RAJASTHAN: INDIA DESERT SAFARI NOVEMBER 2010

A stunning self drive tour through the heart of Rajasthan where tiny rural villages of mud and straw huts give way to the desert, where majestic and imposing forts stand sentinel over maze like streets, where camel and buffalo pulled carts are just as common as cars and fortune tellers and snake charmers sit on the street corners. In Rajasthan the diversity in landscape is just as rich as the culture.

This will be a fully guided and supported tour, so no chance of getting lost or long waits in the bush if you get stuck. Frequent water stops will be provided from the ice box in the lead vehicle and your buffet lunch will be waiting for you half way through the day. The driving days will be broken up with day trips to Rantambore National park for sun rise and sun set tiger spotting, a desert camel safari, with the night spent under the stars and a couple of rest days in interesting places for you to meander around the vivid bazaars haggling for souvenirs.

The tracks and trails will take you through tiny settlements of mud and thatch huts that seem to almost be a window directly back to the stone age, but the inhabitants are a very proud people with their lives firmly routed in their cultural traditions. The heads of families wear turbans and all the women are dressed from head to toe in the most vibrant colours. You’ll see more camels and buffaloes pulling carts than tractors. We’ll also visit the chaotic cities where culture, trade and commerce clash. Here you’ll be reminded that India is a third world country, but in these teeming streets lie the architectural gems of ages past, the palaces of Jaipur, the amazing fort at Jodpur, and of course, the Taj Mahal…..

To see the photo album of our reconnaissance tour of Rajasthan, please Click here.

Some of the highlights of your trip will include: Stunning desert sunsets. A night under the stars in the desert after a camel safari. Spotting a tiger in the national park. Saying ‘namaste’ to the smiling locals. Getting lost in the bazaars, full of amazing clothes and souvenirs. Sharing the road with goats, cows, buffalos, camels, monkeys and snakes. Staying in a 13th century hilltop fort and eating on the balcony, looking down at the lights of the town below. Having an Ayuvedic massage. Racing across the barren table top smooth salt flats.

MORE INFO The off-roading won’t be too difficult, compared to some of the tours we run, these are our own vehicles, so there’ll be no rock crawling or winching sessions, if it can possibly be avoided. You will need to make sure that your travel insurance policy will adequately cover your personal liability costs if you should damage the vehicle in an at fault accident while on the tour. However, the driving is a bit faster than green laning in the UK and the vehicle moves around and is slow to respond in the sand on corners so your concentration will always need to be high. This tour is suitable for novice off roaders as training and guidance will be given at the beginning of the tour for no extra cost. Vehicles will be brand new Mahindra Boleros, but with leaf springs and no power steering you will always have to work to drive it on the twisty sand tracks. They have 3 litre engines, so there’s plenty of torque to conquer the dunes.

The price will be based on two people sharing a vehicle and hotel rooms. There is a single supplement for people wanting to travel alone. Driving standards in India are just as bad as you have heard, and then some, but somehow it all works. Vehicles weave in and out and miss each other by inches, but speeds on the roads are much lower than we are used to, so with a bit of concentration and attention, and liberal use of the horn, you shouldn’t have too much trouble negotiating the traffic. Also, the lead and tail vehicles will be warning other road users of our presence.

PRICES Prices will be uploaded soon. Price won’t include your personal travel insurance policy, your flights or your Indian visa (approx. £30).

Thinking of booking a place on this tour? What to do…. Ask as many questions as you like. We try to cater for everyone, so if there is particularly something that you’d like to see and do as part of this tour that’s not already included, please let us know and we’ll see if we can incorporate it for you. I have a detailed itinerary of the tour you can have on request or when you book, so you can see the route that the tour will take. Then, when everything is to your satisfaction, please send us the deposit (which will be detailed later) and this will serve to guarantee your place on the tour.

Before you book, please look at our DISCLAIMER

. For any further information or to contact us, please phone us on 07919 070560 or email robb4x4@gmail.com