India Culinary Tour

Tips for Travellers for Planning their Tour

Travel Package Includes:

TRANSPORT: In private or shared car with driver, air or train.

ACCOMMODATION: Hotels, guest houses, heritage properties.

ACTIVITIES: Food tours, cooking classes, market tours, kitchen tours, Bird watching, Cultural activities, Meditation, Yoga, sightseeing, Volunteer activities

Itinerary

Day 1: Delhi Food Tour

Our first day in Delhi begins with visits to the Delhi landmarks. We see Lotus Temple, a Baha’i house of worship built in 1986 and a 72 m tall tower built in 1193, the Qutub Minar. By noon we begin the award winning food tour of Delhi, starting with old Delhi. A great way to be introduced to Indian cuisine and culture, this trip will set the mood for the rest of the trip. You will get to sample about 15-18 varieties of Indian food dishes each with it’s own place in cuisine of Delhi, as you visit 10 or more food joints in Old Delhi, Central and South Delhi. The food joints that you will visit have been there since many generations and are known for their quality and taste of the food that they provide. You will visit places which are 110 to 40 years old. This trip in the old part of Delhi will make  you walk through the narrow medieval streets of Old Delhi. Here you will sample many Indian delicacies like samosa, lassi, butter chicken, kulfi (Indian ice cream), melt in the mouth kebabs and many such variants. You will see that the different lanes are marked for selling different types of goods ranging from invitation cards, spices, camera, utensils, bicycles, clothes, shoes, vegetables, etc. We also go to see the spice market of Delhi and a temple which houses a charitable kitchen and feeds more than 10,000 people everyday.

MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, Delhi

Day 2: Cooking Fun

Now is the time when you actually get a chance to cook some of the different varieties of delicacies that you had sampled the previous day. We will organize a half day cooking class for you which will be guided by a chef and his family. The class begins by making of masala chai (Indian tea) and some fried Indian snacks known as Pakodas which are best enjoyed hot. You will enjoy your chai and pakodas as the chef speaks about an introduction to Indian food and the expectations he has from you to make the most of this cooking class. The actual cooking begins after this. You will be taught to cook some Indian meals like daal and pulao, egg plant raita, rotis and stuffed parathas (stuffed and fried rotis). You will also learn to make some delicious Indian vegetable and dessert such as halwa. Non-vegetarian dishes include butter chicken, chicken tikka and mutton curry. We now have a sumptuous spread of dishes in front of us which we will savor for a meal. At the end of the class the chef will gift you with the small spice hamper to carry back home. After the cooking class is over we can visit the India Gate, Rajpath and the President’s House. This area of Delhi is especially beautiful after dark and is a popular spot of picnic for the Delhi residents.

MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Day 3: Visit To Taj Mahal

A day to visit one of seven wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal. It is a three hours drive from Delhi to Agra. We start early in the morning from Delhi. We reach Agra and check-in to the hotel. After some rest we visit the Taj Mahal. Any picture does not truly justify actual beauty of the monument. You can spend some time here having a look at the intricate work and the wonderful detailing. The guide will explain all the mind blowing detail and astonishing amount of work that went in to constructing this monument to love. We can then opt to take a walk in the wonderful lawns as you enjoy the beauty of the fountains. One of must do things in the complex is to take some pictures on the marble benches just like some world known celebrities like Lady Diana. After visiting  Taj Mahal, we head towards the Agra Fort made of red sandstone. We will learn about it’s role as the seat of Mughal empire and various lesser known facts about its history walking through the various parts of the fort and enjoying the breathtaking views of the city of Agra as well as the Taj Mahal.

MEALS: Breakfast and Dinner

Taj Mahal, Agra tour, India

Day 4: Jaipur, The Pink City

After leaving Agra early morning, we’ll reach Jaipur in about 3-4 hours and check the hotel for rest and freshening up. We spend this day sight seeing in the wonderful Pink city of Jaipur. Here we first go to visit the Hawa Mahal, also known as the Palace of Wind. It is a 5 story tall monument with intricate lattice work and has 953 small jharokhas (windows). After enjoying the beauty of the Hawa Mahal, we go to spend some time with the elephants in the Pink City in top rated activity, the original Elefantastic. The elephants are gentle giants and very well trained. Before we begin the play time, a delicious traditional Rajasthani thali will be served for lunch. After enjoying the meal, we can have spend a few hours feeding, riding and playing with the friendly and trained elephants. Then comes the time to ride an elephant of your choice for a fun and entertaining safari in the open ground. We spend some time there under the open sky with the bonfire. We can also opt to have a demonstration of the handicraft and enjoy live performances of some Rajasthani folk song and dance.

MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Optional Day 4: Jaipur Sightseeing

This is the optional day in Jaipur for full fledged sightseeing. We visit Jantar Mantar, an incredible astronomical observatory built in the early 18th century by Maharaja Jaisingh. We then visit the Jaipur City Palace and enjoy looking at numerous historical items and learn about history and culture of the city and nearby areas. A part of the palace is still a royal residence. After that we visit the Jal Mahal which is a palace constructed on a small island in the water of the Man Sagar Lake. The actual monuments and places visited can be customised according to requirements of the guests before beginning the tour.

MEALS: Breakfast and Dinner

Day 5: Food Walk of Jaipur

The food tour of Jaipur begins today. It is a day long trip where we get to experience Jaipur and it’s original cuisine and timeless beauty. We have a light breakfast and then spend time in the walled city of Jaipur. We begin the food part by having some salted lassi which is the staple drink of city. As we walk in the streets of this Pink City enjoying the sights of the market, we can sample all the different varieties of food it has to offer. This food tour will offer us the sampling of a lot of exotic delicacies like fragrant kachoris full of flavor and masala chai which is prepared over the charcoal fire. We will also taste the wonderful array of Rajasthani sweets and snacks. We end the day by having a large thaali (platter) of traditional Rajasthani Dinner. Along with sampling food, we also do some sight seeing such as Galta Jee Temple which houses a lot of monkeys and langoors and the Amer Fort. The sight seeing will depend on the time we have on hand. We will visit the local markets which are very colorful, fragrant and full of life with lots of people selling lots of things in their shops such as shoes, bangles, jewellery, clothes, utensils, spices, artifacts. The guests will be guided in the use of spices used in the traditional Rajasthani cooking.

MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Cooking classes in India

Day 6: Jaipur – Osian

Next day, we visit Osian near Jodhpur for our night in the desert. To reach there in time, we’ll have to start early in the morning.. On the way we go Sambahar Lake. India’s largest salt water lake which is source of 9 percent of India’s total salt production. Many migratory bird come here during winter and it is a sight to behold. Bird watchers love this place.  Then we go to Osian and to the camp site in the evening. We then walk in the desert and enjoy the activities planned for the evening. The dinner will be a Rajasthani village meal, served around a camp fire. Making the night more fun, we have artisans and dancers from nearby villages who present traditional songs and dance performances which have been have survived for hundreds of years.

Meals: Breakfast and Dinner

Day 7: Desert Tour

We begin day 7 with a morning camel safari of the Thar desert. Here we will get to enjoy traveling over sand dunes on camels and also see some wild life. We then go to a village nearby, where we get a chance to observe the life of ordinary villages from up close. If you are interested, you may want to dress up like them and click a few pictures, spend some time in the village kitchens and also learn something about their domesticated animals. In short we will be able to live their lives for a while and enjoy the simple pleasures of life in an Indian village. Then comes a drive to Jodhpur city  to visit the Mehrangarh fort, the most prominent attraction of the city. The fort includes attractions like the Sheesha Mahal, Moti Mahal, Fool Mahal and Takh Vilas, each a wonder in itself. By evening again it is time to spend some time in an interactive cooking demo, where you will learn some secrets of traditional Indian and Rajasthani cooking, especially the sweets. Dinner includes the dishes prepared.

MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

Day 8: End Of Tour

As we visit the tranquil Kaylana Lake, we reminisce over the events of the journey over some tea/coffee, and then prepare for our flight to Delhi. You can also take a train or car to Delhi.

Meals: Breakfast

EXTENSIONS

Here are some options you can take if you wish to extend your tour.

Optional Day 8: Jodhpur Sights

We begin the day with a visit to the Rao Jodha Desert Rock park. This park is a great example of how to reclaim waste land. Till 2006, this area was overrun by an invasive plant called Baavli, also known as Posopis Juliflora. It is a plant originated in Central America. After many years, of hard work, this land is now home to 100 species of native flora. After that, we head towards the Jaswant Thada, which is a marvel of architecture as it is made of sheets of marble, which are polished in such a way that the stones glow in the sun. From here we head to Mandore, the ancient capital of the Parihar Rajput dynasty. The Mandore fort is a place of sight seeing here and so are the Mandore Gardens. There is also an ancient temple here which was built between the 13th and 15th century.

Optional Day 8 Or Day 9 : Udaipur And Ranakpur

One more morning to wake up early and drive to Udaipur. In between we halt at the famous Jain temples of Ranakpur. Here you can rest a little as you enjoy the sights of the temple constructed between the 14th and 16th century. The architectural style is very unique. One of the temples contains 1444 marble pillars, and each one of them is carved in extreme detail. We then proceed to Udaipur and reach by evening. As we go to the hotel there, you will again learn details about Indian cooking in an interactive cooking session, where you will learn some more local Rajasthani delicacies. These dishes will be served for dinner.

Indian food tour with a chef

Optional Day 8 Or Day 9 : Udaipur – Ranakpur – Kumbhalgarh

One more morning to wake up early and drive to Udaipur. In between we halt at the famous Jain temples of Ranakpur. Here you can rest a little as you enjoy the sights of the temple constructed between the 14th and 16th century. The architectural style is very unique. One of the temples contains 1444 marble pillars, and each one of them is carved in extreme detail. After visiting the Ranakpur temples, we go to see the magnificent Kumbalgarh fort before going to Udaipur. The Kumbalgarh fort ha the second largest wall in Asia and ha 15 feet thick walls extending for 38 km. There are a total of 360 temples in this arena. After visiting the fort, we again resume our drive to Udaipur and reach Udaipur at night.

Optional Day 9 Or 10: Sightseeing – Udaipur

The day starts with a visit to the City Palace Museum and look at the vast collection of medieval and ancient artifacts. The palace is extremely beautiful. This palace was built over a period of 400 years and is a mix of various styles of architecture. We then go and visit the Jagdish temple nearby and look at the extraordinary craftsmanship. This is a white temple and was built in 1651. It is quite popular with the tourists and devotees from distant places come to visit it. After this we go to the Fateh Sagar Lake, an artificial lake built in 1651. It has the Aravalli Mountains on the three sides. We do some boating here and view the sunset as we visit one of the lands in the middle of the lake. Later, we drive back to the hotel.

Day 8: Flight Or Train To Delhi

We return back via, flight, train or road, and we keep the day free to adjust the travel timings.

Please note that the culinary tour and cooking sessions in Delhi will be led by Rajeev Goyal, a qualified chef and restaurant owner and his team. For each of the sight seeing tours, a proper qualified guide will help you understand all the details better.