Guide to buying cheap tickets to India from the UK

Let’s be honest, flying to India isn’t going to be cheap, especially from the United Kingdom. But if you want a cheap holiday then you will need to get cheap tickets to India. The trick is to book your trip as soon as you possibly can. Generally speaking, the earlier you book, the cheaper the flight is going to end up being. Of course, there are still many other ways to get cheap tickets to India from the UK, and in this article I want to highlight some of the best possible websites and tricks to get cheap tickets to India. Let’s see what we have?

Where to buy cheap tickets to India from the UK

LastMinute.com

This website is right at the top of the list, although it does contradict what I said earlier about booking as early as you possibly can. Here, quite often, those that book very late can end up netting themselves a hotel and a flight for a price that is far cheaper than the flight would cost on its own, which is rather nifty. This is the ideal website for those that are literally leaving it to the last minute to book. However, I wouldn’t take the risk. You can try and book early, but quite often the prices are fairly expensive.

CheapFlights.co.uk

It is all in the name here. This is probably one of my favorite websites for searching for cheap flights when I want to travel somewhere other than Europe. There is a lot on offer here, and all of the main carriers are represented. Do bear in mind though that quite often the prices are going to be a couple of pounds higher than if you went directly to the airline. So do check this out (it isn’t always going to be the case, and it won’t be much, but hey, every penny counts right?). Travel agents and airlines are represented here. One of the best features of this site is the ability to select flexible dates, and option which isn’t immediately apparent in the other sites on this list. Flexible rates often increase the chance you will end up with very cheap flights to India.

SkyScanner.net

This site is perfect for those who are going to be heading from the UK to India with more than one person in tow. This is because right off the bat you are able to select how many people will be travelling with you. In my experience, this tends to be buried rather deeply within the CheapFlights.co.uk, which can be a little bit tricky. Both of them search exactly the same airlines and travel agents for cheap flights, so just go with whatever one you like the feel of.

TravelSupermarket.com

There are lots of airports in the United Kingdom, and as you know, flying from each of the airports will have a different price attached to it. For instance flying from Bristol airport is going to be slightly more expensive than from Heathrow. Now, on most websites you will need to carry out a search for each of the different airports separately, but not with TravelSupermarket.com. Here you can search for multiple airports all at the same time (of your choice) ensuring that you get the best possible deal.

Southalltravel.co.uk

This is a good website for buying cheap tickets to India. In fact, they specialise in holidays and tickets to India. As their name suggests, their office is based in Southall (West London) known for its large Punjabi population. One good thing about this site is that you can speak to an agent and they will book your tickets to any destination and you can even choose a different airport to fly back to the UK. I had a chat with some of my relatives and friends in the UK; this one seems to be their preferred site for buying tickets to India – perhaps because many of the travel agents on the phone are Indians who can speak in their language.

Expedia.co.uk

Expedia UK, operated by Expedia is one of the world’s largest travel website. According to their site, they offer good cheap flights to India on several different airline carriers going to many popular destinations in India. I did a quick search and I found that they do have good offers; although the results that I got was slightly more than what I had expected. However, just phone them up and tell them that you are getting cheaper tickets to India elsewhere and they might offer you better prices.

Of course, there is a plethora of websites out there offering fantastic prices on travel, but in my opinion, these are some of the best to choose from. So why not start looking at these ones? I am sure you will be able to find cheap tickets to India from the UK rather quickly!

Also don’t forget to go to your local travel agent; you never know they might have a good offer for you. It’s all about shopping around. There are numerous travel agents in London, Birmingham and Leicester – cities with sizable Indian population that offer tickets to India.

Cheap tickets to India: Most flights to India will serve Indian food.

Tips to finding cheap flight tickets to India

Whilst global flight tickets have dropped down drastically in price over the past couple of years, you have to be honest; some of them are still incredibly expensive. I want to take a little look at how you will be able to secure yourself the best prices on airfares. Please bear in mind that this is a general guide, and if you are travelling to certain countries then you may have slightly more options available to you (air passes and the like which allow cheap travel throughout the same country).

Let’s take a little look at some of the ways to buy cheap flight tickets to India

Firstly, buy your tickets early!

This is particularly important if you are planning to head away during peak times. Quite often, the prices are released incredibly cheap with the prices slowly creeping up. The peak time for high prices tends to be around two weeks before the date of travel. My suggestion is to book at least six months in advance. If you have your children’s school holidays or half terms coming up and buying tickets early might be a good idea. It’s during these times, that prices go up. So buy tickets early.

Buy your tickets late!

Is this contradictory? Well, most airlines don’t want to leave with empty planes. Which means if you book a couple of days before you could save a considerable amount of money. Now, this is not something for people who love plans. When you book last minute you are going to need to be flexible about where you are travelling to, and even when you leave. This is a fantastic way to save money though, and there are plenty of websites out there dedicated to it.

Always shop around for the best airfares!

Different carriers will offer different prices. In fact, you may find that it is considerably cheaper to travel from one airport over another. Use as many of the travel comparison search engines as you possibly can. You will be surprised at just how much money you can save. Don’t forget to go direct to the airlines too; often this will shave a bit off the price as they won’t be needing to pay out commissions to the search engines.

You need to be flexible!

This means being able to travel from multiple airports, or even be able to play about with your dates. In fact, travelling a couple of days before may be able to shave a couple of hundred pounds off your travel price! My suggestion is to head out on Saturdays, Wednesdays, or Tuesdays. The prices are generally cheaper then. In addition, try to avoid the peak season of the place you are travelling to if possible. For India, this is usually when the temperatures are cooler from the month of November to February.

Indira Gandhi International Airport

Check the airlines directly!

Many people don’t do this, and thus fail to realise that the best possible prices can often be found on these websites. You will be surprised at just how much you will be able to save on the price of your holiday. Sometimes that has good offers. For instance, KML sometimes have good offers literally at throw away prices of around £250 for return tickets to India. Although the tickets will be cheap they will fixed prices which means that you only fly and come back on fixed dates. Another point to remember with KLM is that they land in Delhi late at night; perhaps this may not be a good idea if you are travelling to India alone. By the time you get out of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, it will be around 1am. Perhaps that is why they are able to offer cheap tickets to India. Nonetheless, it’s worth checking all the individual airlines such as British Airways, Indian Airlines, Emirates, Air France, Virgin Atlantic, Jet Airways, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways and so on. However this can take a lot of your time. But if you start planning ahead then you get really get cheap tickets to India.

Consider stopovers and connecting flights!

Flights to India take about 9 hours from most airports in the UK. If you have small children flying with you then it makes sense to consider flying directly to India. However if you no children then you could consider taking a connecting flight that will reduce the price of your tickets to India significantly. Some good stopovers are Amsterdam, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Both these airports have good duty free shops which you can spend some of your time. Dubai airport has excellent restaurants serving Indian food. British citizens can also leave the airports of Amsterdam (part of European Union at least from now) and Dubai (visa upon arrival to the UAE airports). Great thing about stopovers is that this gives you the opportunity to experience other places as well.

Another trick is to visit market places where there is high Indian population.

These would be Southall (West London), Green Street in Newham (London), Solihull in Birmingham, Belgrave Road in Leicester and Cemetery Road in Bradford. Just go walking around some of the Asian stores picking up travel leaflets from the counter and phone the numbers around to see what they have on offer.

Consider going for package deals.

Not many holiday makers to India realise this – but package holidays can be good deals. If you try booking everything on your own then not only you end up paying more but at the same time consume a lot of your time. So why not buy a package holiday deal to India. However one of the major draw backs is that you have to do and go exactly as in the deal giving you less freedom to do what you want in India. Another word of caution is that you must buy these deals with popular dealers. Better still, buy last minute holidays! Some package holidays to India can be bought from Thomson Holidays, Thomas Cook, Virgin Holidays, Teletext Holidays and so on. Why not compare holiday prices using the price comparison site Travel Supermarket.

Try this trick!

When you type “cheap tickets to India” then you will be presented a list of websites both natural search engine results and paid ones as well. The ads are from sites that are using Google Adwords to be seen to customers looking for air tickets all depending on their locations. I have highlighted the ones you could try. In this particular image, a website called eDreams seems to be advertising flights to India from £289.

Ask the agents for cheap tickets.

You can always ask the travel agents if you can have your tickets to India for cheaper. This work! When you phone them up, tell them that you are need tickets to India and when they give you the prices, just ask them if you can have them for cheaper. If they do lower the prices, well and good, if not then tell them you’ll be back.

Fly to and from major airports.

The four metros of India include Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata (Calcutta) and Chennai (Madras). Flights are usually cheaper to the four older metros compared to other international airports in India such as newer metros such as Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Jaipur or Ahmedabad. Similarly, flights to India from the UK are slightly cheaper from major international UK airports such as Heathrow and Gatwick. However you must weigh out travel costs to getting to the Heathrow and Gatwick. For example, additional coach and rails tickets might add up to the entire travel cost not to mention the time it takes to get to the airport. Don’t forget that if drive to these airports then you will need to park your car in long term parking close to Heathrow or Gatwick.

Of course, these are just a few hints on how you can save money on your flight tickets to India. I promise you though, if you put just a couple of these into practice, you will be able to save a lot of money and finding your cheapest tickets to India.

If you have your own tricks on buying cheap air tickets to India from the UK, then feel free to share them here.

Remedies to Treat Travel Constipation

When you travel, your routine gets thrown off – and constipation may be one of the consequences. People are creatures of habit, including when it comes to going to the bathroom. Everyone has a time when they do this, and when the schedule is thrown off, it can be disruptive. Other gastrointestinal problems, such as bloating, diarrhea and indigestion, are even more likely to develop while you are traveling. However, the risk of travel constipation may be increased by certain factors such as dehydration resulting from air travel, traveling across time zones, nit drinking sufficient water or drinking more alcohol than usual.

The good news is that there are many remedies that you can use to treat travel constipation. Maintaining your regular eating and drinking habits as well as you can while traveling is the best way to ensure regular bowel movement.

• Drink plenty of water and clear fluids – Have you been drinking less water than usual during your trip? Make sure that this does not happen. Dehydration is one of the causes of constipation. Drinking plenty of water and clear fluids can help keep you regular while you are away from home. While it may not completely relieve the problem, it can help in softening stool so that you do not experience pain and discomfort while passing them. Also, make sure that you avoid drinking caffeinated or alcoholic beverages as they can cause dehydration.

• Make sure that you eat enough fiber – When you travel, you obviously do not get home-cooked meals. However, you should make sure that you eat fiber-rich foods such as cereals, fresh vegetables, dried and fresh fruit, beans, whole grain crackers and bread. Keep in mind that the recommended amounts are 2 cups of fruit and 2 ½ cups of vegetables daily. You can carry breakfast foods such as high-fiber cereals and flaxseeds so that you get plenty of fiber and a healthy breakfast even when you are traveling.

• Avoid low-fiber foods –Your meals will be from restaurants and your hotel when you travel. However, you should make it a point to avoid low-fiber foods in excess if possible. You should try to avoid foods like pizza, cheese, chips, candy, ice cream and processed foods, to name a few. They can worsen your constipation. It can be difficult to maintain your dietary routine when you are away from home – you will probably not eat the healthiest foods and you may eat on the go a lot more, resulting in constipation. But avoiding certain foods can help you prevent or relieve the problem.

• Stay active – Even when you are traveling, it is important to exercise or doing yoga and make sure that you stay physically active. Your body needs to move constantly so that your digestive system also keeps moving. You should schedule stretching breaks, especially if you are in a plane, train, bus or car for long periods. Make it a point to swim, bike or hike when you can. This will help immensely in treating travel constipation.

As you can see, it does not take much to treat travel constipation. It is all about making sure that you eat right and keep your body physically active. Remember that traveling is a time to watch what you eat and other routines even more rather than less.

Travel journal for kids

Most of us go on holidays for the kids. They are the ones who have the most fun. I have therefore decided to create a travel diary and journal for kids so that kids can write about their experiences while they are on holiday. Travel diaries are great things as it allows them to write down what they will be doing, what they expect, what they will be eating, what they want to do and so on. In this travel diary for kids, there are pre-filled questions (one of its kind) for them to write in the lines provided and I have included plenty of spaces for them to draw what they see and even paste photos if they wish. My travel diary/journal for kids is now available on all Amazon stores.

My Travel Diary: Travel Diary and Journal: (Travel Diary for kids)

Here are some of the things kids can do in their kids travel journal:

Personalise their diary

Think of safety

Prepare and plan ahead

Write down contact and emergency phones numbers

Write in the prefilled travel and holiday related questions

Express themselves

Be creative

Draw images and paste photos, snaps, etc

Take the capital quiz

Read travel fun facts

Increase general knowledge

Play the alphabet game

I am really excited about this travel diary for my kids as they will be using it to do things while we travelling somewhere. Much of the time is wasted but this travel journal and diary will keep them engaged.

It’s now available on all Amazon stores. Click here to find out more…My Travel Diary: Travel Diary and Journal: (Travel Diary for kids)

Monsoon in India - Here's what you need to know

The monsoon in India depends on two seasonal winds; the Southwest Monsoon known as Summer Monsoon and Northeast monsoon popularly known as Winter Monsoon. The Summer Monsoon starts from June and is through till Mid-October; the Winter Monsoon is from October to December. The south-west monsoon brings most of the rainfall during the year in the country.

Mawsynram and Cherrapunji; wettest place on the earth

India is one such country in the world which is blessed with adequate rainfall. The amount of rainfall is different in different parts of the country. The place that receives the highest rainfall not only in the country but in the world is in the north-Eastern part of India, Mawsynram. It is a village in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya. It receives an annual rainfall of 11,872 millimetres. The second wettest land in the world is Cherrapunji which is almost in the same region close to Mawsynram. Travel to this region should definitely be avoided during monsoon time.

Cherrapunji – one of wettest place in the world

Although people from across the world travel to India throughout the year, the months from October to March is the season where the country experiences the maximum tourists visit. Normally the months of summer are too hot and the months of winter are pleasant except for the places in plains. However there are places in India which would be best visited during monsoon season like Goa, Ladhak and Leh, Parts of places in South India like Mysore, etc.

Some major cities like, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad receive comparatively less rain during summer monsoon. The states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala get most of its rainfall from the winter monsoon, from October to December.

What to expect during monsoon in India?

India is a developing country and the actual India is not what it looks like in metros. Most of the places in India are under developed and lacks good infrastructure. Some of the things that can be mentioned are bad roads, pedestrian paths (footpaths), bad quality of restaurants or shelters in remote places and villages, good commutation facilities.

The unmade mud packed roads sometimes get so much worse that it becomes impossible to drive your way through it. Some of the tourists’ places lack even the basic essentials like toilets or motels. Since you cannot expect to stop your vehicle at the doorstep of your destination, getting drenched and falling sick with cold and fever becomes part of your travel. The situation becomes even worse if you are planning to take public transport since most of the tourist places are remotely situated and the transport facilities are not all that great.

Maintaining hygiene becomes much more difficult in the rainy season. The food you opt to eat on streets or open restaurants can get easily contaminated with water splashes or the flies population that increases during monsoon season due to stagnant water pits serving as open homes for the growth of infectious insects and flies. This is also one of the reasons for the growth of mosquitoes thereby increasing the chances of diseases like dengue, malaria, typhoid, cholera among other diseases.

Kanchipuram South India during the monsoon. Source: mckaysavage’s photostream

With the heavens pouring in on some of the major cities, drainage becomes a problem causing flooding in the cities and bringing the routine life to halt. The traffic gets still and the routes get blocked forcing to take diversions, especially Mumbai is infamous for heavy rains and flooded roads. If you need to catch a flight or take a bus then it is good idea to plan and start a head of time.

If you plan to visit India and travel in the monsoon season then there are several things that need to be worked on before you hit the roads.

• Make your research on the places you plan to visit in India. Your research must be water oriented – how much rains to expect in the place, when to expect it, what is the place like, the facilities and infrastructures of the place, is the place travellers friendly, about the local people, where are you going to stay, what special things to be packed for that place, etc.

• If you have already not planned for any places then it would be a good idea to choose the places that receive less or no rainfall to avoid adventure while you travel!

• Do not be overwhelmed with the unpredictable rains that hit the place without warnings and also the amount of rainfall. Just be prepared with your monsoon gear and you are done with fun without worries.

• You need to be extremely cautious with drinking water in India especially when you visit India in the monsoon seasons.

• Be prepared with ‘plan b’ in case of delayed or cancelled trains or planes or other public transports especially during monsoons (which is very possible in India).

India southwest summer monsoon onset map. Source: Wikimedia Commons

You can experience some day-to-day problems that can become horrifying if you are not all that used to such circumstances. Keeping clothes dry becomes difficult which soon starts smelling damp. Power cuts and failures happen almost every day and can last for hours.

The good news is that visiting India in monsoon is still possible. You are sure to see the other side of colourful India during monsoon and also avail the low air fares and costs of stay during this season.

More about seasons and climate of India here

India Travel Health Guide: Health Advice and Tips for Travelers to India

Gurgaon (Gurugram): The Cyber Hub of India

If you are visiting Delhi then you might as well visit Gurgoan (also known as Gurugram). In recent years Gurgoan has seen rapid urbanization and has become an industrial hub. You can do plenty of things in Gurgoan such as visiting local parks and cinemas to spending time at the shopping malls. You will be able to visit Gurgoan and come back to Delhi the same day.

Gurgaon is a city located in Haryana, India and lies just south of Delhi, which is the nation’s capital. Over the last four decades, Gurgaon has become more urbanized with all of the Fortune 500 companies building their offices there. This increase in commercial real estate development links back to a piece of legislation passed in 1957 called the “Delhi Development Act.” This legislation gave the local government in Delhi control over all the real estate development that occurs within the vicinity of their city. One of their biggest acts was to ban all private real estate developers from constructing residential buildings. This paved the way for commercial real estate developers to building structures where businesses and companies could place themselves in. India’s largest commercial real estate developer named DLF Limited, or Delhi Land & Finance Limited, is mainly responsible for this.

After the Delhi Development Act was passed, DLF Limited purchased commercial land in Gurgaon for very cheap prices. In the 1970s, DLF Limited started a city project where they developed hotels and buildings under special economic zones on the commercial property they owned. As a result, an Indian car manufacturer named Maruti Suzuki India Limited came to Gurgaon and built their manufacturing plant there. This created more job opportunities for local residents of Delhi and gave an incentive for more Indian people to move to Gurgaon for employment. As the population continued to increase in the city, big companies started establishing local offices in Gurgaon to capitalize on this trend. As of today, over 250 companies on the Fortune 500 list have established local offices in Gurgaon. The city has become one of India’s largest industrial and financial hubs and has the 3rd highest income per capita out of any other city in the nation.

Gurgaon is often referred to as the “cyber hub of India” because of all the companies that have moved there. Most of them reside in an industrial park within the city centre known as the DLF Cyber City. This is named after DLF Limited because it owns the buildings and property where the companies are located. The “cyber” part of the name is in reference to the futuristic look of the buildings that you won’t see anywhere else. Westerners who visit DLF Cyber City compare the hub to New York City in terms of their economic influences over their respective countries. The industrial park which houses these companies in Gurgaon is considered to be the “Time Squares” of India.

Some of the city’s most noticeable buildings include Gateway Tower, the Cyber Green building, and the Innov8 building. These buildings aren’t just typical skyscrapers that look like vertical blocks. They look like something that no one has ever seen before in the present. For example, the Cyber Green building has a series of solar panels that go from the top of the building down to the bottom. As for the Gateway Tower, it has a narrow oval shape that is recognizable to anyone who sees it. In fact, the majority of the buildings in the Cyber Hub area have glass windows everywhere. Between the glass, the solar panels and the oval-shaped buildings, you will certainly feel like you are in a futuristic setting. Some of the corporate tenants you will find in these buildings include Pepsi, Shell, Discovery Channel, Google, IBM, Phillips, Hewlett-Packard, General Electric, Samsung, LinkedIn, Expedia, Canon, Yahoo, and others.

Gurgaon is a city filled with skyscrapers, office blocks made of glass and steel, golf courses, and shopping malls. Due to the increasing population, they even have towering residential apartment buildings now. These apartment buildings come with an array of accommodations including swimming pools, gymnasiums, security, tennis courts, Wi-Fi, and more. The interiors contain laminated wooden flooring with marble and walls painted with acrylic emulsion. These high-end apartments are typically occupied by wealthier people who either have a second home in Gurgaon or work for one of the Fortune 500 companies located in the city. As for the lower-level workers, they can still live in Delhi and commute to Gurgaon for work just as easily. Gurgaon is a critical factor in India’s growing economy and is continuing to grow as we proceed further into the 21st century.

The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon governs the city. Gurgaon has a relatively low crime rate for a city because of the job opportunities there and the high level of police presence. The biggest problem in the city is the traffic congestion. With Indira Gandhi International Airport being so close to the city, tourists are adding more traffic congestion to the roads. Because of this, Rapid MetroRail Gurgaon was developed in the city so there would be a railway connection to Delhi Metro. There is a total of six railway stations for Rapid MetroRail within DLF Cyber City. This gives people more options to travel throughout the city at a faster rate. If you don’t want to travel by train then you can drive on the National Highway 8, or NH-8, from Delhi right into the Cyber City.

There are lots of places to visit in Gurgoan and I have listed my top ones below. If you are planning to visit Delhi then you can try flights deals from travelguru.com as they seem to have good deals. You can either take a day trip or you can spend a few days in Gurgoan if you like. If you do plan to stay then check out some of the deals here on OYO rooms coupons for Gurgaon City.

Kingdom of Dreams: Photo by Os Rupais

Gurgoan attractions

Cyber Hub: This place is perhaps the most happening place in the National Capital Region. It’s like a big shopping complex with a large number of good restaurants and bars.

Address: DLF Cyber City, Phase 3, NH 8, Gurgaon, Haryana 122002

Kingdom of Dreams: If you are into art, culture, heritage, craft, cuisine and performing art then this is the place you should be visiting. It’s a place where you can watch live theatre. It has two main sections “Nautanki Mahal” and the “Showshaa Theatre” and has an arts, crafts and food boulevard section called the “Culture Gully”.

Address: Auditorium Complex, Near IFCCO Metro Station, Sector 29, Gurgaon, Haryana 122001

Sultanpur National Park Bird Sanctuary: As the name suggests, it’s a sanctuary for migratory birds coming from Europe, Siberia and Central Asia.

Address: Gurgaon-Farrukh Nagar Road, Sultanpur, Gurgaon, Haryana 122506

NeverEnuf Garden Railway: If you like trains then you will like this. It’s a place where miniature trains are displayed. Children will love it and it makes a great day out with the family.

Address: Para, Haryana 122105

Image credits: Os Rupais and Harsh Mangal.