A travel through East India brings you through a drastically different landscape: mangroves in the Sundarbans and alpine peaks in the high Himalayas. Most visits begin in Kolkata, once the capital of the British Empire, where bustling B.B.D. Bagh brims with fading 19th-century colonial grandeur. Moss-covered headstones in South Park Street cemetery, the Paresnath Jain temple, the Armenian Church, all convey stories of the multi-cultural influences that have shaped this city over millennia. Sail the Hooghly before sunrise to visit temples upriver, and end the day with a classic Bengali supper. Bengalis are obsessed with food, and Kolkata, for all its failings, is a foodie’s dream. Don’t go without participating in the bounty of Bengali cuisine and conversation.
Around the hill resort of Darjeeling, huge estates grow some of the world’s most valued tea. Sip on a cup of pure Darjeeling first flush, amidst mist-covered tea estates in a colonial setting.
The sound of chanting Buddhist monks fills the air in Pelling, Sikkim. Gardens bloom with orchids and woodlands teem with rhododendron. Around every corner of the state, you’ll come to arresting views of snow-capped hills and the striking five-peaked Mount Kanchenjunga. Further east, in Assam’s Kaziranga National Park, one-horned rhinos graze languidly, and otters swim energetically in the dirty rivers flowing by. Assam is part of the seven northeastern states affectionately called the Seven Sisters. Unique fauna including hoolock gibbons and huge hornbills occupy this place of remarkable natural beauty, showcasing stunning waterfalls and hidden caves. It is also an ethnically diverse region, where indigenous tribes like the Angami Nagas and Bodos reside.
When the choices are so overwhelming, how do you decide what to see of East India in the time you have? Our India professionals will hand-hold you through the process, and construct a personalized itinerary that matches you best.