*EXPIRED* Journeys Rediscovered - Culinary Journey of North India
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Culinary Immersion Tours unique to Journeys Rediscovered
“Royal Cuisines of India”
Small Group Tour of no more than 8 people
Delhi – Lucknow - Agra – Jaipur – Deogarh - Udaipur – Hyderabad-Mumbai
15 Days/14 Nights
- 2 nights accommodation in Delhi
- 1 night accommodation in Lucknow
- 2 nights accommodation in Agra
- 2 nights accommodation in Jaipur
- 1 night accommodation in Deogarh
- 2 nights accommodation in Udaipur
- 2 nights accommodation in Hyderabad
- 2 nights accommodation in Mumbai
- Breakfast daily at hotels, most lunches and dinners included at specially selected restaurants
- All private transfers and private transportation between cities within India,
- Entrance fees
- Sightseeing and touring with a local English speaking guide
- Train travel and domestic India flights as included in the itinerary
Contact Journeys Rediscovered on 0477002235 for pricing to suit your preferred departure dates as a private itinerary or to REGISTER 2022 or 2023 Small Group Journeys (no more the 12passengers).
Choose from boutique 4-star accommodation OR luxurious 5-star accommodation.
More Information
Contact Journeys Rediscovered for pricing to suit your preferred departure dates as a private itinerary or to REGISTER for our 2021 Small Group Journeys.
Choose from boutique 4-star accommodation OR luxurious 5-star accommodation
Day 1 Delhi:
Arrive in Delhi, and our colleague will transfer you to the hotel.
Day 2 Delhi:
The morning’s sightseeing will start with a drive to Old Delhi – this is a great introduction to Indian cuisine and culture, and will set the tone for the rest of the trip. You will walk through Chandni Chowk, a busy market selling an extraordinary variety of items – silver, jewellery, aromatic spices, leather, fruit and vegetables. The food outlets that you will visit have been in existence for generations and are known for their quality and taste. You will visit places that are well over a century old! As you walk through the narrow medieval streets of Old Delhi, you will spot a plethora of Indian delicacies samosas, lassi, butter chicken, kulfi (Indian ice cream) and melt-in-the-mouth kebabs.
You will also explore Khari Baoli, Asia's largest wholesale spice market in the company of a Chef and have the opportunity of interacting with some of the traders who have been in this business for generations. You will then visit Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, the temple of the followers of the Sikh religion. Here you will visit the “Langar” or Community Kitchen, where every member of the religion considers it an honour to put in a couple of hours cooking thousands of Indian bread and making huge vat-loads of curry to feed the poor and the underprivileged. We will time your visit to coincide with the lunchtime service. You may like to serve the food yourself or help in the kitchen making rotis (Indian bread). Lunch will be served at a local residence and you will get to spend time with the family as you sit down to a traditional home cooked Indian meal. From here, you will head to Humayun’s Tomb (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). You will return to your hotel via Rajpath, where you will drive past modern India’s iconic buildings like the Presidential Palace and our War Memorial – India Gate.
Meals - B, L
Day 3 Delhi - Lucknow (by train):
Early in the morning, you will be escorted to the New Delhi railway-station in time to board Train No. 12004 Swarn Shatabdi Express (06:10/12:40 hours) to Lucknow. Lucknow is a food lover's paradise and has carved a niche for itself in the annals of Indian cuisine. The Awadhi Cuisine of the area has a distinct identity and was patronized by the Mughals. The signature of this cuisine is “Dum” cooking – where meats and spices are sealed in a container and cooked over a low flame. Some of the specialities include delicious kormas, succulent nihari (slow-cooked lamb shanks), the various kebabs, roomali rotis (as thin as handkerchiefs) and a variety of sinful desserts.
The city is so closely linked to good food that a section of the city called ‘Bawarchi Tola’ is almost completely inhabited by chefs. The old part of the city is lined with streets where one can find the best from Lucknow’s very own traditional kitchens. We will take you on an evening walk, popping in and out of the traditional roadside eateries, allowing you to try the best of the best, at unpretentious establishments, without having to worry too much about the niceties of table manners! This walk focuses largely on meat cooked in various forms and takes you to the most authentic eateries that actually invented/mastered the dishes over a century ago. We recommend that you have a light lunch so that you can gorge on the delicacies on offer!
Meals - B, L
Day 4 Lucknow - Agra (by train):
After breakfast, you will spend the first half of the day visiting the various historical monuments of Lucknow - Bada and Chota Immambara, Dilkusha Palace and the Residency. Today’s lunch will be served at a local restaurant, The Royal Café. It is an opportunity to try the fusion cuisine that was once served to the American and British soldiers during the world war. Today this restaurant is extremely popular with locals and tourists alike. After lunch, you will be escorted to Lucknow’s railway-station in time to board Train No. 12003 Swarn Shatabdi Express (15:35/19:20 hours) to Tundla, on arrival our colleague will escort to your waiting vehicle to drive to Agra.
Meals - B, D
Day 5 Agra:
At sunrise, you will visit the Taj Mahal (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), a symbol of devotion, dedication and love that the Emperor Shah Jahan had for his favorite wife. The mausoleum is an expression of the magnificence of Mughal architecture. You will return to your hotel for breakfast before leaving to visit the Agra Fort and then the Itimad-ud-daulah – the first Mughal tomb to be built entirely out of white marble. Today’s lunch will be served at Dasaprakash – an authentic South Indian vegetarian restaurant. Whilst it may seem odd to visit a South Indian restaurant in the heart of North India, Dasaprakash is iconic and has been in business since 1921. Moreover, this is an opportunity to contrast the food from the south with the food you have been eating over the last few days. In the afternoon you will take a specially designed walking tour of the Old City. The Taj Mahal is best viewed at different times of the day and you will have the opportunity to return to the Taj for a sunset visit. Dinner will be served at Peshawri – a restaurant serving North West Frontier cuisine with a lavish spread of delicious kebabs – both vegetarian and non-vegetarian - that are cooked in myriad ways, a range of Indian breads – from the decadently indulgent to the light and fluffy and of course, the inimitable Dal Bukhara (slow cooked lentils).
Meals - B, L & D
Day 6 Agra – Fatehpur Sikri – Bharatpur - Jaipur:
After breakfast, you will set off for Jaipur, stopping an hour outside Agra to visit one of the Mughal Empire’s most inspired creations, Fatehpur Sikri. From here, you will drive to Bharatpur (under an hour) where you will have lunch at a heritage hotel. After lunch, you will continue driving to Jaipur.
Day 7 Jaipur:
In the morning, you will visit the sprawling City Palace, which is a blend of Mughal and Rajput architecture and where the ex-Royal family still lives in a part of the palace. Later, you may stop to click pictures at the iconic Hawa Mahal with its ornate pink façade. This afternoon, you will have a special Rajasthani thali lunch based on recipes taken from the Kanota family archives. All these recipes have been collected by the family from various sources and compiled in 50 hand-written books. Many of these recipes will not be found anywhere else. The host will hand over a copy of the special lunch menu and recipes to you as a souvenir. Later in the evening, you will visit the fort-palace at Amber (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
Then a specially designed walk through the bazaars of the Old City where you will get the opportunity to interact with the traditional businessmen who have been plying their trade for years or sip a cup of tea on the streets, and enjoy some street food (don’t worry, we will ensure that you only eat from places that we have vetted and found to be safe and hygienic). The bazaars of the old city are colourful, aromatic, happily chaotic and offer anything from the famous Jaipur “minakari” jewellery to ordinary and mundane household goods.
Day 8 Jaipur - Deogarh:
After breakfast, you will drive to Deogarh. On the way you will stop at Pushkar to visit the Brahma temple and the sacred lake. Lunch this afternoon will be at Pushkar Palace. After lunch you will continue your drive, arriving into Deogarh by early evening. Deogarh is a medieval fortress town and the home of Rawat Nahar Singhji, a historian and art connoisseur, and his wife, the Ranisahiba. Built-in 1670 AD by Rawat Dwarka as a family residence, Deogarh Mahal is the hub of village activity and towers over the town below. This evening, you will have the option of taking a village walk in the vicinity of the hotel. Tonight’s dinner will feature typical Mewari cuisine, served with traditional hospitality. Home grown fruits and vegetables, in-house milk products and oils provide a delectable and distinct freshness.
Day 9 Deogarh - Udaipur:
After breakfast, you will be driven to the outskirts of Udaipur – the Delwara region of Rajasthan, which houses the beautiful temples of Nagda and Eklingji. In the evening, you will take a sunset cruise on Lake Pichola in a private boat, sailing past its picturesque ghats and palaces.
Day 10 Udaipur:
After breakfast, you will visit the City Palace; this sprawling palace was built over three centuries and is a series of four interconnecting palaces, illustrative of various architectural styles. Later you will visit the Jagdish temple located near the City Palace. Tonight, you will participate in a unique culinary experience conducted by a family that was once amongst the premier nobility of Mewar. The family has hosted Queen Elizabeth, Jacqueline Kennedy and the first Prime Minister of India. The secret, age-old recipes of the family have been passed through generations and are guarded zealously. You will have the opportunity to watch the meal being prepared (and try your hand, if you like) as they explain the intricacies of the process. This will be followed by dinner with the host family.
Day 11 Udaipur - Hyderabad via Mumbai:
It will be an early start today as you will drive to Udaipur airport (with a packed breakfast) to catch an early morning flight to Mumbai. Upon arrival at Mumbai’s airport, you will connect with your flight to Hyderabad. Built on ancient granites, famous for its gemstones especially the magnificent Kohinoor diamond that adorns the crown worn by British royalty, Hyderabad was famous for its beautiful “monuments, mosques and mistresses”.
In the evening, you will visit the workshop of a textile expert, renowned for her silk and cotton weaves. Suraiya Appa, as she is fondly called, welcomes you into her weaving unit. The looms are focused on the revival of Persian brocades, specifically: Mashru, Himroo, Jamavar and Paithani. The soft-spoken octogenarian has worked with the likes of Pierre Cardin, Hanae Mori and Fab India. This is mostly run by the widows of the area; she also runs a small school on the same premises. Later, we will take you to the ITC Kakatiya’s stylish fine dining restaurant that offers a delectable spread of Indian and inventive international cuisine – the Deccan Pavilion.
Day 12 Hyderabad:
Today you will explore the city’s rich and very colourful Nizami history including Laad Bazaar, which is said to have been there since the era of the Qutub Shahis and the Nizams and therefore presents a living heritage of the city. The cuisine of Hyderabad borrowed heavily from the Persians and Mughals. They added local flavours and created a cuisine that is even today very distinctive. The key difference from the North Indian cuisine is the use of dry coconut and tamarind in its cuisine. One of the most important dishes cuisine is Biryani. Technically speaking, it is just a dish of rice and meat cooked with some spices, but it evokes the most passionate emotions among foodies. You will get to try “Biryani”, along with some other local delicacies with one of the traditional families in Hyderabad. The lady of the house, is acknowledged as one of the leading experts of Hyderabadi cuisine and is invited to give cooking lessons to the top chefs across the world.
After lunch, you will proceed to the 18th-century Chowmahalla Palace, which is said to resemble the Shah of Iran’s palace, and continue to the magnificent forts and palaces, a legacy of days gone by. You will also visit the extraordinarily beautiful Paigah Tombs, known for their architectural excellence.
Day 13 Hyderabad - Mumbai:
After breakfast, you will drive to Hyderabad airport to board your flight to Mumbai. Once in Mumbai, you will tour Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum. However, your walk is not a slum tour. Instead, it is designed to show you the world of Dharavi, the people and their way of life. Contrary to popular belief, they are educated, employed, speak passable English and most importantly, are very happy. The tour will focus on the admirable entrepreneurship that the people display, despite the harsh living conditions. Your co-explorer will be a local, for whom Dharavi has been home since childhood. Your next stop will be to take pictures at the Dhobi Ghat, a sight unique to this city. ‘Dhobi Ghat’ or “washerfolks’ place”, is the world's largest outdoor laundry, where Mumbai's traditional washer-folk, or ‘dhobis’ provide a wonderful service, collecting dirty laundry, washing it, and returning it neatly pressed, all for a very small fee.
Dinner will be served at Trishna. Tucked away in the back-streets of downtown Mumbai, the restaurant started out as a ‘hole-in-the-wall’ eatery specialising in Mangalorean seafood. Over the past 50 years, the restaurant has built up a steady clientele and is now one of the most popular sea-food restaurants in the city.
Day 14 Mumbai:
After a quick cup of tea/coffee, early this morning at 05.15 hours, you will start with a tour that pays homage to the people of Mumbai and venerates all those who go about their business obstinately with one purpose – a better life. You will get to understand the logistics of the food distribution in the city as 100 tons of meat, fruits and vegetables enter the various markets. These markets are a great introduction to the people of Mumbai. Breakfast will be served at Mysore Café, one of the oldest south Indian restaurants in the city, originally started to serve the South Indian immigrants of Mumbai. After breakfast, you will take a Market Walk.
The market is divided into a number of distinct sections. Apart from the colorful spice market, there is a bustling vegetable section, a farsan (fried snack) section called Chivda Galli, and a busy fish market. Another section of the market is dedicated to wedding and religious paraphernalia as well as shops selling daily items, kitchen utensils and provisions. Lunch will be served at a cozy restaurant serving Parsi (a tiny community that immigrated from Persia) food. This is a great place to visit not only to enjoy authentic Parsi cuisine still being served in the traditional manner on banana leaves but it is also a place that takes you down in the memory lane, giving you a glimpse of what Mumbai was like in the years gone by.
After lunch, you will start a tour that takes you through downtown Mumbai and venerates the British historical monuments. Starting with the Gateway of India, you will do the colonial part of the city and drive past the Royal Bombay Yacht Club, Mumbai Police Headquarters, Victoria Terminus Station, Watson’s Hotel, Mumbai University and the High Court.
Day 15 Mumbai:
Early morning you will be escorted to Mumbai’s International airport in time to board you flight home or Journeys Rediscovered can arrange extensions in Nepal, Southern India, Sri lanka, Maldives or the Andaman Islands.
Travel Dates
Valid for travel 01 Jan 2022 - until 31 Dec 2023.
Terms & Conditions
Contact Journeys Rediscovered to register for our 2022 or 2023 Small Group Journey (no more than 8 passengers.) Journeys Rediscovered Small Group - Culinary Journey of India, will run with a minimum of 6 passengers.
Alternatively, contact Journeys Rediscovered for pricing to suit your preferred departure dates as a private itinerary, which is guaranteed with a minimum of one person.
Land-based itinerary is based per person on twin/double share basis (unless otherwise stated), single supplement is available, contact Journey Rediscovered for this surcharge.
International & domestic airfares are additional, please contact Journeys Rediscovered for international flight options and prices.
Travel insurance is strongly recommended and can be arranged for you for an additional cost.
For full pricing, terms and conditions, contact your MTA Travel Expert, Journeys Rediscovered on 0477002235 or journeysrediscovered@mtatravel.com.au
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