Essential India Travel Guide: Travel Tips And Practical Information

I ordered this book and another Ms. Sharma wrote, the Survival Guide for women. They are both a bit dated, given their publish dates but I decided to order them anyway. I'm glad I did--I feel they are still relevant since cultural practices regarding women seem deep-rooted in India--some good, and some not so good.I am an older woman, and traveling as a tourist to India next year with my spouse. I like to gather as much information about the host country as I can. India is more of a challenging environment, given its cultural practices regarding women than many other countries I have visited. So it is important to understand what I am stepping into.Ms. Sharma's books help tourist women understand the challenges they may face in India. Sadly, some Indian men do not treat women very well at all and that extends to tourists. I am somewhat put off by what I've read, yet am grateful the author has undertaken to warn me and to suggest how to circumvent potential problems. I am still going, but I am traveling with a more educated eye as to the culture and practices as it applies to women.

Although we were in India traveling for five weeks earlier this year, we are planning on going back and there are lots of tips and practical information that we clearly still need. However, I didn't find them Shalu's book. For instance, we traveled extensively in a private car with driver. One item we were never able to ascertain was how much to tip. Depending on who we asked we were told anywhere from $6 to $25 a day. Tipping guides was also an issue. There were several "official government approved" stores that we went to for rugs and fabrics. Did we get a good deal? Are the prices really set by the government? Now that info would have been useful. Last time we had arranged the cars ahead of time, this coming trip we are planning to use cars only sporadically - so how much should we pay for a whole day? And who woud you recommend we go to for these travel services? The section on how to book trains was a little useful, but nothing that I haven't read in other books.Overall, almost all the recommendations of things to do, precautions to take, when to go, what to see, etc. are nicely covered in other books, such as Rough Guide, Nat Geo, DK, etc. It might have been better if she talked about what things she loved and the sights and sounds that she will have remembered.

I've been considering a trip to India and started looking around for travel guides to the country. This was one of the first I noticed, so I got it and started thumbing through it.I'll say this much: the author is thorough. And I mean THOROUGH! The heat is mentioned, as expected, but the reader is warned against drinking water from roadside taps (I will say that it's nice that the country even has roadside taps!) or eating food that has been prepared a certain way. I knew I should avoid the taps, but food prepared in it, even if boiled? See, this is why I do tons of research before going anywhere.There's also information on cheats and cons who will try to swindle you or steal from you, and info on how to avoid being cheated by taxi drivers. The advice on trains and buying the tickets ahead of time was really helpful, too. I knew the country was crowded, but to that point?There's a lot more in here, too--what seasons are best to visit the country in, some basic phrases, how to avoid mosquitoes--I feel like the book is bigger than it looks.

When considering purchasing this book, I only had to read the introduction to know that the author knew exactly what she was talking about - "No matter what you read or hear, the fact is that nothing can prepare you for India..." Though I never ventured into India, I did spend a lot of time in Nepal along the Indian border, and I must say that the quote I mentioned is one of the truest statements you will ever hear!This Travel guide is absolutely packed with useful information, starting with popular travel destinations all over the county, but continuing on to cover a lot of information you will be glad you studied up on, such as how to manage the intense heat, and which types of food to avoid to prevent getting sick during your visit (a section I wish I had read before my adventures!). This book clearly goes beyond the typical travel guide, and gets you closer to that impossible task of being prepared for India than any other guide I've read. I highly recommend it!

DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK!While I make numerous online purchases I have never written a review. However, based on the positive reviews, I recently purchased this book, ( the 2 star review by Lotus Lady wasn't there at time I ordered), and I am so disappointing with it that I need to warn others against making the same mistake. This book is so pathetic that I can hardly believe that it was ever published. I completely concur with the review by LL in which she asserts that the positive reviews for this book must have been bought. Either that or written by the author herself. LL was very generous in granting this book a 2 star rating. If possible I would give it a zero.As LL stated much of the advice in this book is simply childish and foolish, or just plain erroneous . On pg 55 the author states that the voltage in India is 440V, which is wrong. The book is 174 pages but could be half of that if it hadn't been printed in an over-sized font. The pictures are black and white, of poor quality and have no captions. The text is obviously written by someone for whom English is not their first language and there has apparently been no attempt to have it proofread by someone more proficient at the language. The following nonsensical sentence from pg49 is a typical example: "The traditional Jeweler men and women wear are par excellence of craftsmanship which cannot be done with words."Enough said!

This book has a veritable treasure trove of information for the first time traveller in India. There were lots of things one could have worked out, but why bother when it is all here, and quite a few things I had not even thought about, like not being able to take leather into a Hindu temple - that’s not just your shoes but your purse and handbag. So good to know in good time for planning and packing! Some reviews say it is out of date but I don’t think that detracts from the good advice in this book.

As a keen traveller I am a sucker for a good guide and as a lover of Indian food I have always wanted to travel to India.This guide is a great place to start researching your trip to India from sights to see, how to keep children occupied, common Hindi phrases etc. Also discussed is the matter of pre-travel checks such as immunisations.All in all a great guide to India and it has certainly kept my desire to visit the country burning!

I'm glad I came across this book, because it's packed with useful practical information. The book has tips covering everything from what to wear and what food to try, to how to deal with beggars. The book also covers common words and phrases. Yes, much of the information could be obtained by doing numerous Google searches, but why bother when it is all in one book? Well done Shalu.

Very disappointed with this guide.This book is just a cobbled together hash of supposed 'tips' on how not to be robbed, acquire a stomach bug etc. All of it is just common sense or information that could easily be obtained with a little research elsewhere. There are some sections about Indian religion and culture but nothing you wouldn't find in a real travel guide.You would not need to have visited India to write a book like this, that says it all really.If you want to know about actual places in India and what you might find when you get there, this book is not for you.

I think the fact that India is so large and things are not as inexpensive as they were, this guide doesn't really cover this in detail. It was an okay book to have as reference but there are others out there that are more up to date.