India Visa. There are many visa services but the government one is the only one to use and the cheapest. https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/tvoa.html. They ask way more questions than necessary and require a photo (square) and passport (size small). It arrived in 4 days, cost $41, and was a multiple-entry, one-year visa.
Airports and flying
Security. India is a country almost crippled by regulations and rules. In all airports, the army is security and they are very strict.
Your e-ticket and passport are required to enter the airport, a rule I haven’t seen since Covid. And they are very thorough – it must be a correct e-ticket with your name. Your boarding pass is checked 4-5 times between check-in and boarding. Just before entering the plane, they do a superficial visual check of the contents of your pack. What a waste of time.
They say “remove all electronics”. Anywhere else that would mean your phone and computer. Here it also included charging cables, plugs, battery packs and even cigarette USB chargers. Every time I go through security, I get hand-checked. Most every time, there is something else that is a problem. First, the tiny scissors in my toilet kit, then charging cables, then the cigarette plug and finally my umbrella. In Ranchi, they also checked my micorplane grater, took my fork, checked my electronic toothbrush and wanted to take my Speedy Sticher Awl (so I checked by bag to keep it). Certainly, lighters or matches are not allowed, but I’ve gotten away with putting my lighter in my secret pocket. The metal detectors are not as good as in China and don’t alarm at my watch, belt or lighters. Any scissors, no matter how small, are confiscated. I lost an expensive e-cigarette when I transited through Delhi in 2022.
Wifi. Indian airports have the worst wifi. It is never a simple sign in but requires getting a OTP on your phone (impossible as only Indian numbers are supported) or finding a wifi kiosk and getting a voucher. I was never able to connect. Way too complicated.
Smoking. All airports have smoking rooms, primitive affairs with clouds of smoke and nowhere to sit. You can also smoke anywhere outside, even next to doors.
Airlines. I flew everywhere on either Air India or Indigo. The Air India website worked well but on Indigo, I could never pay and finish a booking and had to use online booking agents. Indigo also boards over 30 minutes before take off as they routinely use shuttle buses to board. It is easy to miss an Indigo flight.
Indira Ghandi International Airport, Delhi. There are two terminals in use, one and three with a 17-minute shuttle bus between them. They charge for the shuttle. Add in wait times to board and this shuttle can take half an hour. I had a Kiwi ticket that used two different airlines and two different terminals. Kiwi doesn’t include the PNR (airline code for your flight) on its e-ticket so I couldn’t use the kiosk but had to wait in line at check in. It was appallingly slow and I missed the flight. A new ticket was $100. And go figure, even though they were identical flights, one left from Terminal 3 and the rebooked flight from Terminal
Trains. The first time I was in India, I could never register on the India Rail site, irctc.co.un. but this time, I was successful. First, choose a username and an 11-character password. Sign in and they link your phone number and email. You can book on that site or use ixigo.com, whichever you prefer. Add your date and you get a full list of the many trains (each with its specific name) and times. No traveler I met had been able to book a train on the website, but this was a few days before Diwali when Indians use the train heavily and everything books out. However, I did succeed on the Rourkela to Ranchi train (cost US$3.27 for a 3-hour journey). When I was in India in 2013, a guaranteed method to get a train was to go to the station 2 hours ahead. A certain number of seats were held for late release. Use the foreigner desk to avoid lineups. But this time, it seems that is policy no longer in use.
There are several classes of seats or berths: 1AC (first class AC) has 2 or 4 berths, a door and sometimes includes meals. 2AC (second class AC) has 4 berths, no door (ie open). G is general with no assigned seats and a zoo. S stands for sleeper (or maybe 2nd class or maybe seating. There are two wide benches, each used as a seat and two high bunks and two bunks on the side for 10 passengers and apparently room for six if at night. The windows are open and there is no AC.
On one train in 2013, I woke up to ten people standing between berths, the corridors were packed and it was virtually impossible to get off the train.
Taxis. Only use Uber. It is unbelievably cheap, usually less than half of a normal taxi. The app works well here. I virtually always leave a tip. Few driver’s speak English and for many destinations, they don’t have a clue where it is.
Tuk-tuks are just as expensive as an Uber (and often more) but wait times are minimal.
Food. Indian food may be the best cuisine in the world. And it is unbelievably cheap. I got tired of thali on my first trip to India in 2013, but have expanded my choices. Some is so spicey, I am soaked from sweating.
Street food is often a great choice. They congregate together and often have a great choice. I have become addicted to Aloo tiki, fried mashed potato cakes, spices, chickpea curry, yoghurt, and crunchy bits. There are many kinds of wraps usually with eggs. I never paid more than US30 cents for anything.
Dosas are great, but I’ve never seen them on the street.
English. It was surprisingly poor as I thought everyone spoke English here. But it is better than in China. I encountered three languages: Hindi, Punjabi, and Kashmiri. Download the language on Google Translate to use offline (text only).
Accommodation. Like food, this is very cheap: US$7-12. I virtually only booked on Booking.com as it has hostels, guesthouses and hotels.
Just like in China, many hotels don’t accept foreigners. On the hotel policies, this is never stated. It would be best to phone ahead to check the foreigner rules, but you would be lucky to find someone who speaks English at the hotel. In Chandigarh, I had to go to three hotels to find one (foreigners are only allowed in Section 17, 1 or 23. The reason for this includes Indian prohibitions and even for hotels where they are allowed, many refuse to fill out the lengthy question form necessary for foreigners. For hostels, read the amenities – lounge, outside seating, kitchen – as they provide fewer services than Western hostels.
