Holidays Travel Guide

To discover about India's various states and tourist destinations, click on the respective states in the map below, or use the left hand side navigation.


Andhra Pradesh
Away from the lush green coastal plains, irrigated by the Krishna and Godavari Rivers, much of Andra Pradesh is rocky, bare and dry.

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Assam
One of the greenest and loveliest regions of India, Assam is the largest of the north-eastern states. Covering an area- 78,525 sq.km, it is connected to rest of the country by a narrow strip of the land running to the north of the Bangladesh.

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Bihar
Surrounded by West Bengal, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim and Nepal, the state of Bihar is primarily a rice producing are. Historically, the state has a rich and ancient cultural heritage. About 25 centuries ago, Pataliputra or the present day Patna was the capital of the first major empire in Indian history – Magadh.

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Chattisgarh
Hemmed in by UP, Orissa, Andhra, MP and Maharashtra, Chattisgarh is predominantly tribal, but endowed with rich mineral and forest wealth. In addition to its diamond mines, the major minerals found here include coal, iron ore, limestone and dolomite.

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Delhi
The National Capital of India,Delhi founded by Raja Dhilu, has a very rich History. From Tomars to Bahadur Shah Zafar, Delhi has been the love and desire of every Kingdom which has ruled Delhi. Edwin Lutyens, the architect of Delhi is responsible for giving Delhi its new look during the English Period.

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Gujarat
Of all the Indian states, Gujarat possesses the longest coastline. It is situated on the west coast of India and has a long and varied history. According to legend the temple of Somnath - which centers on tales and legends of Lord Krishna -w as itself actually here to witness the creation of the Universe.

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Goa
A little way up the coast from the famed Malabar Coast is Goa – the land of the golden sun, sand and surf. Goa’s antiquity stretches back to the 3rd century B.C. when the Mauryas ruled it. Kings and dynasties switched hands. In 1510 Goa saw the arrival of the Portuguese who were lured by the quest for the aromatic spices of India.

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Haryana
Main language HindiOne of the youngest states in the country, Haryana came into being in 1966 by getting carved out from the heart of the Indo-Gangetic plains. Roughly the size of Belgium, Haryana, today is said to be the cradle of a part of India’s ancient civilization.

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Himachal Pradesh
The state was created out of the Punjab in 1966 and awarded statehood in 1971. Shimla, a famous British hill station, is the state’s capital and worth a visit to see the lengths at which the British went in trying to recreate a part of England on foreign soil.

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Jammu & Kashmir
They say a visit to Kashmir can divide your life into two halves - before and after Kashmir. For indeed, after a trip to this unforgettable land, you are never quite the same again. Nesting in the lap of dazzling, snow capped Himalayas, the Kashmir valley is undoubtedly a jewel in India's crown.

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Jharkhand
Jharkhand is among the few destinations that can offer you the perfect holiday option. Apart from the natural beauty you can enjoy a wide range of other pursuits. Chhotanagpur, a name which brings to the mind highlands interspersed with rolling hills, clad in luxuriant forests criss-crossed by numerous narrow limpid hill streams.

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Karnataka
Ruled by a succession of dynasties over its turbulent history, Karnataka has a range of architectural gems to entice the visitor. To the north are impressive relics of the Muslim past: the huge dome of Golgumbaz in Bijapur, and the massive fortress at Bidar. Further to the south are awesome ruins of the ancient city of Vijayanagar with their huge temples and monolithic sculptures.

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Kerala
Mirror -still lagoons, picturesque lakesides, palm-fringed canals, tingy shimmering rivulets meandering - yes, this God's own land. The seductive beeches lay unspoilt in quiet seclusion. In the lush velvet paddy fields the immortal silence is broken the sound of the curlew.

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Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh is not called the "heart of India" only because of its location in the centre of the country. It has been home to the cultural heritage of Hindhuism, Buddhism, Jainism and Islam. Innumerable monuments, exquisitely carved temples, stupas, forts and palaces are dotted all over the State.

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Maharashtra
Covering a large part of the Deccan Plateau, the state of Maharashtra is partially hilly. The Western Ghats is beautiful and verdant, as they receive showers during the summer as well as the winter. Centuries ago, these hills and crags provided excellent ground for the highly perfected guerilla warfare techniques of the Marathas like Shivaji against the Mughals Influences of various schools and different ages can be seen in the monuments and sculptures of Maharashtra.

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Orissa
Orissa - Kalinga or Utkala of ancient times - is an experience that is as sublime as it is aesthetically innervating. Shrouded in mystery for decades, it has slowly started unveiling its secrets to the outside world. For centuries now, the Orissan Golden Triangle of Bhubhaneshwar-Puri-Konark has retained a vantage point on India's pilgrimage circuit.

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Punjab
The flat, open and richly cultivated plains of Haryana and Punjab have witnessed some of ancient India’s most singnificant battles. Kurukshetra, Lord Krishna’s battlefield in the Mahabharata, and Panipat, where Muslim power was established, lie in Haryana just north of delhi. Punjab, the land of five rivers and integrated cultural history, is a treasure trove for avid tourist.

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Rajasthan
Rajasthan or Rajputana of old is the most colourful and exotic of all Indian states. A land which bore a race of people known for their bravery and their chivalry. Yes, the Rajputs. A clan which maintained a high code of honour and conduct for themselves and for others too.

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Sikkim
A mountainous state in the northeastern region of India, Sikkim quietly spreads at the base of the third highest mountain peak in the world-Mt. Khangchendzonga or Kanchenjunga, as it is known in the outside world. This majestic mountain is looked upon with awe and deep reference by the Sikkimese.

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Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu, once known as the Coromandel coast, has a language over 2000 yrs old and poetry dating back to before the birth of Christ. The states official emblem indicates it to be the Temple state of India. The history of south India temple architecture and sculpture begins with the Pallavas who ruled large parts of South India from the 5th century to the last quarter of the 9th century.

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Uttar Pradesh
The land is as old as the mountains. It was born 2 million years ao when the Himalayas hunched out of the Tethys Sea and rose, towering, into the sky. At the southern feet of this mighty range, a broad valley sloped. Among the high peaks of the Uttar Pradesh (Northern Province) Himalaya springs the source of the sacred river Ganga (Ganges), regarded by the Hindus as the physical and spiritual life source of the country.

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Uttaranchal
Recently carved out of the state of Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal mainly comprises the hilly regions and possesses a wealth natural beauty in the form of several attractive hill resorts as also some of Hinduism’s most sacred pilgrim sites including Badrinath and Kedarnath. The capital of the new state is Dehradun.

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West Bengal
It is one state that has a galaxy of attractions with bewitching contrasts. Take the busy state capital Kolkata, always intensely alive to cultural, artistic and intellectual pursuits. Where fairs and festivals abound with book fairs, art exhibitions, dramas and musical soirees, film festivals.

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Andaman & Nicobar
A bird’s view shows this cluster of 350 small and large islands as small, green specks staggered on the vast blue waters. Situated midway between India and Burma, in the Bay of Bengal, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were at one time inhabited by various tribes which strongly resisted any efforts at civilization.

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Chandigarh
The beautiful city of Chandigarh has the distinction of being a Union Territory as well as the capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. The city is an architectural marvel. Designed and conceived in 1950 by the French architect Le Corbusier, at the behest of the then Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. The modern architecture and the town planning makes it a jewel in the urbanscape of modern India.

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Daman & Diu
An erst while Portuguese colony, the union territory of damn & Diu offers excellent beaches, timeless monuments and colorful, festive and simple people. The Arabian Sea surrounds the island of Diu on three sides with the capital Daman about 785 km away.

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Lakshadweep
Lying 200 -400 km off the mainland of Kerala, the conglomeration of thirty coral islands, Lakshadweep is a fascinating experience. It comprises 36 islands - large and small, spreading over 32 sqkm but only a few are open for tourists, giving it a unique mystical appeal.

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Ladakh
Ladakh is a land like no other. Bounded by two of the world's mightiest mountain ranges, the Great Himalayas and the Karakoram, it lies athwart two others, The Ladakh ranfe and the Zanskar range. Ladakh lies at altitudes ranging from about 9'000 feetat Kargil to 25'170 feet at Sasar Kangri in the Karakoram. The summer temperatures rarely exceed 27ºC in shade and in winters it may drop to -20ºC even in Leh.