The Travel Snob

Why Not Plan to Travel India by Truck with the Fam this October? TRAVEL SNOB TRAVEL BLOG

After a colorful city tour through the labyrinthine streets of Old Delhi and the leafy boulevards of Delhi, venture beyond the hustle & bustle to the Rajasthan Desert for a two-night stay in a village of mud brick cottages; camel  rides through the spectacular desert scenery and village walks in local Rajasthani communities are on the agenda. Next comes a farmstay in the countryside around Jaipur, with a city tour, a traditional evening with music, and an overnight stay in a small Maharajah's palace. Agra follows, with a guided rickshaw ride through sleepy Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, a guided tour of the Taj Mahal and Red Fort, and a visit to the royal city of Fatehpur Sikri. And lastly, head through Uttar Pradesh to the Himalayan foothills and Corbett National Park, where exciting tiger and wildlife safaris by jeep and elephant-back top the itinerary. Conclude the affair with a celebratory Indian feast - with enough chapatis to feed a Maharajah's elephant!

"It's a package we've been working on for some time, and we're very excited about it. We know from the popularity of our African family adventure travel packages that there is real demand for family overland truck based travel that is not as physically demanding but still as memorable as our traditional packages,"  explains Charlie Hopkinson, marketing director at Dragoman Overland. " Having brought true overland truck travel to families visiting Africa (check out our family holidays at Dragoman.com) it's great that we can now offer the culture and wildlife of India to younger people, whilst still using our popular Dragoman Overland trucks."

Dragoman Overland's unique 10-day family adventure tour departs either on October 17th or December 21st. This overland truck adventure is suitable for children aged 7 and upwards. For more info, go to Dragoman.com.

- The Travel Snob

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Find a Travel Needle in a Haystack with Lonely Planet's Newest Accommodation Booking Website. TRAVEL SNOB TRAVEL BLOG

If you're the adventurous sort who enjoys your travel off the beaten path, but still digs excellent accomodation, Lonely Planet's Haystack is serving up a unique 'invitation only' booking service that features only properties that have been chosen, visited, reviewed and recommended by a Lonely Planet author.

"Whenever you go checking places out grumpy hotel owners say "Why do you guys come at such difficult times?" and that's exactly why we do it. We want to see places at their best and worst," explains one of Lonely Planet's intrepid authors. "First thing in the morning when people are checking out is always a good time to see how people handle being busy, plus there's always a helpful cleaner who might let you see a room that you might not otherwise have caught on the grand tour. The most important thing is to avoid the "official tour," where the people at the desk get the manager and you get shown how light switches work or invited for a cup of tea. Sometimes this can mean sneaking around the front desk or talking to people who are staying there or even just breaking up that tour by saying "What about these rooms?" You have to review against what you're being shown, which often means being pretty annoying to hotel staff." Adds another of their authors: "I don't really jump on beds, but I do look closely to see that the bedspreads are clean (I hate gunky-looking patterned bedspreads), suss out the bathrooms for water pressure and mould, test the windows to see if they can be opened and open wardrobes to look for wire coat hangers (yuck!). I often check minibar prices to see if they're extortionate, and I like to look at communal areas to see how guests and guests of guests are treated. I like to say hello to the people who clean the rooms to, you can tell a lot about a place by the greeting that's returned - and I think everyone in a hotel/motel or wherever should be happy to be there, even if it's for work."

In fact, many of their properties were not previously bookable online through any other service. "We are inviting our favorite properties from around the globe to join the service -- whether it's a backpackers in Sydney, an eco-resort in Yap, or a boutique hotel in Rome," says Dan Christian, Lonely Planet's Haystack Product Manager. "Haystack is a unique service in that every property listed is recommended as a great place to stay. Every property review is 100% independent and written by an experienced travel writer." Currently, Haystack boasts over 1000 properties in more than 58 countries, and more are being added all the time. "Haystack will continue to grow daily as more destinations and properties are added to the site throughout 2007 and beyond."

For more info, visit Haystack.LonelyPlanet.com.

- The Travel Snob

If National Geographic Traveler Deems a Place one of the Top 50 "Must See in a Lifetime" - it's Time to Put Kerala, India in Your Plans. TRAVEL SNOB TRAVEL BLOG

A tea garden hill, a mountain river, peaceful beach, an old world town, flowers, elephants, the monsoon rains, a rural temple festival, religions, recipes and stone carvings. Just a typical moment-day-season in Kerala. A long, skinny 500 meter long strip on India's southwest cost, this stretch of heaven on earth is full of refreshing greenery and languid lake cruises, country boat races, elephant spectacles and even the martial art kalari payattu.

For more about the local sights, sounds, stories, legends and lifestyle of the people, visit Kerala-Green-Hills-and-Backwaters.com.

- The Travel Snob