8 thewest.com.au/travelSeptember 26- 27, 2015

Travellers can gain apersonal perspectiveon India with a specialtour next year fromPremium Journeys by

Bicton Travel.The 18-day Exotic India

luxury tour will be hosted byHarpal and Manjeet Ahluwalia,a couple with a strongconnection to both India andPerth. Indian-born Harpaltravelled extensivelythroughout his homelandduring his three decades in theIndian defence forces before heand Manjeet, a teacher, movedto WA nearly 20 years ago tojoin their son, who was studyinghere at the time.

The pair are keen travellers— so far this year they’ve rungin the new year in KualaLumpur and cruised fromAmsterdam to Budapest, andwill soon set sail on a voyagealong the Yangtze — and areBicton Travel clients. Adiscussion about tours in Indiaprompted Bicton Travel ownerCarole Smethurst to ask if theywould consider accompanying atour group.

The tour, which will operatedby Insight Vacations, will runfrom October 22 next year andhas been designed with

considerable inputfrom Harpal. “If Iwere to take a goodfriend of mine toshow them India forthe first time . . . thisis what I’d like toshow them,” heexplains.

The itineraryfocuses onRajasthan and the

professional tour director,smoothing the journey througha destination that can seemdaunting, particularly to first-time visitors.

And indeed, Harpal says that“for a first-timer who hasn’tbeen to India, this is a very goodoption as an introduction”. Forhis part, he’s “absolutely”looking forward to showing thegroup “not only my home townbut also my perspective. It’s nota tourist’s perspective — it’sfrom a person who has beenaround there and seen it from adifferent viewpoint.”

Harpal says. “They’re not just a(normal) four or five-star hotel— you can go and stay in a fouror five-star hotel but to stay inthose ancient palaces is adifferent experience.”

A particularly specialexperience will be joiningcelebrations in Jaipur forDiwali, the Hindu festival oflight, which sees locals lightinglanterns and candles, attendingprayers and fireworks displays,feasting and exchanging gifts.As Harpal says: “You can go atany time of the year that is agood weather period but whynot go during the festival oflight, which is unique to India?”

Harpal says the quality of thetrip is such that it will be “likebeing treated like a maharajah”.And while he and Manjeet willhost the tour, the group will alsobe accompanied by a

Golden Triangle. Guests will flyinto New Delhi for a three-nightstay before travelling (mostly byair-conditioned coach but withone train journey) to Agra,Ranthambore, Jaipur, Bikaner,Jaisalmer, Jodhpur andUdaipur. There will be two-night stays in each destinationbefore flying back to New Delhifor the journey home.

“This is a very ambitious kindof a tour and it takes you tointeresting places,” Harpal says.While it includes big-name sitesincluding Delhi’s Red Fort, theTaj Mahal and Jaipur’s Palaceof the Winds, Harpal has drawnon his local knowledge to“extend it a bit more” byincluding less-visitedattractions. “There are so manymore interesting places whichpeople don’t go to because theyare not aware of them,” he says.

For example, in Harpal’shome town of Agra, mostvisitors visit the Taj Mahal andthe Agra Fort “and they’redone”. He’s included both, ofcourse, but added in a few localgems. “For instance, there’s thetomb of Akbar, one of theMughal emperors, which isworth seeing. Then there’s thetomb of Itmad-Ud-Daulah, it’s abeautiful structure — in fact, Ifind it prettier than the TajMahal; it is far more delicateand far superior, except thescale is much smaller.”

Other highlights will includea cooking demonstration inRanakpur, a visit to thedeserted ancient capital ofFatehpur Sikri, tiger-spotting inRanthambore National Parkand stays in numerous heritagehotels — “essentially palaces,”

Local knowledgespices up tour

INDIA

GEMMA NISBET meets a WA couple in the know

Manjeet and Harpal Ahluwalia willhost a hands-on tour of India forBicton Travel in 2016.

INDIA

NEW DELHI

Agra

Harpal says the quality of the trip is such that it will be ‘like being treated like a maharajah’.

fact filet The 18-day Exotic India with Diwali Festivalof Lights escorted tour departs from Perth onOctober 22, 2016. It costs $9595 per persontwin share ($12,870 single), including returneconomy flights from Perth to Delhi withSingapore Airlines, 17 nights ofaccommodation in first-class hotels, mostmeals, sightseeing and entrance fees, drinksduring welcome and farewell dinners,porterage and gratuities throughout, servicesof a tour director, transportation byair-conditioned coach and rail and a flight fromUdaipur to New Delhi. 1800 689 842 orpremium@bictontravel.com.au.

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