I'm traveling through India more than 2 years, so I'm sharing with you my experience with all my best! And I so much try to do this Guide comfortable to read. Enjoy!
As you can see in my Introduction Post - India is my favorite and darling country.
Why India?
Unbelievable different: Himalaya and warm tropics, unbelievable architecture and the biggest slum in Asia, Holy places, yoga and ashrams, tracking to mountains and multi-month vacation on beaches, driving a motorcycle in really amazing beautiful places! In general, everything your heart desires!
Unbelievable big: you need about full 2 years just to see all main sights. But I'm traveling more than 2 years and still there are so many places that I would like to see! I will say I just see only about 50% of all best places.
So preposterous and so exhilarating! So boundless naivety, greed and hospitality.
Beautiful, darling, captivating, strange and wild! With so many different culture, religious, peoples, languages and opportunities.
And also one of the amazing things! You can be in India all over the year! In countries like Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Malaysia there is always monsoons! In India you can find place to hide in this bad weather!
Of course you need understand that India also poor and dirty country. But I really can say - you can find clean places! Also this is English country, this mean that in 90% happening you can use easily English.
India seemed an impossible dream, fairytale or sleep... But now I'm here! And... Sometime there are thought, oh! Am I in India!?
Backpackers Paradise places
If you want to be in India long or live - Backpackers Paradise places is the best place. This this the main Gem for being in India long time. Here you can find everything - cheap hotel, infrastructure, renting bikes and scooters, many restaurants and shops. You can live in this places 2-4 weeks or even more. I can stay here and work through internet. Some people stay here all season.
Here is link to map with all places from this page:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_Z65NBFhPTxf2MLdSugGjyaJ0VY&usp=sharing
Weather Map (best seasons):
Zoom it
1. Manali (more exactly is village Vashisht, Manali is too mush touristic)
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Paradise in mountains for chill out or meditation or smoking or just mega enjoy in hot spring water! I think this is the most magic place for me in all World! Amazing forest, amazing waterfall and sparkling air! And spring water is unbelievible! Good for health. Maybe not good 3g, but developing.
Best to visit: May - Mid July*. August - September - still monsoons but it depends. I was in this period - was great!
*from middle of May to middle of June thousands of Hindu come to Manali and Vashisht, so it quite crowded
About 26 km from Vashisht there is Naggar - Nicholas Roerich's small village. Really quite place, if you need privacy for meditation you can find it here. Photo 1, Photo 2
Also about 80 km from Vashisht there is Kasol - Israeli smoking paradise for chill out. It's small backpackers village in Mountains.
2. Rishikesh - world capital of Yoga
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
For me Rishikesh is the best place to meditate on Ganga and to do oblushion. Also one of the best places to ride motorbike! You can see many tourists from Russia, Europe and all over the world.
Rishikesh is startpoint to travel to Himalayas - 4 holy places: Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath.
It is holy place for Hindu so there is everyday hundreds of piligrims.
Best to visit: March - May; September - November
3. Dharamsala (McLeod Ganj, villages Bhagsu and Dharamkot)
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
The Dalai Lama's residence and the headquarters of Central Tibetan Administration. People all over the world travel there to try see Dalai Lama and teach Buddhist culture. Near Dharamsala there are 2 paradise village - Bhagsu and Dharamkot. Mountian here is realy sloping, I mean to go from top of village to down village you need minutes 40-60. Amazing beauty, great trackings. But wheather is always sufficiently rainy, but still there is best season!
Best to visit: Mid March - Mid July; September - December
4. Gokarna - one of the best beach in India not much touristic
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
I think this is best place to live in amazing big beach and almost not crowded! I'm talking about main Gokarna Beach. Guest houses very simple. Many people stay here full season, really Gem of India!
Other beaches - Kudle, Om are crowded. Also there almost wild Half Moon Beach and fully wild Paradise Beach without guests houses, only sometime with hippy with sleepbags or tents.
There is drinking Spring Water near Sri Rama temple.
Best to visit: Mid October - Mid April
5. Goa (Arambol) - legendary place, everybody hear about it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Goa... Of course in Paradise Backpackers places will be Goa. To many russians, drugs and alchocol - you can hear it many times! Yes it is true. But if you want party - you can go courageously to Goa.
Actually best known backpackers place is Arambol. You can find in this area so many conserts, music and parties!
Best to visit: November - Mid April
#6. Varkala in Kerala state
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Anough crowded touristic village. Many people live here all season. But if I choose between Gokarna, Goa or Varkala - I will choose Gokarna. But if you need aurvedic treatment in this area you can find it! Also in Kerala there is touristic beach Kovalam, want to see it oneday.
Best to visit: November - Mid of April
7. Varanasi - the holiest city in India
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Varanasi... Is unbeliavible city. I'm writing it now and creeps running on my skin... It is ancient, so ancient that you can read that it is the most ancient city in World. You can feel here so strange, so deep, so innocent, so powerfull things. Just try this city. For me very good city to creat something powerfull (articles, meditation, think about life etc).
Yes it's dirty, yes it is crowded. But this city is beyond words... Om Namo Shivaya.
Best to visit: Mid September - November; February - May
8. Pushkar
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Pushkar is in state Rajasthan. Here you can find only one temple in all World dedicated to Brahma, creator of our Universe.
This is magic place, favourite place of hippy and long stayers. You can just chill out here, listhening every evening drums on sunset on a holy Lake, eating amazing local food, driving by motorbike around small mountains and look to gypsy dances. Wow, amazing, amazing place! I lived there 1 month and remembered this place with creeps on my skin!
Best to visit: October - March
9. Ladakh - easy way to see real Tibet!
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Wow! It is World Gem of Tibet culture. In this area live real Tibetian people. Attitude of capital Leh is about 3500. So you need to acclimatize here. And you need to know that here is simple live - sometime there is no electricity, no good internet. But place unbeliavible - you can see how people live in so high altitude, you can see tibetian temples and feel ancient air through time.
Best to visit: Mid May - Mid September
Road Manali - Leh to Ladakh is top 3 hardest roads in World!!! This is totally amazing road you can just know new things about yourself. You will ride through 4 pass more then 4900m attitude. Beliave me you head will dizzy a lot. Dont eat much before you start this unbeliaveble trip to the lonar places of our Earth.
10. Pondicherry and Auroville
When I was in Pondicherry I dont feel that many special things. But after this 2 weeks finished I realised that it was very soulful place. Actually I'm talking about one hotel called Park Guesthouse with deeply atmosphere in Zen stile. Also coastal part of Pondicherry is really strange place, compare to all other India. No traffic in evening and you can walk along beach. Want some day return here and live 2-4 weeks and just meditate.
And of course Auroville with its Matrimandir, that really Worth to visit.
Best to visit: October - February; March - June hot but possible
Backpackers Places in India for my next trips
Also still there are places that must be same good for backpackers, want continue to discover India this year! So, here they are:
Darjeeling - it needs to be WOW backpackers place with everything and all infrastructures. Even if there will be not so good I so much want to visit it and drink there Darjeeling tea!
Best season: March - June; September - November
Almora - as I hear it is really backpackers place!
Best season: Mid March - June; September - November
Bundi - it needs to be WOW backpackers place, little bit like Pushkar.
Best season: October - March
Jaisalmer - maybe not backpakers place, but I think it is very worth, cause it in desert!
Best season: October - March
Tiruvannamalai - hear many things about this place, seemed for spiritual seekers
Best season: October - February; March - June hot but possible
Andaman Islands (Havelock Island) - as I heard this is backpackers paradise on islands
Best season: October - May
Kodaikanal - this needs to be high mountain foreign backpackers place, mostly Israli
Best season: April - June; August - October
This is end of BEST places in India to live all season and work! This the main Gem of India for easy and comfortable (by Indian standards) living. About all this places I will write new articles.
But of course there are another amazing places, so about it below.
Precious places just for visit like tourist
So now I will point interesting places just for common tourists and just some worth places. This all places that I saw my own eyes.
1. Hampi - absolutely fantastic place!!! Number one for the strange nature and architecture. WOW! WOW! WOW! And this place looks like totally backpackers paradise: you have everything what need backpacker! Why I put it here but not at main list? Cause this place is good for 5-10 days just to look everything one time, but to live here for me not good conditions - too many tourists that just come and in few days left this place. So fast circulation.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: October - March
Delhi, Agra, Jaipur - the most famous attraction places for tourists. This is also called Golden Triangle. In Delhi as mentioned above the most valuable is Akshardham. Of course you can also look Taj Mahal. PHOTO!!!
Best season: Mid September - November; February - April
Rewalsar - this is small city around lake Rewalsar which is holy place for Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs. But there mostly only Buddhists. Not much foreign tourists are there, just few usually, but it quiet interesting place for few days or week.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: March - May; September - December
Bodhgaya - the place where according to legend Buddha became enlightenment. If you interesting in spirituality - of course you hear about this legendary place for all Buddhists. Just sit under the Bodhi tree where the Great Siddhartha Gautama Buddha received the most precious transformation of human life. By the way I was in Bodhgaya in Mid of July, it was super hot, like 40 degrees, but that only one problem, even wasn't raining.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: Mid September - Mid April
Shimla - this is colonial city and you can feel it with all you skin and soul! This is the cleanest place in all India as I remembered it. I was here only 2 days, but it worth! Everything is clean, Hindu looking superb (Photo, zero of poor people, weather is like in London, wet, rainy, cold. I called it Indian London.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: April - June; October - November
Amritsar - here you can find Golden Temple - famous temple of Sikhs culture. For them it is the main shrine. One of the most interesting experiences - to eat in Golden Temple's canteen, where every day eating about 60000 people - amazing. But place extremely crowded and dirty, I mean city around temple. I was in end of March, maybe it was some Holiday. I was in Amritsar in end of March, weather was about 35, still ok.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: October - November; February - March
Haridwar - The Gate to God (to Holy Himalayas). This is not touristic city near Rishikesh. But you can be here one day or live 1-2 night in Haridwar just to see real holy city with hundreds poor people. The main attraction here - is evening Ganga Aarti - few thousands Hindu singing, worship to Ganga and put on river small candles.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: March - May; September - November
Khajuraho - famous tourists place with Kama sutra temples. Just for 1-2 nights to look beautiful carvings.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: October - March
4 Shrines in Himalayas - Yamunotri, Gangorti, Kedarnath, Badrinath
Actually I was only in Gangotri. But this is the most precious place for Hindu - where Ganga starts! Place is FANTASTIC. For 1 milliard Hindus this is the holiest place in all Universe. And this is the worth tracking in all my life! From Gangotri to see where starts Ganga you need to do 18 km tracking to a place called Gomukh. If you good in tracks you can go upper to Tapovan.
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Zoom it
Best season: Mid May - Mid June, End of August - Mid September
Just live in India's cities
If you want to live in big city here it is my top. Big cities also interesting, but of course it crowded, loud, dirty. But if you start love India you will accept even this strange cities!
Mumbai - the 9th most populous agglomeration in the world. It is worth to see it. Hotels expensive compare to India (start from 15-20$) but city is amazing. You can find here everything. Poverty and luxurious is two sides of one medal here. Also you can see beautiful colonial architecture. This is Gem city of India. I lived here 2 weeks and dream to comeback one day here again!
Best season: October - March
Bengaluru - The Silicon Valley of India. You can find here branches of world's famous companies. I lived here 1 month and worked in coworking on Church street. The main interesting thing here is altitude - 993m. This mean very soft weather all over the year. Maybe because this characteristic this city became Silicon Valley.
Best season: all year (maybe except June, July but rains not heavy)!
Delhi- of course Delhi! 90% that you will arrived here. Many expats live here especially in near city Gurgaon. Yes it is dirty, but I love this city. This is arrived point to precious India and finished point in most cases! You can find here temple even more beautiful than Taj Mahal - Akshardham. Totally must see place.
Best season: Mid September - November; February - April. You can use it like access point to India all over year, but June, July - monsoons, January - cold month. Just remember it
I can also say about two more cities Pune and Mangaluru. Pune is business point in India, but I was there only 2 days, so don't know much about it. Just remember that city is expensive. And about Mangaluru - I wasn't there but I heard that this civil city and people calm about white people, so it's good city for living.
My own list of places that I want to see and it is not backpackers place, just sights: Gangtok, Munnar, Ellora, Ajanta, Orcha, Kibber, Khirganga, Udaipur, Junagdh, Kovalam, Mysore, Jodhpur, some others places in Goa except Arambol.
Hope somebody of Steempeople will want to visit unbelievable India after my guide!
And just one tip: the best offline map to travel is Maps Me - read if you don't know this amazing app, about 50% places in my experience better than at Google Map!
If you have question about India - just ask about it, and I will answer!