Delhi to Goa: Self-Launched Independent Version

Land at Indira Gandhi International Airport and take the Airport Express metro to New Delhi station (~£1) or a pre-paid taxi (~£5-7). Check into a guesthouse in Paharganj or Karol Bagh. Buy or activate an Indian eSIM/Airtel SIM at the airport or a phone shop, and set up UPI or draw rupees from an ATM. Easy evening: wander Connaught Place, eat a cheap thali, and get an early night.

🚌Airport Express metro or pre-paid taxi from airport

🛏Budget guesthouse or hostel, Paharganj or Karol Bagh (~£12-16/night)

• →Airport transfer via metro/taxi
• →SIM card and cash set-up
• →Connaught Place evening stroll

Do the Old Delhi experience independently: join a cheap small-group Old Delhi food and heritage walk on Klook/GetYourGuide (~£10-15) or self-guide the same route. Start at Chandni Chowk, visit the Sheeshganj Gurudwara (free, head covering provided), admire Jama Masjid from the courtyard (entry ~£2, camera extra), then walk the spice lanes of Khari Baoli. Take a cycle rickshaw back through the bazaar (~£1). Eat parathas in Paranthe Wali Gali.

🚌Delhi Metro to Chandni Chowk (~£0.30) plus cycle rickshaw

🛏Budget guesthouse or hostel, Paharganj or Karol Bagh (~£12-16/night)

• →Old Delhi food and heritage walk (Klook/GetYourGuide ~£12)
• →Sheeshganj Gurudwara visit
• →Jama Masjid courtyard
• →Khari Baoli spice market

Book a morning Gatimaan Express or Vande Bharat train from Hazrat Nizamuddin to Agra Cantt (1h50, ~£8-10 booked on IRCTC). Drop bags at your Taj Ganj guesthouse, then enter the Taj Mahal with a pre-booked e-ticket from the ASI website (~£12 foreigners, closed Fridays). Self-guide with the audio guide or an official-approved guide hired at the east gate (~£8). Late afternoon, take a motorised rickshaw tour of Agra's lanes and riverbank viewpoints (~£3), and optionally visit Akbar's Mausoleum in Sikandra (auto-rickshaw round trip ~£5, entry ~£3). Dinner at Sheroes Hangout, the cafe run by acid-attack survivors.

🚌Gatimaan Express Delhi-Agra ~£8-10; auto-rickshaw locally

🛏Guesthouse in Taj Ganj with rooftop Taj view (~£12-18/night)

• →Taj Mahal entry (~£12)
• →Rickshaw tour of Agra lanes
• →Sheroes Hangout dinner
• →Optional Akbar's Mausoleum (~£3)

Take an early train or a shared/AC bus to Jaipur (Agra-Jaipur trains ~4-5h, ~£4-7; buses ~£5). If timing allows, break the journey at Fatehpur Sikri (buses run from Agra's Idgah bus stand, ~£1; entry ~£6). Arrive Jaipur, check into a Haveli-style guesthouse inside the old Pink City walls, then do the market and bazaar wander yourself at sunset: Johari Bazaar, Bapu Bazaar, Hawa Mahal lit up from the street. Cheap and brilliant street food at Rawat Mishthan Bhandar.

🚌Train or AC bus Agra-Jaipur ~£4-7; optional Fatehpur Sikri bus stop en route

🛏Heritage-style guesthouse in old Jaipur (~£15-20/night)

• →Fatehpur Sikri (optional, ~£6 entry)
• →Old Jaipur bazaar walk
• →Hawa Mahal exterior at sunset

Catch local bus #5 or an auto to Amber Fort (entry ~£6, or combined composite ticket ~£11 covering Amber, Hawa Mahal, Jantar Mantar, Nahargarh and Albert Hall). Arrive for the 8am opening to dodge crowds and heat. Walk down to Jaigarh Fort if you have energy (entry ~£2). Afternoon: Hawa Mahal (composite ticket covers it), then back in town to the City Palace (optional ~£8-9) and Raj Mandir cinema for a Bollywood screening (~£2-3). Sunset at Nahargarh Fort for the best Pink City view.

🚌Local bus or auto-rickshaw to Amber Fort (~£0.50-1.50)

🛏Heritage-style guesthouse in old Jaipur (~£15-20/night)

• →Amber Fort entry (~£6 or composite ticket ~£11)
• →Hawa Mahal
• →Nahargarh Fort sunset
• →Optional Bollywood film (~£3)

Bus or train to Ajmer then a 30-minute local bus to Pushkar (Jaipur-Ajmer trains ~2h, ~£2; Ajmer-Pushkar bus ~£0.50). Pushkar is a small temple town around a sacred lake — no meat or alcohol in the main holy zone. Check in, then walk the main bazaar yourself (Sadar Bazaar for silver, textiles, camel-leather). Circumambulate the ghats at dusk and follow the Aravalli hills at sunset.

🚌Train Jaipur-Ajmer ~£2 plus local bus Ajmer-Pushkar ~£0.50

🛏Guesthouse or rooftop hostel near Pushkar Lake (~£10-15/night)

• →Pushkar main bazaar walk
• →Lake and ghat circumnavigation
• →Sunset viewpoint

Hike or take the ropeway up to Savitri Temple before dawn (ropeway ~£1.50 round trip, or a 45-minute stair climb) for sunrise over the dunes and lake — chai at the top. Down by 9am, visit the Brahma Temple (the only major one in the world), then spend the afternoon on an independent camel ride or jeep trip into the dunes (~£8-12). In November the Pushkar Camel Fair transforms the town — book accommodation well ahead.

🚌Walking and local auto-rickshaw

🛏Guesthouse or rooftop hostel near Pushkar Lake (~£10-15/night)

• →Savitri Temple sunrise hike or ropeway (~£1.50)
• →Brahma Temple
• →Optional camel/jeep dune trip (~£10)

Long travel day: bus or train Pushkar/Ajmer to Udaipur (~7-8h; trains via Chittaurgarh ~£4-6, or an overnight option if you'd rather save a day). Arrive, settle into a rooftop guesthouse inside the old city near Lal Ghat or Hanuman Ghat. Evening: free wander of the ghats and the sunset from Ambrai Ghat.

🚌Train/bus Ajmer-Udaipur ~£4-6

🛏Rooftop guesthouse, old city Lal Ghat area (~£12-18/night)

• →Old city ghat wander
• →Sunset at Ambrai Ghat

Self-guide the City Palace complex with an audio guide (entry ~£8-10, Crystal Gallery extra). Afterwards visit Jagdish Temple (free) and walk the lakefront. Book a shared or private sunset boat on Lake Pichola through your guesthouse (~£3-6) to see Jag Mandir and Jag Niwas from the water. Evening: independent half-day cooking class — several family-run outfits in the old city charge ~£10-15 including dinner.

🚌Walking in old city

🛏Rooftop guesthouse, old city Lal Ghat area (~£12-18/night)

• →City Palace entry (~£9)
• →Jagdish Temple
• →Lake Pichola shared boat (~£4)
• →Cooking class (~£12)

Morning free: visit Shilpgram rural arts village (~£2, 15 minutes by auto) or wander the Bhindi Bazaar textile shops. Late afternoon, take the Bandra/Udaipur Superfast Express sleeper to Mumbai (roughly 14-15 hours, arriving next morning) — book a 3AC or SL berth on IRCTC well ahead (~£8-14). Stock up on train snacks and pack an eye mask and padlock.

🚌Overnight sleeper train Udaipur-Bandra Terminus / Mumbai (~£8-14)

🛏Overnight sleeper train, 3AC berth (~£10-14, included in transport)

• →Shilpgram arts village (~£2)
• →Bhindi Bazaar shopping
• →Prepare for overnight train

Arrive Bandra Terminus, take a suburban local train to Churchgate (~£0.20) and check into a Colaba or Fort budget hotel. Do the heritage walk yourself — Colaba Causeway, the Gateway of India, the Taj Mahal Palace exterior, Kala Ghoda and the 'Zero Mile' Victorian Gothic cluster — or join a cheap Mumbai walking tour on GetYourGuide (~£10-15). Sunset at Chowpatty Beach with bhel puri and pav bhaji from the stalls (~£2).

🚌Suburban local train from Bandra to Churchgate (~£0.30)

🛏Budget hotel or hostel, Colaba or Fort (~£18-25/night)

• →Colaba Causeway and Gateway of India
• →Heritage quarter walk (optional guided ~£12)
• →Chowpatty Beach street food

Take the morning ferry from Gateway of India to Elephanta Island to see the UNESCO-listed rock-cut caves (~£3-4 ferry return plus ~£6 cave entry; allow half a day). Alternatives if you'd rather stay in the city: Marine Drive and Chowpatty at dawn, the UNESCO-listed Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensemble, the Bombay High Court, and the Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum. Evening: a cheap but excellent plate of Mumbai street food at Mohammed Ali Road (if it's Ramadan, go all out).

🚌Ferry to Elephanta (~£4 return); local trains and autos

🛏Budget hotel or hostel, Colaba or Fort (~£18-25/night)

• →Elephanta Island ferry and caves (~£10 combined)
• →Marine Drive walk
• →Bombay High Court and art deco district

Take a morning Konkan Railway train from CSMT or Panvel to Goa (Madgaon/Karmali, ~8-11h, 2AC/3AC ~£10-16) — one of the world's great rail journeys through the Western Ghats, tunnels and viaducts. Alternatively, a cheap 1h15 flight from Mumbai to Goa (~£30-45 booked ahead). Pick your base: Anjuna/Vagator for backpacker energy, Palolem for calm, or Panaji for culture. Evening: dinner at a Goan shack with fresh fish and feni.

🚌Konkan Railway Mumbai-Goa ~£10-16 (or flight ~£30-45)

🛏Beach hostel or guesthouse in Anjuna, Palolem or Panaji (~£12-20/night)

• →Konkan Railway scenic journey
• →Settle into a Goan beach base

Hire a scooter (~£4-6/day including fuel) and ride to Fort Aguada and Reis Magos Fort (~£2-3 each), then swim at a quieter north-coast beach. Or do an independent spice plantation visit (~£8-12 with lunch). Optional morning yoga drop-in class at a local studio (~£5-8), or a cycling loop through the paddy fields and villages. Sunset drinks at a beach shack.

🚌Scooter hire (~£5/day) or local bus (~£0.50)

🛏Beach hostel or guesthouse in Anjuna, Palolem or Panaji (~£12-20/night)

• →Fort Aguada and Reis Magos Fort (~£5)
• →Scooter countryside ride
• →Optional yoga class (~£6)
• →Beach time

Slow breakfast at a beach cafe, a last swim, then transfer to Dabolim or Mopa airport for onward flights (taxi ~£7-12 from Anjuna; local bus ~£1). Alternatively continue down the Konkan coast by train — Gokarna and Kerala are easy extensions if you have more time.

🚌Taxi or local bus to Goa airport (~£1-12)

🛏None (departure day)

• →Beach breakfast and final swim
• →Airport transfer