TRIP TO INDIA WITH DRIVER: TIPS AND ITINERARY OF 2 WEEKS

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Are you looking forward to travel to India but your legs shake just thinking about it? This immense Asian country draws attention to many travelers, but is capable of fascinating and frightening at the same level. It may be that all this uncertainty makes you rethink your trip and find another destination much easier, but it would be a complete mistake. If you want to travel to India, do it! A good idea to eliminate these insecurities is to organize a trip to India with private driver, and here we are to give you a few tips, respond to most frequent doubts and ask yourself a 2 week itinerary... But let's go parts!

There are many ways to travel through India, depending on the style of travel, the weather, the number of people, the region ... But normally when planning a trip to India you will have basically three options: do it for free, trust an agency where they give you everything chewed, or something intermediate like hiring a driver. In our first adventure through this huge country, we spent 3 months backpacking for free, visiting part of the north, the west coast and exploring the south with a motorcycle. But when we returned with Lety's parents we decided to go on a quieter plan and finally we hired a package with driver, guides and hotels. The truth is that the experience was very good, we tell you more:

When you negotiate the package, you will have the option of including several services, such as car with driver (price per day), tour guides (price per visit), hotels (of various categories), trains, flights, etc. Obviously depending on this, the total package price will be higher or lower. If you only want the driver car, the price obviously goes down: calculate some 35/45€ per day (to divide between the people who go in the car).

Prices also depend on the number of people. The price of the driver and the car will be higher the more people travel, although in reality the cost for them is the same. It is also possible that there is a supplement if you need a single room, etc.

We pay some 400€* by:

11 days of driver
10 hotel nights (medium-high category)
Agra night train to Varanasi in 2nd class
4 guides in Italian (obviously, they can also be in Spanish)

*price per person

As for where to hire these services, our recommendation is to do it in advance before traveling to India. There's a lot local agencies and independent drivers which are announced and recommended in the Facebook group "Backpackers in India", some also in Spanish.

We did it with Mahentra Shyam Tours, a New Delhi agency with excellent prices and very good services. This is Mahendra, a man who was his entire driving life, and who set up his own travel company. His son works with him and they both speak Spanish perfectly. They have a group of professional drivers (we went with Ranjeet, very old and communicates well in Spanish and English) and also offer hotel packages and guides in each city (in Spanish). The procedure was all done through emails, and 50% is paid upon arrival and the other 50% before the end of the trip (we prefer to pay everything upon arrival). Although he always answered all emails and whatsapp calls quickly, we were afraid of arriving at the Delhi airport and not finding anyone (with the Indians you never know!). But no, there was Shyam with the driver and we could breathe easy.

It also can hire directly there, in Delhi (especially in the Connaught Place area), but we don't think it's a good idea. The first thing is that they will always want to charge you an excessive price, and you have to negotiate hard with them. And the second is that you will not have references from the driver or the agency, so you are more exposed to surprises ...

If your idea is to arrive in Delhi and visit the most important of the Rajasthan region in about two weeks, this is the plan that we propose (16 days).

Days 1 and 2: New Delhi.
Day 3: Mandawa (300 km, 6 hours)
Day 4: Bikaner (200 km, 4 hours)
Day 5: Jaisalmer (340 km, 7 hours)
Day 6: Night in the Thar desert
Day 7: Jodhpur (300 km, 6 hours)
Day 8: Jodhpur + Mandore Garden
Day 9: Udaipur (250 km, 5 hours)
Day 10: Udaipur
Day 11: Pushkar (300 km, 6 hours)
Day 12: Jaipur (150 km, 3 hours)
Day 13: Jaipur + Amber Fort and Galta Ji Temple
Day 14: Agra (270 km, 5 hours). Visit Fatehpur Sikri on the way
Day 15: Agra - Delhi. Visit Taj Mahal (eye that is not Friday) and the city. Departure to Delhi to arrive at night
Day 16: return

If you had to shorten a couple of days, we would probably skip Jodhpur or Udaipur.

Alternative: If you want to make the trip even more complete, we recommend taking a night train from Agra and arriving at Varanasi, one of the most special and intense places in India. Then from there you can fly to Delhi and take your flight back to Spain.

Although the agencies propose an established route to help you, you can always shape it to your liking, including days, stops, visits, etc. Once you have it developed they will give you a price, and it's up to you to accept it.

These are the favorable points to travel in India with driver:

You avoid the problem of traveling in public transport: make reservations in advance (several weeks) for trains and adjust the trip to train / bus schedules / routes.
They travel longer distances in less time (although watch out for this, because the roads in Rajasthan are a disaster).
Higher flexibility To make stops along the way.
Security, when always accompanied by a local. Especially for solo travelers.
If you are lucky and the driver is blissful, he can tell you lots of things about the life and customs in India. There are many hours of car and so many things to learn from this country ...

And here are the cons, which may make you decide for a trip for free:

A part of the true india It is felt traveling by train. If you have the possibility, include a section of your train journey.
The drivers They are very nice and they probably want to always take you to restaurants, shops, accommodations ... where they get a commission. We recommend you book the accommodations before (or include them in the package with the agency) and look for restaurants on websites such as tripadvisor. You should also make it clear from the beginning (in a good mood, huh?) That you do not want to go to sites of his "friends" where he receives commission and everything is more expensive.
Price: a free trip always leaves cheaper than hiring a driver. For groups the prices of the driver are higher (although in reality the service and gasoline is exactly the same), but the proportion of the expense is lower. So it is recommended to hire a driver for groups of several people, or for couples. For a lonely traveler It can become too expensive.

We recommend a trip like this when they are:

Short trips where you want to see as much as possible
Group travel (or couple)
When you feel insecure and prefer to rely on a local

Here are a series of questions we asked ourselves before traveling with a driver in India:

Is he always the same driver?

Yes, the same driver will always accompany you, from the pick-up at the Delhi airport until the end of the trip.

Is the driver the guide?

No, in each city you will have a different guide, specialized in the place. With him you will be the necessary time to make the visits and you will not see him again. The driver will take you to the meeting point with the guide (or pick you up) and return you to the hotel or wherever you want to go, after the guided tours.

Will the driver always be with you?

It depends on you. Normally in restaurants he usually eats for free, but it does not hurt from time to time to invite him to sit with you and pay for his food. In the cities if you have a guide, the driver will pick you up at the hotel and take you to the meeting place with the guide, then you will visit the city and you will meet the driver, who will take you to your accommodation (or where Indicates).

It will always be available to take you anywhere in the city, although we sometimes prefer to give the day off and use uber (3km about 50-60 rupees) or tuctucs to move around the city (being 4 at the end it was very cheap). But it always depends on you.

It's all included?

In the package you hire, everything except tickets and tips is usually included. That is the driver's fees, guides, hotels (with fees), gasoline, tolls, parkings ...

How much to stop tipping?

Tips usually depend on the number of people in the group. Usually at guides in the cities they are left a tip of 500 rupees, and to drivers nail 200-300 rupees per day. Remember that they are already paid by the agency for their work, leave it clear with them before.

Should the driver's accommodation and food be paid?

In our case we didn't have to pay them. Normally the agencies pay the driver money per day, and he has to look for life in each place. But if you only hire the driver, you should negotiate if you have to take care of his expenses.

Does the driver speak Spanish?

Ranjeet, our driver, did speak a little Spanish, although it is normal for them to speak only in English.

How many people can go in the car?

Cars are usually up to 4 people, but the ideal is to go 2 or 3. If you are 4, as in our case, it is best to order a 3-row car, and distribute it like this: 1 goes with the driver, 2 in the next row and one in the last, where it is also used to put luggage. So it goes much wider.

Is airport pick-up included?

Yes, they pick you up at the Delhi airport, this is interesting because the taxis there are quite scammers. If they don't include it, you should take it out.

So far everything we know about travel to India with driver 🙂 That said: this second trip was very different from the first one, so we are clear that if you want a more comfortable option and less “life-seeking,” it is the right one, although it will continue to be a very intense trip. But sooo intense: that's India. We always read that India is either loved or hated, but our experience is that you will love her, hate her and love her again ... every minute you are there! It is unique, in good and in bad.

Do you have more questions about a trip to India with driver? Leave us a comment and we will try to help you!