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Carefully designed to take in the very best of northern India, the ‘Darjeeling Mail’ covers everything from India’s most important cities to spectacular UNESCO-listed sights such as the Taj Mahal, the ‘ghost city’ of Fatehpur Sikri and of course, the unique Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.
We visit India’s modern capital, Delhi, as well as Calcutta – considered its cultural capital – and Bombay, India’s commercial centre and home to the ‘Gateway of India’.
Also on our itinerary are Jaipur’s incredible Amber Fort and the world-famous Taj Mahal, as well as Varanasi (formerly Benares), perched on the banks of the River Ganges and one of Hinduism’s holiest sites. Here we will take a private cruise, as well a walk along the city’s famous ‘ghats’.
However the highlight of this very special tour must be the time we spend in the Himalayas. We climb up into the mountains using the ‘Toy Train’ of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway– one of only two UNESCO-listed railways in the world.
Taking around eight hours to climb to 7,400ft at Ghum before dropping slightly into Darjeeling (passengers can take a private bus if they prefer, which is quicker), the little steam locomotives use loops and zig-zags to claw their way up the mountainsides on their journey from Siliguri, where we leave the ‘Viceroy of India’.
In Darjeeling we stay in the renowned Windamere or New Elgin hotels, our bases for exploring the local area with its tiger sanctuary, tranquil streets – and magnificent views of the world’s highest mountains. Snow-capped Kanchenjunga, the third-highest, is most prominent, but on clear days, from Tiger Hill, you can even see the peak of Everest, some 200 miles away. Our time in the Himalayas is – literally – an extraordinary highlight of a trip that will stay in the mind forever.
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