Nature and Indian Culture

Jaipur, the Pink City
Capital of Rajasthan, a heritage city revealing a monarchic power only recently eclipsed, but like any major city, the traffic can be trying, so we lodge you in an oasis at the heart of the city, the better to appreciate its riches.

Ranthambore
We stop here, not for the tigers — no, we go on safari for the Beauty, the scenery of the place, and if luck grants us a tiger, so much the better. This time we focus instead on the Ganesh temple and Ranthambore Fort… We also make a specific excursion to meet the Banjara tribes and villages accessible only by Jeep…

Orchha
In the 17th century, this town was the capital of a state founded by Bir Singh Deo, under the protection of the Mughal emperors of Delhi, until Aurangzeb removed him from power. From the prosperous period of this kingdom, isolated in the lands of the Bundelkhand region, remain timeless forts, palaces, mausoleums and temples. Today, however, Orchha is little more than a large, busy village on the banks of the Betwa river — but it is absolutely worth discovering.

Khajuraho and its thousand-year-old temples
Khajuraho is a site known worldwide for the erotic sculptures adorning its temples. When the British rediscovered and cleared the site from the dense vegetation that had covered it for centuries, in the 19th century, the astonishment and scandal were considerable… Much has been written, much has been imagined, about the meaning of these stone images, so lifelike and so explicit in their realism. They are perfect illustrations of the precepts of the Kama Sutra. But it would be a mistake to see Khajuraho as only the “erotic temples”. The architecture is one of splendid balance and harmony, and the celestial nymphs, depicted in graceful poses, leave visitors with a lasting impression.

Sarai at Toria
A small stopover, so as not to leave the jungle too soon, we like the atmosphere here, and above all — if he happens to be there — meeting Dr. Raghu Chundawat, a prominent tiger conservationist, can be a memorable moment.

Bandhavgarh
This park has the highest density of tigers, making it the ideal place to maximise your chances of a sighting — though let’s be clear, nothing is guaranteed, which is why we speak of a “game drive”. We have chosen the Tala zone, where 5 tigresses have given birth this year, improving your odds of exceptional encounters with young tigers. Luck still plays its part, as one of our clients put it last year: “the chances of not seeing a tiger are at their highest”… we can confirm that.

Agra and the Taj Mahal
You will reach Agra by night train — undoubtedly a genuine “India experience”!
As a city, Agra itself holds little charm. But one does not come here for the city… Agra is one of the great centres of Mughal art and architecture. Its two most prestigious monuments, the Taj Mahal and the Red Fort, illustrate the aesthetic perfection reached by Indo-Islamic art under this dynasty.
Completed in 1648 after 17 years of effort that drained the kingdom’s finances, the Taj Mahal was built on the south bank of the Yamuna by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his late wife, Mumtaz Mahal. As the story goes, she died giving birth to their fourteenth child (people married young in those days). The emperor was inconsolable. Once the mausoleum was finished, he considered building another for himself, entirely in black marble, on the opposite bank of the Yamuna, to be linked to the Taj Mahal by a marble bridge spanning the river…

Bharatpur
Bharatpur is a small town rarely visited by travellers, caught between two major draws: Agra with its Taj Mahal, and Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Yet it is often in these overlooked corners that the finest treasures lie hidden. Beyond its palaces and glittering temples, northern India offers other riches, such as the Keoladeo reserve, a vast expanse of greenery home to an impressive range of birdlife. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985.

Delhi
India’s capital city, an unavoidable stop before the flight home—a concrete jungle that will help you fully appreciate what you have just experienced.

In summary:
– 2 nights in Jaipur, in a palace
– 1 night in Ranthambore, in a boutique hotel
– 1 night in Ramathra, in a boutique hotel
– 1 night in Orchha, in a guesthouse
– 1 night at Sarai at Toria, in a boutique lodge
– 3 nights in Bandhavgarh, in 3-star hotels
– 1 night on a train
– 1 night in Bharatpur, in a boutique hotel in the heart of nature
– 1 night in Delhi, in a boutique guesthouse