| Introduction | | | | and 250 kilometers from Jaipur. |
| | | | |
| India is one of the most attractive tourist | | | | Culture & People |
| destinations in Asia. India is a large | | | | |
| country in southern Asia. It's the second | | | | The people of India speak 14 major languages |
| largest country in the world in population, | | | | and more than 1000 minor languages & |
| ranking only behind China. | | | | dialects. |
| | | | |
| In 2004, foreign tourists visiting India | | | | India has three main land regions :a. The |
| spent 15.4 billion USD - the ninth highest in | | | | Himalayasb. The Northern Plainsc. The Deccan |
| the world. India is also ranked among the top | | | | or the Southern Plateau |
| 3 adventure tourism destinations. One can | | | | |
| expect to spend about $1,750 in 2005 dollars | | | | With nearly 1 billion citizens, India is the |
| for a two week visit, staying in | | | | second most populous nation in the world. It |
| accomodations equivalent to Western ones. | | | | is impossible to speak of any one Indian |
| | | | culture, although there are deep cultural |
| India is a land of often bewildering | | | | continuities that tie its people together. |
| diversity. It is a jigsaw puzzle of people of | | | | English is the major language of trade and |
| every faith and religion, living together to | | | | politics, but there are fourteen official |
| create a unique and colourful mosaic. There | | | | languages in all. There are twenty-four |
| is a festival for every reason and for every | | | | languages that are spoken by a million people |
| season. Every celebration centres around | | | | or more, and countless other dialects. India |
| rituals of prayer, seeking blessings, | | | | has seven major religions and many minor |
| exchanging goodwill, decorating houses, | | | | ones, six main ethnic groups, and countless |
| wearing new clothes, music, dance and | | | | holidays. |
| feasting. | | | | |
| | | | When to Visit India |
| India also has a large variety of protected | | | | |
| wildlife. The country's protected wilderness | | | | India has such a wide range of climatic |
| consists of 75 National parks of India and | | | | factors that it's impossible to pin down the |
| 421 Sanctuaries, of which 19 fall under the | | | | best time to visit weather-wise with any |
| purview of Project Tiger. Its climatic and | | | | certainty. Most of India has three seasons |
| geographic diversity makes it the home of | | | | :a. Cool Season - October to February.b. Hot |
| over 350 mammals and 1200 bird species, many | | | | season - march to June.c. Rainy / Monsoon - |
| of which are unique to the subcontinent. Some | | | | monsoons start from mid June to September. |
| well known national wildlife sanctuaries | | | | |
| include Corbett, Kanha, Sariska, Periyar, | | | | October to March tend to be the most pleasant |
| Ranthambore, and Bharatpur. | | | | months for most of the parts of the country. |
| | | | |
| Perhaps India's best-known site is the Taj | | | | The mountainous areas in North India usualy |
| Mahal, one of the world's greatest | | | | have snowfall between December and March. |
| architectural achievements. It was built | | | | Kashmir and the mountainous regions of |
| between 1631 and 1653 by Emperor Shah Jahan | | | | Himachal Pradesh are at their most accessible |
| in honor of his wife, Arjumand Banu, more | | | | between May and September. |
| popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj | | | | |
| Mahal serves as her tomb. | | | | The best time to visit Sikkim and the areas |
| | | | of north-eastern India is March and August. |
| One of the popular tourist circuits is called | | | | |
| the Golden Triangle: the cities Delhi; Agra | | | | The best time to visit deserts of Rajasthan |
| (site of the Taj Mahal); and Jaipur. Delhi is | | | | and the north-western Indian Himalayan region |
| approximately 200 kilometers away from Agra, | | | | is during the monsoon. |