share feedback from past customers will probably give you a great tour. Herein
lies the big difference between price and value, as well as the difference
between "them" and "us." We turn down the opportunities some customers give us
to compete with budget tour companies because we are not interested in putting
Purple Dragon's label on some of the kind of junky tours that they show us.
We do not cut corners or indulge in deceptive practices in order to make one sale. Almost 25% of our customers are
repeat guests, which is pretty remarkable. The service should not stop once
the tour has been sold. Good tour companies will give you a detailed itinerary
with local contacts before your journey begins, as well as 24-hour numbers where
you can contact them in case of a problem.
You want to make sure the numbers actually work, of course. By the way, we are
happy to provide an honest critique of the itinerary you receive from Cheap
Charlie in Chennai. We now charge a fee for this service. If you ultimately
decide to choose Purple Dragon instead, you may apply the fee towards the cost of your
tour. |
