4 independent reviews for Luxury Rajasthan vacation, 13 days
Reviews for Luxury Rajasthan vacation, 13 days
Neil Casson review 19 Mar 2023
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
1) Seeing 4 tigers in the wild in Ranthambore National Park. 2) Friendliness and hospitality at all the hotels but specifically at the Dev Shree homestay in Deogarh, where the family and staff were exceptionally welcoming. 3) Quality and professionalism of driver and guides were exceptional. 4) Standard of accommodation was generally excellent. 5) The excellent advice and support given by Sanjay (the tour operator) while putting together the itinerary.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Factor in some down-time. There is so much to see it can become overwhelming.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Benefited local people: Yes Reduced Environment Impact: No - simply by making the trip we were increasing true environmental Impact Supported Conservation: Possibly, but I don't know how park and monument fees are utilised.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
Outstanding. If I could provide a couple of suggestions they would be: 1) try to reduce use of plastic water bottles. A water dispenser in the car to refill personal water bottles would cut down on waste. 2) discourage people from taking a train if the car is taking the same route with luggage. This resulted in unnecessary costs and emissions. 3) The accommodation in Ranthambore was significantly below the standards of the other hotels. 4) although some of the hotels provided water in reusable glass bottles this was not always the case. Too many plastic bottles were used.Read the operator's response here:
Hi Neil
Thank you for your valuable comments and in particular about plastic water bottles which is a very good point. Pre Covid we actively encouraged a water dispenser to be carried in the back of a vehicle and to be used along with aluminum bottles which we provided. This is being discussed with the local teams to determine when we should return back to our previous policy - perhaps in the interim it's something we could ask guests what they would prefer before arrival ? - with regards to hotels following that policy , there are always conversations going on on how to do better and the reduction of single use plastic is always a topic that gets brought up not just in India but worldwide - our Indian partners are listening though and we hope that noticeable and meaningful change will come sooner than later - some hotels do better than others.
With trains , often guests like that experience of a train without the hassle of looking after their luggage and when in Rajasthan particularly there are only a couple of trains that we might suggest - in other regions we might well use trains as a method of transfer, with the toy trains again such as in Darjeeling and the Nigiris', vehicles that take you there and back need to be used as they are really just scenic trains for a few hours enjoyment.
I have passed on your comments about the Ranthambore hotel to the Director of sales for the property you stayed in - we hope that you got to see a Tiger.
Thank you for trusting us and I am glad the trip was outstanding - we look forward to welcoming you back.
Sanjay
Vernon Hunt review 13 Feb 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The whole three week and four day trip was memorable and to define just one instance is difficult, the places we visited will be with us for a long time and the people couldn't have been more helpful. If I were pressed then I would have to say the tiger sightings at Bandhavgarh, the photographs are stunning, then the Taj Mahal, the ghats at Varanasi all, all absolutely stunning. Incredible India..2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
I think the most important thing to remember is not to take your European head with you, go with the sights and sounds and enjoy the culture, enjoy the vibrancy ,the spectacular colours and the wonderfull and exciting cusine .. Our Varanasi hotel didn't serve alchohol due the closeness of the ghats and religeous culture there ..3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Tourism will always benefit the people of any country .... India is an "up and coming" country with projects such as the Metro being built and should be in place and working in the near future. I visited India twelve or so years ago for the second time then and to see the upgrading that has taken place is truly amazing, especially the roads, just a pity about the amount of traffic in th cities...4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
We did loose a day due to the fog, all of the trains were held up and no one could define a time for our train to be released such was the backlog.. Apart from that it was a memorable and stunning adventure, memories that will stay with us for a long time to come. Helen is already talking of a return trip ..Caroline Tower review 12 Feb 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Cycling in Delhi. Flying kites on the rooftops in Jaipur.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Homestays are wonderful, one gets a proper flavour of the area and the history that would be impossible in a hotel.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, see below.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
Really would highly recommend Sanjay from Bespoke Travel when booking a trip to India, his knowledge was in depth and he also understood clearly what we wanted out of our trip. My only criticism would be that spending 3 nights in Delhi over Republic Day was not clever as many of the sites were closed and our itinerary had to be adapted accordingly. On the plus side our cycling tour in Delhi was one of my highlights. Having booked through Responsible Travel I would question the option offered of the elephant ride to the fort in Jaipur but that remained a choice for us. The trip to the textile village in Bagru was wholly responsible and very interesting. The Homestay way of traveling in India was enlightening, every place was individual and they all had a 'story'.Read the operator's response here:
Hi Caroline ,
We have investigated with our team in Jaipur and you both should have only been offered the Electric Jeep up to the Amber Fort as per our Responsible Policy - there was a mis-communication which of course we hope did not spoil the experience for you.
The team on the ground does apologise for this and we have re-iterated that our policies are followed.
Thanks Sanjay
Ruth Patterson review 19 Nov 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Indian food is wonderful! We became vegetarians for most of the trip, because there were so many interesting foods to try. I think driving through the countryside, cities and villages was the most memorable: dodging cows, bullocks, goats, sheep, pigs, motorcycles, auto and bicycle rickshaws/tuk-tuks, beautifully decorated trucks. We were also there during Diwali, so the lights and firecrackers and families traveling in their best clothing was a highlight.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
INDIA is not for the faint hearted, for those with mobility or respiratory issues or who have trouble with dust/dirty air quality. We were very grateful to have such an amazing driver, as driving in the crazy traffic of India is very challenging. The air quality and garbage in Delhi, Jaipur and surroundings was particularly poor during our tour, and we were constantly aware of the air pollution and haze.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
We had local guides and visited the Bird Sanctuary in Bharatphur and Ranthambore National Park, so I guess we supported conservation, and stayed in some very interesting family run hotels. I am not sure we reduced environmental impact, as we drank a lot of plastic bottles of water, as tap water is not safe. It would be wonderful if the trip had included more opportunities to meet local people, local professionals, and local families and cooperatives.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
We three women had a wonderful time seeing a country with such rich history, diverse peoples and cultures, colorful clothing, amazing food, markets and ongoing activity. Every day was another adventure! We are definitely planning on going back to a different region of India.Holiday Reviews
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