Responsible tourism in the Golden Triangle


Our India Golden Triangle Vacations
Golden Triangle with Ranthambore tour, India
Brilliant experiences including Tigers and Temples
Golden Triangle small group vacation, India
India's 3 most popular destinations, Delhi, Agra & Jaipur
North India cultural tour
An adventure to one of the planet's exotic destinations
Golden Triangle 7 day tour in India
Classic iconic trip for the India First timer..in style
Golden Triangle 9 day tour in India
Top Quality Golden triangle Trip at an excellent price.
The Golden Triangle cycling vacation in India
A fascinating introduction to Northern India
Luxury Golden Triangle vacation in India
The Golden triangle Staying at the very best hotels in India
Golden Triangle & tigers in India
Rajathan's palaces, the Taj Mahal & tigers
India tour, Taj, tigers and Ganges vacation
Experience the essence of northern India
Golden Triangle & Kerala vacation, India
Best of Golden Triangle & Kerala, a perfect intro to India
Golden Triangle express tour, India
A 4-day Express tour of the Taj Mahal, Delhi, and Jaipur.
Golden Triangle and Shimla tour in India
Enjoy the amazing toy train ride to Shimla
India vacation on a shoestring
Fantastic introduction to exploring Northern India
The Golden Triangle vacation in India
Old Delhi, the city of Agra and Jaipur
Rajasthan small group tour, India
Discover Rajasthan in depth
Rajasthan tour with desert experience, India
Investigate India's spellbinding northwest
Rajasthan culture and wildlife tour
A private adventure through colourful Rajasthan!
India Golden Triangle and Ranthambhore vacation
Experience the Golden Triangle and India's tigers
Rajasthan vacation, private departure
Explore the beautiful and vibrant province of Rajasthan!
Rajasthan experience vacation
Explore the mysteries of Rajasthan
7 day Golden Triangle tour in India
India's Highlights - Delhi, Jaipur, Agra, Vrindavan, Mathura
Luxury Rajasthan vacation, 14 days
Experience life as a Maharaja in wonderful Rajasthan
Orissa and Golden Triangle vacation in India
Explore the serene and historical state of Orissa
Golden Triangle tailor made vacation in India
Golden Triangle plus visit Haridwar and Rishikesh
Adventure vacation in Rajasthan, India
Explore Rajasthan and cycle the country roads to Agra
Rajasthan tours, India
Discover the evocative northern province of Rajasthan
India Golden Triangle tour with Kerala Backwaters
Exotic India Golden Triangle tour which is highly recommended
India Golden Triangle tour, 11 days
11 day cultural tour of Golden Triangle
Classic Golden Triangle tour with Jim Corbett
Wildlife adventures, tiger tours, and jungle safaris
Golden triangle homestay tour in India
Cultural and rural tour of Golden Triangle with Homestays
People & culture in the Golden Triangle
Respecting culture
The Golden Triangle is made up of the three busiest points on the Indian tourist trail. We wouldn’t be offering vacations there if we didn’t believe in their cultural importance. There are good reasons why millions of people flock to see the Taj Mahal, Jaipur and Delhi, but part of being a responsible tourism is also about learning to be calm, patient and respectful of local people when visiting them. You may be on a tourist trail, but these are still people’s homes. Most importantly, they are also home to many sacred places. There are working mosques at the Taj Mahal and Red Fort, for example, and so it is important to respect these sacred, places of worship. Not just somewhere that Princess Diana famously posed alone for a photo on a bench.What you can do
Put cultural sensitivity at the top of your ‘to do’ list, before selfies and Twitter posts. Especially when it comes to dress sense. For women, in particular, showing bare legs, shoulders and wearing low cut tops are a faux pas. And, in fact, if you cover yourself with light cotton, it is actually cooler as the sun isn’t hitting your skin. Women should also have a shawl to cover their head in a mosque. Being intimate with a partner in public is not really welcomed in India.
Communication divide
What you can do:
Do ask questions, and do ask for the quality that you paid for or were promised. But do so with kindness and respect. Be prepared to ask more questions of a local supplier than you think you need too, or than you are used to doing in other destinations where mass tourism is the norm. If you are not clear about something, seek further clarification and don’t take anything as read.
“Don’t be afraid to be direct. Indians are equally direct and open but rudeness is not really part of our culture. We have things to work on as a country and we can take criticism, but most of the time we don’t know that there is something wrong. We are not a precise nation, so if you want that, you need to ask us to be so.”
Wildlife & environment
In this case it is all about not doing something, rather than doing something. Just stay clear of elephant rides or take photos from a distance and share on social media copying in the Ministry of Tourism @tourismgoi, saying what you think of this outmoded and outrageous practice. As we mentioned above, communicating clearly is often the best way to create change in India. Also, do read our ‘Elephants in tourism’ guide for more details on our stance on this issue.