Cycling Through Rajasthan

Trip completed in Jan-Feb 2025. This was my first time in India. The cycling was excellent (one day with 900m elevation riding to Kumbhalgarh but otherwise actually easier in terms of elevation/distance than on other grade 3 trips I've been on). Cycling in the cities is somewhat of an adrenaline sport which was great fun! The Taj Majal, Udaipur and Jodhpur Fort were all excellent. The food is exceptionally good. The bus was the most comfortable exodus trip bus I've ever been on and made the longer journeys a pleasure. I enjoyed the experience of the overnight train journey. The Shree Ram hotel, Kumbhalgarh Forest Retreat and Sariska Safari Lodge I found to be very good and enjoyed staying there. The room in Ashok Country Resort was somewhat damp/musty. With the swimming pool closed there isn't much to do there and, other than the airport, there's nothing nearby. Food there was good. Bathrooms in the vesta mayura palace and udai villas were dirty. A night club next to the vesta mayua pumps out window shaking music until around midnight. This holiday is really cheap for two weeks - I know I can't expect too much of a three star hotel in India but I'd rather have paid a bit more and had a nicer cleaner hotel at every stop.

Interesting ,fun, scary, exhausting, dirty, heart warming

A really amazing trip Guides really good and looked after me well I'm not really a cyclist though and would have appreciated clarification of the level. Having walked at level 4/5, I was surprised that level 3 was this hard

This was my first visit to India and hopefully it's not my last. Certainly it was a different experience from my trips to Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand but not in any way negative and with Manu's guidance and Sunny's support the minor challenges were all manageable. Cycling in the larger cities and towns required one to be alert at all times and the constant blowing of horns from motor bikes, tuc tucs, cars and buses took some getting used to. The Indian way clearly!! But as with any change one does adapt and we even managed to have some fun on a few tuc tuc journeys. One was never too far away from the many shallow and 'without warning' speed bumps which will keep you on your toes. We crammed a lot into the 2 weeks but it was all very worthwhile and our time in Agra where we visited the stunning Taj Mahal in the late afternoon, and even though crowded due to the holiday period this was still an amazing experience. Then a visit to the Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was quite impressive. We had also spent a few hours the previous day visiting the beautiful bird sanctuary in the company of a wonderful guide.

If you want to experience Rajasthan's famous sights and more peaceful rural life on two wheels this is a great trip. The distance covered is vast, so expect long days with lengthy transfers on crazy uneven roads If you are a confident cyclist the cycling is not too hard, however, you do need to concentrate as anything from a tuk tuk to a cow can suddenly appear in your path! Plus a tarmac surface can suddenly become rubble! Cultural highlights include hill forts, palaces and not forgetting the beautifu lTaj Mahal. Delhi and Jaipur are noisy and can feel overwhelming with the constant blarring of horns. The colours, sights and sounds will be with us for a very long time