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Travel Tips
ORIENTATION
India is the seventh largest country in the world. Northern
India contains the snow-bound peaks and deep valleys of the
Himalayas and the vast Gangetic Plain, which separates the Himalayan
region from the southern peninsula and stretches from the Arabian
Sea to the Bay of Bengal. South of the plains, the land rises
up into a triangular-shaped plateau known as the Deccan. The
plateau is bordered by the Eastern and Western ghats, ranges
of hills, which run parallel to India's eastern and western
coasts and separate the fertile coastal strips from the interior.
Time Zone -: India is 5 hrs 30 minutes ahead of GMT (Greenwich
Mean Time) in the winter months India is 4 hrs 30 minutes ahead
of GMT.
CLIMATE
Climate varies greatly, from the arid deserts of Rajasthan to
the cool highlands of Assam, allegedly the wettest place on
earth. But basically India has a three-season year - the hot,
the wet and the cool. The heat starts to build up on the northern
plains around April and cools off by September. The monsoon
rains begin around June and end August. India's northern cities
start getting cool by October and become crisp at night in December.
In the far south, it never gets very cold, the temperatures
are comfortably warm rather than hot.
HEALTH INFORMATION
We urge you to read the health requirements and discuss health
precautions for your exact travel itinerary with a qualified
health professional at least six (6) weeks before you depart.
No vaccinations are currently required for entry into either
India or Nepal when arrival is directly from North America or
an Asian or European country. However, please read the following
information on the conditional requirement for yellow fever
vaccination.
Immunization against polio, tetanus and typhoid is recommended.
Visitors arriving from yellow fever area require valid vaccination
certificates. Malaria is endemic in certain parts of India;
consult a doctor for anti-malaria prescription. Additionally
carry any anti-mosquito cream or lotion for local application.
Modern hospitals exist in all major cites of India but visitors
are advised to travel with sufficient quantities of prescription
drugs.
PASSPORT AND VISA INFORMATION
Each traveler must be in possession of a valid, signed passport
that will remain valid for six (6) months beyond the completion
of his/her trip.
Visas: All foreign nationals require visas for India.
NOTE : You must obtain a MULTIPLE-ENTRY visa for India
if you are entering the country more than once on your itinerary.
If entering India more than once during a tour a double or multiple
entry visas must be obtained. Indian visas cannot be issued
on arrival.
Nepal All foreign national require visas for Nepal.
Citizens of countries other than the United States should check
with their booking agents for requirements pertaining to their
citizenship, as entry requirements can vary.
In compliance with current requirements, passenger names on
airline reservations must exactly match the names on their passports.
To ensure accuracy, ATI requires a copy of the informational
pages of your passport if your travel itinerary includes air
flights booked through our office. (This includes "internal"
flights.) Passport copies can be mailed in or faxed to us at
+91-11-26499558/59.
Please be aware that it is the traveler's responsibility to
obtain all documents that are necessary for admittance to the
countries visited on his/her itinerary.
ARRIVAL AND CUSTOMS INFORMATION
Please be advised that regulations at most points of international
arrival do not permit passengers to be met inside secured passenger
areas (such as the Customs area). In addition, airports in India
are occasionally put on short-notice, high-security alerts;
and, at these times, passengers can only be met outside of the
airport building. On arrival in India,
you will be required to complete a Currency Declaration Form.
AIRPORT CHARGES
Airport departure tax applies at different levels for neighboring
countries and these may or may not be included in the cost of
your air ticket. This can be rechecked before departure from
your ticketing/travel agent. However, currently for neighboring
countries it is Rs. 150 and for international departures it
is Rs.700.
For domestic flights, there are only check-in and security formalities.
At certain points, you may be asked to personally identify your
baggage before boarding the aircraft.
Please be advised that airport departure taxes are subject to
change without notice.
RECONFIRMATION OF FLIGHTS
When you arrive in India, your ATI representative will collect
your airline tickets
so that departure flights can be reconfirmed. Flight reconfirmation
is essential in India, and failure to do so is likely to result
in cancelled reservations.
ELECTRICITY
Electricity 220 AC. Socket sizes vary widely: take a universal
adaptor.
LANGUAGES
Popular languages are Hindi and English, plus 16 main languages
and over 700 dialects are spoken in India.
PHOTOGRAPHY
If you are taking photographs of local people, always ask their
permission beforehand. Your driver / guide will assist you in
this and will possibly help you agree on a modeling fee. Do
not take photographs of any official buildings, such as military
installations, airports, railway stations, boarder posts or
roadblocks.
BAGGAGE INFORMATION
There are several different sets of baggage allowance regulations
in effect for international and regional flights. Baggage allowances
can vary depending on which airline(s), class of service, and
routing is used. Despite the information given here, you are
urged to check with your booking agent for the exact baggage
regulations pertaining to your specific itinerary.
Please be advised that baggage limits are adhered to very strictly
on both international and domestic flights. Most domestic carriers
have more restrictive baggage limitations than international
carriers. On domestic flights, the baggage allowance is 30 kilograms
(66 lbs.) per person for those traveling in economy class and
40 kilograms (88 lbs.) per person for those traveling in executive
class.
In case of a small plane being used for travel within India
or Nepal, the maximum baggage allowance varies between 15 (33
lbs) to 20 kilograms (44 lbs.) per person.
Any baggage in excess of airline limitations may be subject
to substantial freight charges by the airline.
In addition, do not pack valuable items (such as your camera
and jewelry) in checked baggage.
Canned foods, knives, scissors, or other sharp objects that
may be considered potentially dangerous should not be packed
in your hand luggage.
GUIDES
Trained English speaking guides are available at fixed charges
at all important tourist centres. French, Italian, Spanish,
German, Russian and Japanese speaking guides are available at
most of the important cities. Since the Language speaking guides
are limited in numbers, enough notice should be given to ATI
to block them for assignments.
EXPORT OF ANTIQUES
Antiquities, which include sculpture, painting or other works
of art and crafts, illustrative of science, art, crafts, religion
of bygone ages and of historical interest which have been in
existence for not less than 100 years may not be exported out
of India.
Manuscripts or other documents of scientific, historical, literary
or aesthetic value in existence for not less than 75 years;
art treasures, not necessarily antiquities but having regard
to the artistic and aesthetic value cannot be exported out of
India.
For further clarification on the antiquity of an artefact, the
tourists can contact the authorities and get information on
the Acts and Rules governing Antiquities and Art Treasures Act,
1972.
CURRENCY
The Indian Rupee (Rs), divided into 100 paise (p). There are
no restrictions on the amount visitors can bring into India.
Travelers carrying more than US$ 5000 in cash and US$ 10,000
in traveler's cheque are required to fill in a currency declaration
form.
Most hotels and large shops accept credit cards but smaller
properties and game lodges do not. Only change money at official
banks and hotels and keep your receipts, which is required in
the event of your changing the Indian currency to your own currency
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