6 of the 7 Continents For The Budget Traveler: India 2020 Journey To The Subcontinent

India is an epic country, both in size and in excitement. Let me help you with how long you go for, as long as you can. But unless you are a retiree, it will never be enough time. The place is massive and the little towns and villages you will never have enough time to see will hold as much discovery as the massive cities of Mumbai and Delhi... But it's okay, if you have 5 days, even a day layover, there is so much you can see and get a taste and feel of this mystical gigantic country.

My current travel goal is 50 countries by age 50. I'm 38 and India was number 49, so I think I'm going to make it. My original goal was to make India 50 since it's a big one, but since I got kicked out of Nicaragua India ended up being 49, with 50 TBA in the near future. Anyway, number 49, 50, or number 100, India will be different from everywhere you have ever been. In my humble opinion if you are on limited time the Golden Triangle should be your focus point. I had 3 weeks, so I managed to spend some time in the northeast Sikkim region, western Jodhpur, and Ranthambore for an incredible Tiger Safari. Here's my break down and tips for each region I went to along with general India tips to get your thru this trip:

Sikkim/Gangtok

The Sikkim region is an interesting place, definitely unlike every other city I visited in India. You need special permission to even enter, so although I am a big fan of self touring I highly recommend having a guide for this region of India if you go. You can land in Bagdogra Airport in the Bengal region no problem, but entering Gangtok I had to pass one or two check points to verify I had a seperate Sikkim stamp along with my Indian Visa. Make sure to carry at least 4 extra passport photos, color copies of your passport, and of course copies of your India Visa.

Drive to Gangtok
My main interest coming to Gangtok was to go to the Himalayas and Lake Tsmogo, but due to bad snowy weather I had to stay around Gangtok and do a "Himalayas Light Tour" as I called it. As I have said in the past, we are budget travelers, and things never go as planned, so we must plan on things not going as planned. I mad the most of it.

New Delhi

Or old Delhi, about the same place. Connaught place was the recommended spot to stay on every forum I went on. In retro I wish I had checked out some other neighborhoods, because Connaught like many places in India is significantly over crowded and definitely one of the dirtier neighborhoods as far as trash in streets etc.
I left the major circuit of Delhi to check out the toilet museum, nothing better than exploring the history of taking a dump.
The other classic places in Delhi can be done in one day along with the toilet museum if you choose. Even though it's a massive city with a driver you can see all the major tourist sights in a day. On your way out of Delhi make every attempt possible to see the Akshardham Temple. It's a new building but really cool and worth checking out. No cameras allowed but for $1 you can get two pro photos there from different angles.

Agra

You are not going to go to France and skip the Eiffel Tower so you are not going to go to India and skip the Taj Mahal. That being said, this along with the Agra Fort are your main attractions in Agra, again this can be done in a day. By all means I hope you have more time, but as budget travelers I know we are at times on a time constraint.
I recommend a guest house near the Taj Mahal of course, guest houses and small hotels will save you thousands on this trip, you will pay $15 to $30 a night to stay in great places with a very human and personal touch as opposed to $200 to $300 mega hotels you find anywhere in the world. The neighborhood is safe to walk as far as violence is concerned, but you will be haggled to buy things as in most third world countries, speaking of hagglers and the Taj....

Like many tourist parts of India you will get hagglers offering to be your "guide", only go with government appointed guide that will be provided at the ticket counter. And even with a government guide I had he still wanted me to "check out his friends store" on the way out of the Taj Mahal! I didn't of course. I'll cover this at the end, but make sure you are up to date on the current tourist scams (check TripAdvisor forum) before you go. A lot of great people in India, but also a lot that want to scam the foreign tourist.

Fatehpur Sikr

This is another place that is recommended along the golden triangle, as a solo thing, it's amazing, but in the grand scope of India if you are really pressed for time you can skip it. I loved the place, and by all means go if you are on the road, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it along with all the other options of places.

Ranthambore

My crappy tiger video, I need a new camera :)

Ok non sponsored advice here. I stayed at Bagh Dwar Camp which I found off Airbnb. I highly recommend this glamping option. It's a home stay with luxury tents, great service, great faciilties, but most improtantly great intel on the current best park to spot the tigers, that's of course why you are coming to Ranthambore!
My first two safaris which I booked before I arrived we saw nothing on the first, tiger footprints on the second. My 3rd safari booked thru the camp site I saw 3 tigers within the first 10 minutes. Epic to say the least.
And of course, if you are not fortunate enough to see the tigers, there are many other beautiful animals and scenery to see in the National Park:

Jaipur

Welcome to the gem city! If you are buying gems do the research yourself on TripAdvisor rather than a recommendation. The pink city is cool to hang for a few hours as it is nice to see the wind palace.
My other favorite along the main tourist path were the Elephant Village and Monkey Temple. I topped it off with a camel ride on the way back as well.
Off the tourist path of recommendations, Jaipur was a great city to drink and party in. The night life gets started late, but it's jam packed, and very cheap likely compared to anywhere you are coming from. Bar/nightclub advice is always a bit harder to give as it becomes dated quickly, but I went to if you want to have a fun night in the Gem City:

Blackout: Thought it was going to be a big, club, more of an epic roof top bar. Good date spot, or spot to see and be seen, a bit pricey.

14 cent, Uber moto, perhaps the cheapest thing I have ever purchased along with a cocktail at Blackout overlooking the city

Shakuntalam Bar: Great basement dive bar, 80 cents for a Captain and Coke
BC Bottles and Chimney: Good bar in a heritage home, local vibes
Bar Toss: This one takes the championship for my favorite bar. Huge roof top place right outside the Pink City. Great vibe, decent prices, and a good mix of locals and tourists. All the bartenders speak fluent English and made great company before it got too crowded.

Jaipur Nights Above the Pink City

McDonalds: After you are done boozing it up, head to Mc D's, it's time to take a break from curry and Naan for some good old fast food from home, but be advised, no beef in India! So go for the Chicken McNuggets!

Jodhpur

Jodhpur is not part of the famous Golden Triangle of course, but if you have a day I would definitely add it to your trip as it was my favorite part of the journey to the Sub Continent. It's a gigantic city, but the tourist things to do can be done in a day.
Of course, Mehrangarh Fort is going to be your main interest here. Stay in a Haveli or guest house with a fort view, don't worry that's almost every guest house and Haveli in Jodhpur. Just read the reviews.
The fort itself can take 1 to 3 hours depending on how you tour. No need for a guide just follow the flow of people and take in the epic sights.

After you are mind blown by the fortress check out Umaid Palace, the Clock Tower Market, and the blue city. The city looks blue from the sky line, but the buildings themselves are a bit scattered. Just be respectful when taking photos as some of them are people's homes.
Bonus of staying under the fort, go to the Toorji's Step Well free of charge!

General India Advice

Let me start with the most important advice I got my friends at the Bagh Dwar Camp, this could probably go for everywhere you go to, but it definitely goes for India, THIS IS NOT YOUR FIRST TIME IN INDIA! It's your 3rd time, your 8th visit, your 20th visit, of course since you are in ________ city, this is the first time in that city, but it's not your first time in India. This will help but not totally avoid all the scams the tourists and foreigners are subject to, as well as help out with your bargaining. I'm actually not into bargaining much, if something is $3 I gladly pay it rather than bargain down to $1, the $2 is going to go a lot further for that person than it will for me, but in cases of being grandly ripped off you want to be aware of prices and let them know, it's not your first time in India!

In the words of Aerosmith, "You gotta love the sweet taste of India."
You are going to India I am assuming this is not your first rodeo and you know it's not the most hygienic place. Brush your teeth with bottled water, read restaurant reviews, go with your gut, and good old Anthony Bourdaine advice, "If the bathroom is dirty, don't eat there, it's much easier to clean a bathroom than it is to clean a kitchen!" Speaking of which....
Not a bad idea to carry around toilet paper in your day bag as it's not the easiest thing to find in a pinch.
There are cows EVERYWHERE! I knew they didn't eat beef, but I had no idea how common it would be to see a cow in the middle of the freeway, strolling the market place, chilling outside your hotel.
Get your visa stuff in order well before you go
Try to go in the winter/spring, besides summers being sweltering hot, you may need to take Malaria pill in the peak seasons of heat, which I personally hate.
This is probably going to be a separate blog article altogether, but as we have advanced with technology no doubt you will have your smart phone, but please know how to travel without a smart phone. Keep a business card with your hotels address and phone number on you, keep your guide's phone number written somewhere on your person in case you lose your phone, also stash enough rupees for a taxi back to your hotel if you get pick pocketed. My method was to have my hotel card, and 500 rupees in a money belt. Here's the link if you wanna buy it, and it throws me Commission, so feel free to buy a few 1000 of them! ;-)
As always.... whether it's going smooth as hell, or whether you are lost on a rickshaw ride in the old city wondering whats going on in the city, in your belly, and the world, always enjoy it!