Excellent news from India – we can now recommence running tours!
On Friday 5 November, India announced that it was withdrawing the requirement for all Brits arriving in India to quarantine for seven days providing they pass the COVID test at the arrival airport in India. Until that date, even if a Brit passed the COVID test on arrival, they were still required to quarantine for seven days. This has opened up the opportunity for us to run tours to the subcontinent again.
Infections
India and Bangladesh have done a remarkable job in controlling COVID: there are still problem areas in India, but they are restricted to the Mumbai area and Kerala in the south: neither area is being touched by any of our early 2022 tours. India has administered over A BILLION jabs in the past few months, with over 50% of the entire population having had at least one jab, and about 25% being double jabbed. The current vaccination rate should have them up to the UK’s present levels by February. It has to be said that, for the last three months, I would far rather be standing in the middle of Kolkata than the middle of Manchester! Likewise, Bangladesh is showing levels of infection well down at just 1.2% from their peak.
Having studied the figures carefully for the last few months, and having taken appropriate advice, we now strongly believe we can run tours to West Bengal, Bangladesh and the Kangra/Amritsar area with about the same risk as going shopping in the UK.
The important point is that it is now possible to travel safely from Britain to India and back to Britain with only paperwork (and jabs) to sort in advance. Of course, Darjeeling Tours will provide all the information needed to keep the paperwork in order. It will be necessary, of course, to comply with UK and foreign government and airline requirements. As a minimum, it will involve being (at least) double jabbed.
Unfortunately, this news came through too late to save the proposed January 2022 Indian Magic tour, but this popular tour will run again in January 2023.
Our full programme is now:
14 February to 3 March 2022 - The Darjeeling Mail
Kolkata, Bangladesh and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
13 to 31 March 2022 - The Kangra Valley
Shimla and the magical Kangra Valley Railway, plus Amritsar, Jaipur and the Dhaulpur narrow gauge
3 to 18 September 2022 - The Best of Colorado
All the major steam railroads in Colorado, plus really BIG trains on the main line. And UPs ‘Big Boy’
14 October to 1 November 2022 - Australia
All the best of south-east Australia, Melbourne trams, Puffing Billy, Queensland sugar lines and the Great Barrier reef
11 to 27 January 2023 - Indian Magic
Our signature tour. Kolkata, Darjeeling, Shimla and the Taj Mahal. Ooty, too, if you wish!
Darjeeling Tours for the very best of Indian Hill Railways and more! We offer a range of escorted tours and add-ons to all of our itineraries so you can visit other parts of India, such as the amazing Taj Mahal or Kerala’s backwaters. In India, April to June is unpleasantly hot (on the plains) and July to September is the monsoon season, which explains our dates for Indian tours. We also have tours to the USA and Australia.
The itineraries are available on this site for perusal or download, or please let us know if you would like us to mail you a paper copy. After all the COVID disruption, don’t you deserve a good interesting holiday?
Our Tours
Most of our escorted rail tours include steam charters, and on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway there’s our exclusive dining charter plus a bus that follows the train along the line, so you can get those great shots of the locomotive in action. There’s plenty for partners to enjoy on our Indian train tours - group tours - and you’ll have time in each place to relax and explore.
In the hill stations, we stay in interesting heritage properties such as the Windamere Hotel in Darjeeling or the Taj Savoy in Ooty - oozing with character! Each rail tour is accompanied by one of our experienced Tour Managers who will make sure that your holiday runs smoothly.
We don’t just organise holidays to India, we also specialise in the USA and have a great tours to Colorado in the States. Following our successful 2018 tour to Australia we have an even better one organised for 2022!
For a first visit to India, we have our Indian Magic tour, visiting the three famous Hill Stations of Darjeeling, Shimla and Ooty. Have a look at our Kangra Valley Tour for 2022- this really covers some of the most beautiful and interesting places in North India.
For your peace of mind, we’re a UK based tour operator and have run rail tours for many years. We’re ATOL licensed, for your protection. When you contact us you’ll speak to a real person with lots of experience of travelling in India the USA and Australia and we’ll personally make sure that you have an amazing holiday experience with us! You can book online, by phone or just fill in the booking form.
On Friday 5 November, India announced that it was withdrawing the requirement for all Brits arriving in India to quarantine for seven days providing they pass the COVID test at the arrival airport in India. Until that date, even if a Brit passed the COVID test on arrival, they were still required to quarantine for seven days. This has opened up the opportunity for us to run tours to the subcontinent again.
Infections
India and Bangladesh have done a remarkable job in controlling COVID: there are still problem areas in India, but they are restricted to the Mumbai area and Kerala in the south: neither area is being touched by any of our early 2022 tours. India has administered over A BILLION jabs in the past few months, with over 50% of the entire population having had at least one jab, and about 25% being double jabbed. The current vaccination rate should have them up to the UK’s present levels by February. It has to be said that, for the last three months, I would far rather be standing in the middle of Kolkata than the middle of Manchester! Likewise, Bangladesh is showing levels of infection well down at just 1.2% from their peak.
Having studied the figures carefully for the last few months, and having taken appropriate advice, we now strongly believe we can run tours to West Bengal, Bangladesh and the Kangra/Amritsar area with about the same risk as going shopping in the UK.
The important point is that it is now possible to travel safely from Britain to India and back to Britain with only paperwork (and jabs) to sort in advance. Of course, Darjeeling Tours will provide all the information needed to keep the paperwork in order. It will be necessary, of course, to comply with UK and foreign government and airline requirements. As a minimum, it will involve being (at least) double jabbed.
Unfortunately, this news came through too late to save the proposed January 2022 Indian Magic tour, but this popular tour will run again in January 2023.
Our full programme is now:
14 February to 3 March 2022 - The Darjeeling Mail
Kolkata, Bangladesh and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
13 to 31 March 2022 - The Kangra Valley
Shimla and the magical Kangra Valley Railway, plus Amritsar, Jaipur and the Dhaulpur narrow gauge
3 to 18 September 2022 - The Best of Colorado
All the major steam railroads in Colorado, plus really BIG trains on the main line. And UPs ‘Big Boy’
14 October to 1 November 2022 - Australia
All the best of south-east Australia, Melbourne trams, Puffing Billy, Queensland sugar lines and the Great Barrier reef
11 to 27 January 2023 - Indian Magic
Our signature tour. Kolkata, Darjeeling, Shimla and the Taj Mahal. Ooty, too, if you wish!
Darjeeling Tours for the very best of Indian Hill Railways and more! We offer a range of escorted tours and add-ons to all of our itineraries so you can visit other parts of India, such as the amazing Taj Mahal or Kerala’s backwaters. In India, April to June is unpleasantly hot (on the plains) and July to September is the monsoon season, which explains our dates for Indian tours. We also have tours to the USA and Australia.
The itineraries are available on this site for perusal or download, or please let us know if you would like us to mail you a paper copy. After all the COVID disruption, don’t you deserve a good interesting holiday?
Our Tours
Most of our escorted rail tours include steam charters, and on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway there’s our exclusive dining charter plus a bus that follows the train along the line, so you can get those great shots of the locomotive in action. There’s plenty for partners to enjoy on our Indian train tours - group tours - and you’ll have time in each place to relax and explore.
In the hill stations, we stay in interesting heritage properties such as the Windamere Hotel in Darjeeling or the Taj Savoy in Ooty - oozing with character! Each rail tour is accompanied by one of our experienced Tour Managers who will make sure that your holiday runs smoothly.
We don’t just organise holidays to India, we also specialise in the USA and have a great tours to Colorado in the States. Following our successful 2018 tour to Australia we have an even better one organised for 2022!
For a first visit to India, we have our Indian Magic tour, visiting the three famous Hill Stations of Darjeeling, Shimla and Ooty. Have a look at our Kangra Valley Tour for 2022- this really covers some of the most beautiful and interesting places in North India.
For your peace of mind, we’re a UK based tour operator and have run rail tours for many years. We’re ATOL licensed, for your protection. When you contact us you’ll speak to a real person with lots of experience of travelling in India the USA and Australia and we’ll personally make sure that you have an amazing holiday experience with us! You can book online, by phone or just fill in the booking form.
We also design Readers’ Tours for magazines and other publications or special interest groups/clubs. Readers’ Tours are a great way to get a group together with a special interest. Contact us to find out more.
Want to chat about our tours? Give us a call on +44 (0) 208 249 8943
Want to chat about our tours? Give us a call on +44 (0) 208 249 8943
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All the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied with an ATOL Certificate. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything you booked (flights, hotels and other services) is listed on it. Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.atol.org.uk/ATOLCertificate.
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