Kerala and Karnataka tour, India

Planet

All our vacations are tailor-made which means that you are not traveling with a group of other people. With small numbers of individuals staying in small properties the impact on the environment is reduced, as waste, lighting etc will be minimal.

This tour includes a visit to one of India’s Wildlife Sanctuaries. Indian National Parks are protected areas and the Indian government are committed to conserving the numbers of tigers, elephants and other wild and endangered animals within the reserve. Visitors to the parks pay an entrance fee and this money will go towards the up-keep of the park and enhance their community based ecotourism practises.

A train journey is included in this tour. Train travel is possibly the most environmentally friendly way to travel a long distance.

Stay at small family run homestays in both Mysore and Palakkad, a perfect way to experience the local culture and interact with the fabulous hosts.

The accommodation at Coonoor is Raven's Nest. This property grows its own vegetables, and when they are not in season they obtain produce from the neighboring farmers or from vendors in the Niligiris.

All of our customers are supplied with detailed information about their vacation. We supply general advice relevant to all customers as well as more specific facts about your particular tour. These documents offer our customers lots of advice and guidance including how to obtain an Indian Visa, which immunisations are recommended, how much to tip people, how to dress appropriately and how to behave in National Parks.

People

By using homestays and small privately owned hotels on this tour, you are supporting the host families/owners, their staff and the local community.

The ground handling of this tour is provided by our local agent who works almost exclusively for us. We supply him with more than 90% of his turnover. All of the drivers and staff are local people. Thus we have fifteen local families that are directly financially reliant upon us. Our drivers have a contract and are paid a monthly wage. This is very unusual in South India where most drivers are normally employed on a commission-only basis (not easy for such seasonal work).

Tipping is expected in India, especially by the lower paid workers who rely on tips to help to boost their wages. It is important to get it right – enough but not too much. We supply all our customers with details regarding gratuities and we hope these guidelines are followed.

Tailor-made vacations cater for couples or small groups and this means that our customers have the opportunity to interact with the locals. We encourage you to stop at the small chai (tea) shops as you travel and give business to the chai wallah (even if you do not like the idea of drinking the tea yourself, your driver will appreciate it).

All of the guides we use are local and self-employed giving them the freedom to set their own fees and select when they work and who they work for.

We support local charities and invite our customers to do so too (details are supplied with your travel documents).