HIGHLIGHTS OF SOUTH INDIA

IMPORTANT NOTES FOR BACKWATER TRIP IN ALLEPPEY:

Guests can check in at 12:00 hrs, we will welcome you with the welcome drink and start cruise after a short briefing introduction, relax and enjoy the canals, rivers, and backwater, at 13:00 hrs houseboat will stop for lunch, with lavish menu of traditional Kerala cuisine. (if you require any special meals like main food in north Indian or food without spice etc it has to be informed in advance). 

14:00 hrs it will continue its cruise covering beautiful rivers and canals with palm trees and small houses near to it, villages paddy fields, churches, etc, you can also buy fresh prawns or crab or karimeen from local fishermen and give to our chef, who will prepare it for your dinner. 

17:30 hrs The houseboat will anchor (till next day morning 08: 00) most of the time we will stop near the land because, you can also get a chance to go out and walk along the riverside or villages and come back, Evening Enjoy your Dinner and leave all world behind you and have a good sleep in your floating paradise.

Bed tea / Coffee will be provided, enjoy the sunrise and breath pollution-free air. At 08:30 hrs Breakfast which includes bread, butter, jam or Iddily/Dosa etc.

Terms and conditions:

»  Meal plan applied on APAI / full board basis (i.e; inclusive of breakfast, lunch & dinner)

»  The Menu is normally fixed with some south Indian recipes. Any changes to be intimated in advance.

»  Check in: 12 noon, Check out: 9 AM. One stay is for 21 hrs and not for 24 hrs.

»  Beverages & any cook to order will be charged extra on actual.

»  The boat will be anchored in the lake or canal during night & will not cruise after 17.30 hrs.

» 24 Hrs Air-Condition available at the houseboat.

VISA INFORMATION

OVERVIEW

All foreign nationals entering India are required to possess a valid international travel document in the form of a national passport with a valid visa obtained from an Indian Mission or Post abroad.

All Individual visa seekers are requested to apply for the Indian Visa through Online application link , in order to make an application for getting the Indian visa.

The duly signed physical copy of the application form completed in all respect and submitted successfully, is to be submitted at the concerned Indian Visa Application Center (IVAC) or directly to Indian Mission/ Post, on the scheduled date of interview along with the requisite supporting documents. The instructions for filling the form and scheduling the appointment can be seen at Instructions for Online Visa Application. Important technical information for filling online Indian visa application can be referred at Technical Instructions.

The applicants are also requested to visit website of the Indian Mission concerned for detailed information about Indian visa.

ONLINE VISA APPLICATION

All Individual visa seekers are requested to apply for the Indian Visa through online application link. Or can apply by typing the URL: http://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/ in the address bar of web browser, in order to make an application for getting the Indian visa. In either case, no hand written application form will be accepted by any of the Indian Mission/ Post, where-ever online Visa facility has been implemented. The application form completed in all respect and submitted succesfully, is to be submitted at the concerned Indian Visa Application Center (IVAC) or directly to Indian Mission/ Post in absence of IVAC, on the scheduled date of interview along with the requisite supporting documents. The instructions for filling the form and scheduling the appointment can be refered at Instructions for Online Visa Application. Important technical information for filling online Indian visa application can be referred at Technical Instructions. If you have already applied online for Indian Visa online and want to know the status of your application,

VISA CATEGORIES

Government of India issues the following visas: Business Visa, Conference Visa, Diplomatic Visa, Employment Visa, Emergency Visa, Entry Visa, Journalist Visa, Medical Visa, Missionaries Visa, Permit to re-enter within 2 months, Research Visa, Student Visa, Tourist Visa, Transit Visa. Please follow the link for details on Visa Provision and supporting documents

VISA PROCESSING TIME

Upon receipt of the Visa Application through Indian Visa Application Center or directly, the Indian Mission/ Post requires a minimum of three working days to process the case and issue a visa depending upon the nationality and excluding special cases.

PHOTO REQUIREMENTS

Online India Visa Application allows the Applicant to upload a digital photograph of self to complete the online visa application.

Guidelines/procedure to upload a digital photograph

The digital photograph to be uploaded along with the Visa application should meet the following requirements:

Format – JPEG

Size

Minimum 10 KB

Maximum 300 KB

The height and width of the Photo must be equal.

Photo should present Full face, front view, eyes open.

Center head within frame and present full head from top of hair to bottom of chin.

Background should be plain light colored or white background.

No shadows on the face or on the background.

Without borders.

Make sure that photo presents full head from top of hair to bottom of chin. Head should measure 1 inch to 1-3/8 inches (25mm to 35mm). Make sure eye height is between 1-1/8 inches to 1-3.

FEE FOR INDIAN VISA

The visa fee depends upon the type of applied for and duration of visa. Visa fee is divided into various types depending upon the case viz; Basic fee, special fee, processing fee by out-sourcing agency. During the online registration process, at the end of the process the basic fee shall be displayed. However, this fee shall be indicative only and final fee shall be charged while submitting the application at the respective counters Fee once received are non-refundable even if the visa application is withdrawn, the visa is not granted, or if visa issued is of shorter duration of period than applied for or otherwise issued or returned at a time or on terms and conditions that may vary from those sought by the applicant. For further information on this, please check with local embassy office or Indian Visa Application center office or websites for information on applicable fee and payment methods.

 VISA PROVISION

SL. NO.	TYPE OF VISA	PERIOD FOR WHICH GRANTED	ENTRY – SINGLE (S), MULTIPLE (M), DOUBLE	DOCUMENTS REQUIRED WITH APPLICATION	EXTENDABLE IN INDIA
1	TOURIST	180 DAYS	M	-	NO
2	TRANSIT	15 DAYS	S/ DOUBLE	RETURN/ ONWARD JOURNEY TICKET	NO
3	BUSINESS	5 YEARS	M	DOCUMENTS TO PROVE BONAFIDE PURPOSE (COMPANY’S LETTER ETC.)	YES
4	EMPLOYMENT	1 YEAR/ PERIOD OF CONTRACT	M	PROOF OF EMPLOYMENT (APPOINTMENT DOCUMENT), TERMS AND CONDITIONS	YES
5	STUDENT	PERIOD OF COURSE/ 5 YEARS	M	PROOF OF ADMISSION IN INDIAN INSTITUTION	YES
6	FOREIGNERS OF INDIAN ORIGIN	5 YEARS	M	PROOF OF BEING OF INDIAN ORIGIN	YES

INSTRUCTIONS 

A. Online application form:

This application form is meant for those foreigners who are applying for visa from outside India.

Each online application form is meant for one person only. Separate application has to be filed for each applicant.

Furnish information exactly in the manner asked for in the forms, especially the names, address and date of birth.

Applicants are required to verify the application details before submitting the online application. They have an option to save the online application form, in case it is not to be submitted.

Once the online application form is submitted by the applicant, then further modifications are not allowed. Hence applicants are requested to check and validate the details before submitting the online application form.

Applicants are requested to keep the Application Id (generated automatically after the submission of online form) for further communications.

B. Appointment Scheduling:

Applicant can schedule the appointment as per his/ her convenience with the concerned Indian Mission.

Each applicant to schedule a separate appointment with the Indian Mission 

C. Process for filling up online application form:

Applicant shall access the Visa Application system online through the following link: http://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/.

Applicant visits the above mentioned web link and selects the Indian Mission from where he intends to apply for the Visa from the tab “Select Mission”.

Applicant fills the application on-line as per the forms standardized by the Ministry.

After filling the form and submitting it, the system shall automatically generate a Application Id. Applicants are requested to keep this Application Id for further communications with the concerned Indian Mission.

System will automatically ask the Applicant for the following confirmation: “Select ‘Yes’ if the applicant want to seek appointment and make payment online or ‘No’ if the applicant just want to print the submitted application form.”

If the applicant response is “No”, then it is requested by the applicant to take the print out of the submitted online application form and approach the concerned Indian Mission for submission of the online form along with supporting documents.

If the response from applicant is “yes” then the system automatically takes the link to perform the following:

Selection of Date and Time of appointment at the concerned Indian Mission

Calculation of Visa fee, service charge, VAT etc. as applicable according to the Visa type

D. Payment using service provider’s payment system

In case the facility of Appointment Scheduling and e-Payment is not available for the concerned Indian mission, then applicant has to take the printout of the online application form and visit the concerned Indian Mission to submit the same along with supporting documents and make the payment.

Indian Culture: Traditions and Customs of India

India’s culture is among the world,s oldest; civilization in India began about 4,500 years ago. Many sources describe it as "Sa Prathama Sanskrati Vishvavara" — the first and the supreme culture in the world, according to the All World Gayatri Pariwar (AWGP) organization.

Western societies did not always see the culture of India very favorably, according to Christina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London. Early anthropologists once considered culture as an evolutionary process, and ”every aspect of human development was seen as driven by evolution,” she told Live Science. “In this view, societies outside of Europe or North America, or societies that did not follow the European or Western way of life, were considered primitive and culturally inferior.  Essentially this included all the colonized countries and people, such as African countries, India, and the Far East.".

However, Indians made significant advances in architecture (Taj Mahal), mathematics (the invention of zero) and medicine (Ayurveda). Today, India is a very diverse country, with more than 1.2 billion people, according to the CIA World Factbook, making it the second most populous nation after China. Different regions have their own distinct cultures. Language, religion, food and the arts are just some of the various aspects of Indian culture. Here is a brief overview of the culture of India.

Language

India has 28 states and seven territories, according to the World Health Organization. There is no official language in India, according to a Gujarat High Court ruling in 2010. Many people living in India also write in Devanagari script. In fact, it is a misconception that the majority of people in India speak Hindi. Though many people speak Hindi in India, 59 percent of India residents speak something other than Hindi, according to The Times of India. Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil and Urdu are some other languages spoken in the country.

Religion

India is identified as the birthplace of Hinduism and Buddhism, the third and fourth largest religions. About 84 percent of the population identifies as Hindu, according to the “Handbook of Research on Development and Religion” Edited by Matthew Clarke (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2013). There are many variations of Hinduism, and four predominant sects — Shaiva, Vaishnava, Shakteya and Smarta.

About 13 percent of Indians are Muslim, making it one of the largest Islamic nations in the world. Christians and Sikhs make up a small percentage of the population, and there are even fewer Buddhists and Jains, according to the “Handbook.”

Food

When the Moghul Empire invaded during the sixteenth century, they left a significant mark on the Indian cuisine, according to Texas A&M University. Indian cuisine is also influenced by many other countries. It is known for its large assortment of dishes and its liberal use of herbs and spices. Cooking styles vary from region to region.

Wheat, Basmati rice and pulses with chana (Bengal gram) are important staples of the Indian diet. The food is rich with curries and spices, including ginger, coriander, cardamom, turmeric, dried hot peppers, and cinnamon, among others. Chutneys — thick condiments and spreads made from assorted fruits and vegetables such as tamarind and tomatoes and mint, cilantro and other herbs — are used generously in Indian cooking.

Many Hindus are vegetarians, but lamb and chicken are common in main dishes for non-vegetarians. The Guardian reports that between 20 percent and 40 percent of India's population is vegetarian.

Much of Indian food is eaten with fingers or bread used as utensils. There is a wide array of breads served with meals, including naan, a leavened, oven-baked flatbread, and bhatoora, a fried, fluffy flatbread common in North India and eaten with chickpea curry.

Architecture and art

The most well-known example of Indian architecture is the Taj Mahal, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan to honor his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It combines elements from Islamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles. India also has many ancient temples.

India is well known for its film industry, which is often referred to as Bollywood. The country's movie history began in 1896 when the Lumière brothers demonstrated the art of cinema in Mumbai, according to the Golden Globes. Today, the films are known for their elaborate singing and dancing.

Indian dance, music and theater traditions span back more than 2,000 years, according to Nilima Bhadbhade, author of “Contract Law in India” (Kluwer Law International, 2010). The major classical dance traditions — Bharata Natyam, Kathak, Odissi, Manipuri, Kuchipudi, Mohiniattam and Kathakali — draw on themes from mythology and literature and have rigid presentation rules.

Clothing

Indian clothing is closely identified with the colorful silk saris worn by many of the country’s women. The traditional clothing for men is the dhoti, an unstitched piece of cloth that is tied around the waist and legs. Men also wear a kurta, a loose shirt that is worn about knee-length. For special occasions, men wear a sherwani, which is a long coat that is buttoned up to the collar and down to the knees. The Nehru jacket is a shorter version of a sherwani. 

Customs and celebrations

The country celebrates Republic Day (Jan. 26), Independence Day (Aug. 15) and Mahatma Gandhi's Birthday (Oct. 2). Diwali is the largest and most important holiday to India, according to National Geographic. It is a five-day festival known as the festival of lights because of the lights lit during the celebration to symbolize the inner light that protects them from spiritual darkness. Holi, the festival of colors, also called the festival of love, is popular in the spring. 

Weather 

India is situated in Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan. 
The climate in India varies from a tropical monsoon climate in the south to a temperate climate in the north. If you are thinking of Visiting Delhi (the capital of India) then best to visit it in October, November, February and March. That's when the nights are cool and the days are filled with a little sunshine. May, June and July are very hot with temperatures over 45 degrees (113 Fahrenheit). It is a dry heat and is sometimes accompanied by dusty desert winds. Most of the rain falls between July and September but they are not the tropical rains you'll experience in India's coastal cities.

You can get a visa in Kathmandu airport upon your arrival at USD 30 (or equivalent in other major currencies) for a 15 days visa, USD 50 for a 30 days visa and USD 125 for a 90 days Multiple visas, and you can also extend it later on if you wish. They have newly installed technology (visa machine) which makes it no longer necessary to have a passport photo. Important! Please bring 3 photos for your trekking permit, TIMS and for others.

Besides trekking packages and tour operation, we arrange international air tickets to the major airports of all over the world. Himalayan social journey travel agency is the one-stop travel solution company; we offer all travel related product at the best possible rates with excellent services.

Please keep this thing in your mind that there are some airport touts and scam artists who take advantage of tourists. They might offer to carry your luggage and they want a large amount of money. Sometimes they intimidate our drivers and even take away their signs. Anyway...if you want someone to help you with your luggage you can give them NOT MORE THAN 1 - 2 DOLLARS. This is a small hassle that tourists sometimes face upon arrival at the airport. Do not stress about this but just be aware not to give more than a few dollars for their luggage handling if you choose to take someone's services. Nepalese in general are very kind and hospitable people.

Some major currencies (USD, AUD and EURO) are accepted for both visas and in general. There are plenty of ATM's in both Kathmandu and Namche and credit cards are accepted in limited shops and many restaurants. Please note that only Nepali rupees are accepted on the trek.

Generally, the orientation meeting is scheduled in the Kathmandu hotel at 4 or 5 pm and this will be informed by our representatives after your arrival. The tour starts with an orientation meeting and ends up after the scheduled trip after the breakfast.

If you plan to arrive early or depart late please make sure you make extra hotel arrangements by contacting [email protected] And if you'll be spending extra time in Nepal please let us know. We will book your extra night accommodation at same trip hotels

For each tour date, there will be several separate groups. Each group will have a maximum of 14 people with its own experienced English speaking guide. During the trek, there will be a suitable number of porters to carry your luggage.

The cost of our trip is based on a twin-sharing basis so there will be two people accommodated in each room for the duration of the tour. If you prefer private accommodation or you are a solo traveller, you'll find the option for "single supplement". Additional cost will be applicable as a Single Supplementary Charge for the single room during the trip.

No refund will be made for 20% deposit amount in case of cancellation of trip for any other else reason. Having paid the full amount of any trip, you will get your money back but still, cancellation charge (20%) is invoiced to you. And for the voucher holders, since you have purchased the voucher from the deal companies, we have to follow their cancellation policy. But for both the conditions, we are flexible to postpone your trip in any later days. Written notification of your cancellation should be made to cancel any trip.

Sometimes travellers are unable to finish the scheduled trek due to the various reasons or they ended up not completing the trek/tour for health or personal reasons. In this case please realize that we cannot offer you any refunds for unused days on the tour/tour. You have to understand that our costs are the same as we have an obligation to pay our guides and porters for the time they have committed.

All the breakfast during your trip is included but the lunches and dinners are not except welcome dinner in the first day at the local restaurant. Meals during Kathmandu stay and trekking days cost from $5 to $8 per item depending on what you choose to eat.

There will not be any problem for vegetarian, most of the lodges serve vegetarian meals. We always recommend our clients to eat vegetarian meals to avoid food poisoning, eating heavy meals and non- vegetarian meals at a high altitude is not really safe for the stomach.

You have to manage yourself for the drinking water. There are two good options for having proper drinking water during the trek. You can bring water purification tablets or fill your bottle for a nominal fee from the recognized and regulated "pure water" stations along the trek. As the alternative, you can also easily purchase bottled water at the lodges. The bottled water costs USD 2$ - 4$ per litre. It is very important that you drink at least 3 litres of pure water daily during the trek.

The width of Nepal is only about 200 km on an average, but within this short distance, the altitude of the land rises from 60 m up to 8,848 m. Hence the weather depends upon the altitude of the place in Nepal. However, in general, Nepal has four climatic seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter.

Spring starts from March to May. The temperature of this season fluctuates between 20C to 30C (68F to 86F). Summer starts from June last to August. These are also the monsoon months with occasional evening-thunderstorms and hot temperature. Autumn starts from late September and ends by November. During this period, the climate is generally dry and mild with temperature fluctuating between 20C to 30C (68F to 86F). Winter starts from December until February. The mornings and evenings are very cold while the afternoon is pretty sunny. The temperature during these months rises from 10C to 20C (59F to 68F). At higher altitudes, it is cold during the winter months.

The trip hotel in Kathmandu does provide free storage services. So you can store your luggage and clothing that are not required for the trekking and you can collect it after your Trek and Tour.

There are telephones in some villages along the trekking routes from which you can make international calls. All our guides carry local sim cards both Nepal Telecom and N-cell in order to update the whereabouts and situation of our every client. You may pass the number of our guide to your family for the callback or you can make a call from the guide’s mobile and pay him directly for the international call too. Also, we have kept a satellite phone at Dingboche, which has a poor connection to the network of phones. Our guides use it during the case of emergency and also clients can use them by paying its rental fee. During the tour there will be easy access for International cal through cyber and communication Center. You will get Wi-Fi connection too in some of the places in the mountains for the extra cost. 

Remember to bring TWO and THREE pin travel adapters! You can also buy the adapters in the supermarkets or electronic shops in the Kathmandu. Our guide can help you with it.

It’s difficult to give an exact amount of money that you should bring. Costs will vary according to how much you want to spend for shopping and where and what meals (lunch & dinner) you want to eat. Trekkers find that around $20 (for lunch & dinner) a day is reasonable for the trekking days. You may have to pay for Wi-Fi, electricity and hot showers too (up in the mountains during the trek). Hence allocating the allowance for each day accordingly would suffice. 

• Daypack (rucksack)
• Backpack (a porter will carry it) Recommended size: about 50-litre capacity (10-12 KGS per person) if you are travelling with a friend you can share one pack between the two of you.
• Well-worn hiking boots or shoes
• A pair of sandals
• Sleeping Bag (HSJ will provide if you do not have your own)
• A one-litre hard water bottle to be filled up along the trekking trail
• Warm jacket Light-weight cotton clothing
• Waterproof jacket (a fold -away windcheater is fine)
• Light sweater
• Bath towel
• Sun hat
• Sunglasses
• Sun cream
• Knee supports (optional for the downhill portions of the trek)
• Trekking pole
• Water purification (Himalayan Social Journey will provide
• water purification tablet)
• Small First-aid-kit (Himalayan Social Journey will also provide one)
• Headlamp (preferable) or Flashlight (torch)
• Camera
• Loose stomach and nausea medicine
• Toiletries for the trek (toilet paper, soap, Towel shampoo etc...)

If you have purchased a voucher from any deal company, please come in contact with us with the voucher code (redemption code) so that the voucher can be redeemed on time. Since we need time to purchase your domestic air ticket and make other arrangements, kindly confirm your spot with your suitable date at-least 2 months prior to the commencement of the tour. Your booking on a particular tour date is subject to availability of spots. You can redeem you voucher through this link too : https://hsj.com.np/voucher-redemption

If you plan to arrive early or depart late please make sure you make extra hotel arrangements by contacting [email protected] And if you'll be spending extra time in Nepal please let us know. We will book your extra night accommodation at same trip hotels, Hotel Holy Himalaya , Himalayan Suite Hotel, Hotel Mulberry, Aloft Hotel, and Gokarna Forest Resort for your convenience. 

If you would like to book extra activities such as Paragliding (100pp), Bungy jump (70pp), Mountain flight (USD 180pp), Heli Tour (USD 800pp –based on 5pax) Bhaktapur Sightseeing many more programs. You can book by contacting us at [email protected] For longer excursions such as Bhutan, Tibet, India, and any other treks also, we can help but please contact us immediately at [email protected]

For the trek, we'll have one porter for two people as per group size. The porter will carry 12-15 kg per person luggage during the trek. You need to carry your day pack to keep your personal belongings such as wallet, camera, water bottle, dry snack, headlight, gadgets, etc. The safety and concerns of our porters is our collective responsibility. We take our responsibilities towards them and their safety concerns strictly. On your part, please carry only things that are of absolute necessities.

A general rule of thumb for tipping is USD 50-60 for guide and porter if you are fully satisfied with their service. So we suggest you allocate a minimum of USD 50 for tipping. This is just a guideline and you may tip whatever /how much you think is appropriate for the services rendered which made your trek a memorable one.

If you are considering to donate, School supplies (pens, notebooks, coloured pencils, etc...). These gifts can be directly turned over to our company when you arrive in Kathmandu. And we will manage them to distribute through our proper channels.
As for your the need of much of your trekking clothes and tour supplies and gears, they can be easily purchased in Kathmandu near our hotel at good prices. Bring hiking boots/shoes from your country. The Nepali ones are not recommended. Your guide will assist you to get anything you may need here.

We are committed to providing the best services which will give you a once in a lifetime journey. We perform our duties honestly & seriously to make your journey very smooth & pleasant. However, the entire programs in Nepal are conducted strictly under the rules and regulation of their policies. So in this case, we will give options to choose a different itinerary for an enjoyable holiday. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact us.

The sleeping bags we provide are of good quality. They help you sustain the colder climate in Nepali mountains up to -25 degree Celsius of temperature. However if you need the one of your own, you can buy one here. Your guide shall assist you to get it here. Keep the track of the weather forecast of the area and pack your clothes accordingly. This would help you be prepared for the type of weather Nepali Mountains are accustomed to.

The size of the duffel bag that we provide is 60-70 liter.

Yes, you will have free access to the power in the city areas however with your ascends to the mountain and as you climb to higher altitudes, extra charge would be applicable for the use of power supply or wireless internet connections.