Itinerary Advice for 1 month's backpacker trip

Hi there,

I will be travelling alone, as a backpacker for one month the following June, Mumbai arrival.
I was planning to go down to Goa, Bangalore, Kerala and Chennai.
Could someone suggest any other interesting places in the states of Maharahtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu?
A month\'s time isnt that much for such a huge country, but could I have time to visit Andhra Pradesh and Orissa too?
Thank you please for answering. Reply to this

Hi Alaitz

I deleted your duplicate post.

Kate Reply to this

Hi Alaitz

There are many other places to visit in India. If you are interested in exploring Himalayan ranges then visit ladakh, Kumaon and Sikkim. You can find most exotic and serene landscapes in that region. While surfing for ladakh hotels, I came across this luxury hotel " 360º Leti " which has short trip plans available. This would be the best thing to do if you have 3-4 days available.

Reply to this

Hi Alaitz, while in Mumbai, you can visit Elehpanta Caves, which is a day trip and worth a visit. Pune would not stand out as a place to visit unless you're keen on seeing the Osho Ashram. You can club Aurangabad and Ellora-Ajanta, as its the same location, a few kms away. I've never heard of Panela, so not sure if you got the spelling right.

Goa is broadly divided into North and South and since its across a vast distance, you would need to split the places so as to avoid traveling back n forth. There is nothing at Mapusa and Panaji (more like regular towns), but Baga, Calangute, Anjuna, Vagator and Arambol are beautiful. Do remember to go the day or night local market along with the visits to the beaches. Palolem is outstanding and one of my fav places in Goa. If you like clubbin, the 'Silent Night' parties are recommended.

From Goa, you can head to Gokarna Beach and then towards Humpi - both places worth a visit.

If you're taking the houseboat over Kerala Backwaters and visiting Munnar and Thekkady, you can skip other places. Thiruvananthapuram is again like any other large town and the only nice place here is the Raja Ravi Verma palace and his original paintings. Technically, Kanniyakuman or Kanyakumari is in Tamil Nadu, however you can go directly from Thekkady to Kanyakumari. You can actually see all the three water bodies prominently merge into each other.

If you are going to Chennai, do take time off to travel upto Pondicherry, its a 2.5-3 hour drive along lush fields on one side and the beach on the other.

You can squeeze in Andhra, but then it will be a rushed trip, so you'll have to choose between spending quality time at each place vis-a-vis visiting more places.

Do write back should you need more info. Reply to this

Goa? Very touristy.
Pondicherry is also touristy but a very pleasant town.
Ernakulam in Kerala is interesting, and the home of Katakali dancing. Worth seeing!! Reply to this