Deccan Odyssey - Indian Sojourn Tour

Mumbai has been India’s busiest port and industrial centre since the opening of the Suez Canal in 1969. As famous today for its traffic jams as its record-breaking movie industry, the Maharashtrian capital tends not to feature high up most visitors’ ‘must see’ list, but as a point of arrival has a lot to recommend it.

Before the last British troops garrisoned in the country slow-marched past it to board their ships back to Blighty in 1947, the Gateway of India – a huge triumphal arch in the colonial Indo-Saracenic style – was the first landmark most new arrivals from Britain set eyes on. The second was the famous Taj Mahal Hotel beside it. Both still stand tall on the waterfront, as emblematic of the city today as they were in Victorian times.

Still, more impressive monuments of the empire dominate the Kala Godha and Fort districts beyond the Gateway, among them Victoria Terminus, the world’s grandest railway station, and the white-domed Prince of Wales Museum (both nowadays renamed after the 17th century Maharashtrian warlord, Shivaji). Nearby, the vast High Court and University buildings line the palm-fringed Maidans, where cricketers in their whites play through the afternoons as commuters stream home through Churchgate Station.

Dating from 1887, Victoria Terminus was the largest and most grandiloquent building ever erected by the British in India. It was a flagrant copy of St Pancras, but in the flamboyant, hybrid ‘Indo-Sarcenic’ style beloved of the Raj’s architects. Around one million travellers pour through its giant concourses daily, bound for towns and cities across India. Unlike most of them, you’ll be pampered by porters and the smiling staff of the Deccan Odyssey train from the time of your arrival.

Once checked in, guests are treated to a ‘Welcome Aboard’ drink in the restaurant car and shown to their luxury cabins. By sunset time, the train will be clear of Mumbai’s ragged and making its way through the craggy peaks of the Western Ghat range en route to Vadodara.

About an hour’s drive from Vadodara, the UNESCO World Heritage Site Champaner - Pavagadh Archaeological Park, comprises an early Islamic, pre-Mughal city whose architecture showcases the transition between the Hindu and Muslim traditions. This largely unexcavated city which has been built in the 16th century was the short-lived capital of Gujarat. The Great Mosque, Jami Masjid, boasts of a wonderful carved entrance porch that leads into a lovely courtyard, and became a model for later mosque architecture in India.

The Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, once spent a dreamy sojourn in one of the summer palaces in Udaipur, and it is said he was so taken with the beauty of the architecture that he used it as a blueprint for the Taj Mahal. Spread around the shores of shimmering Lake Pichola; the city remains an undeniably romantic spectacle, its ghats (sacred steps), whitewashed havelis and temple towers overlooked by the pale-ochre walls and domes of the exquisite City Palace.

Aside from the views over the water, the highlight for most is the palace interiors, where treasures from the royal collection are displayed amid a backdrop of ornate Rajput murals, mirrorwork and mosaics.

Mehrangarh Fort rises from the top of a sheer-sided escarpment overlooking one of the greatest spectacles in Asia: the blue-painted patchwork of rooftops and courtyards comprising Jodhpur’s old city. Enjoy a guided tour of the fort’s royal apartments and museum before a magical evening in the enchanting courtyard. 

Arriving at Agra Station, you disembark for a tour of the city in the company of a local specialist guide. The tour will start with the Taj Mahal, the Jewel of India and one of the world's great architectural wonders.  Among the first to be awarded UNESCO World Heritage status, the mausoleum was built in memory of Mumtaz Mahal, the beloved wife of Emperor Shah Jahan, in 1632. Crafted entirely of white marble and decorated in elaborate geometric forms, screens cut out of solid marble and delicate pietre dure inlay work showcasing elaborate plants, flowers and fruit, so admired by the Empress, the Taj Mahal is so perfect in its geometry and artistically accomplished that it took 22 years and over 20,000 craftsmen to complete.

Ranthambore National Park was created in the 1970s to spearhead 'The Save the Tiger Project' and remains a shining example of conservation. As a result of this and several subsequent National Parks, India's Tiger population in the wild has grown from under 1000 in 1970 to over 4,500 today.   

The park lies on the margins of the Aravalli range of hills amid a tract of dry deciduous forests and grassland and offers the perfect terrain for these magnificent animals. Close to the park entrance sits a long flight of stone steps that winds up to the ramparts of a medieval fort, affording fine views over the reserve and its much-photographed lake. On your search for the Tiger, you will also get to see several other animals, including Sambar deer, Chital, Hyena and wild Boar and the elusive Nilgai, a blue-hued cow.  Around eighty Tigers currently survive in reserve, and your chances of spotting one here are better than average.

Jaipur is a swirl of life and colour, and its numerous monuments and markets provide the focus for the day. You’ll visit the famous City Palace complex, which includes the much photographed ‘Hawa Mahal’, or ‘Palace of Winds’, a five-storey façade of elaborately screened windows from where the women of the royal household used to watch processions in the streets below.

Disembark at Delhi Safdarjung Railway Station, where a Transindus representative will receive you and transfer you to your hotel. The rest of your day will be at leisure, to relax, visit museums, or secure a last-minute bargain.