When I first decided that I was going to turn my dream of traveling to India into reality, I immediately started to think about whether or not I’d feel comfortable enough to travel there on my own. Although I had seen several other female travelers conquer India solo, I just wasn’t sure if it was for me. I’m not someone who necessarily loves traveling solo to begin with, but to an overwhelming and intimidating country like India, I felt like traveling solo just wasn’t a great option for me. So in swoops G Adventures.
I have been a fan of G Adventures for years now, and after reading the CEO, Bruce Poon Tip’s, novel, Looptail, I fell even more in love with this company. Not only is G Adventures a Canadian company, they also are very socially conscious and make sure that every trip they offer provides authentic adventures that give back to the community. As a traveler that doesn’t usually go on multi-day group tours, traveling with a company that wasn’t going to stick us in Holiday Inn’s and eating at chain restaurants, was crucial for me—and G Adventures fit the bill.
Flexibility
What really concerned me the most about traveling in a tour group was not being able to really experience the country or not have the freedom to do the things that really interested me. G Adventures tours seemed to provide a lot of free time and optional activities—giving me the ultimate flexibility. Not only did I see all the main things in each of the cities we visited, I also had a chance to customize other parts of the trip to the way I wanted.
The Group
Our guide told us that most of the groups he gets traveling to India are female, and our group definitely proved that right. Our group had eight people on it, which is below their average of twelve (maximum of eighteen). Our group consisted of seven females between the ages of 20-28 and one male who was in his 50’s. You never know what types of people you’ll have on our tour, but we definitely lucked out by having mainly people within our own demographic.
Food
It was also great that most of our meals weren’t included in our tour price. Yes, this adds additional costs, but the ability to be flexible on where and what you ate, allowed for more customization with your trip. For those that don’t like to have to think about where to eat, the guide did offer suggestions and the option to come eat with him, and any other group members if you wanted. It turns out that in India, there weren’t very many places we saw that we HAD to eat at, so we ended up eating with the group for every meal and had some amazing meals (that didn’t make us sick).
Read my Indian food highlights here
Accommodations
Being a traveler who often sleeps in dorm rooms in hostels, I wasn’t at all concerned about the places we would be staying on the tour. I took G Adventures “Classic” tour style, which is a step up from their younger, more inexpensive tours. All our hotels were clean, accommodating, and we had our own room everywhere we went. The exception to this is if you are traveling alone, you will be paired with other solo travellers unless you pay the single supplement fee.
Safety
Many people fear that India is a very unsafe country, and because of this, they stop themselves from traveling there, but there wasn’t a point on this tour that I felt unsafe, even during our free time. Our guide ensured that we were well looked after at all times, and even when we had free time, he’d offer to help us navigate to where we wanted to go, or would arrange for our tuk tuks/transportation to get there. For some people, maybe this takes the “fun” out of traveling, but in a country like India, it was a relief and a weight off our shoulders.
Experience
Overall my experience with G Adventures was one to remember, and I would definitely travel with them again. I found that this tour had the perfect amount of flexibility, and planned activities, plus made traveling in India seem like a breeze. When you’re short on time, traveling to countries like India can be completely out of the question but tour groups can help you make the most of your short time, and allow you to see as much of a country as humanly possible.
G Adventures not only makes sure you have an amazing experience along the way, but also makes sure that you’re traveling in the most socially responsible way, which I loved. We even had the chance to visit one of the Planeterra (G Adventures non-profit foundation that gives back to the communities they visit) supported projects, SASANE in Pokhara, Nepal. Even though I haven’t been a traveller that goes out of their way to make sure I’m traveling responsibly, this trip really opened my eyes to how travel can help communities and countries thrive.
Read my post on my experience at SASANE here
I would definitely recommend traveling with G Adventures for your next trip, as I think it’s a great way to get out there and see a country, especially if you are intimated by a place or not into traveling solo.
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