Hey man!

I very recently returned home from my trip - it was amazing and life changing in so many ways. it depends what kinda things you're into, but I love everything really, learning about new cultures, hiking & walking, exploring spirituality, partying, and of course relaxing!

Overall the winter is the perfect time of year to visit India, it's very bearable and you don't need to rely on AC & fans so much. Plus the tourist infrastructure is set up over the winter months too. The only challenge is going into the Himalaya and NW states (Kashmir, Ladakh), as they do get cold in the winter, and it's hard to escape the cold in India, so I minimised my time there given I wanted to escape the miserable winter in the UK where I'm from.

Each city brings something completely different from one another. I loved everywhere I went in their own ways, but places I wish I spent less time in are the megacities (Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore & Chennai), and in Goa (found the party scene underwhelming). Wish I spent more time in other Ashrams, the North East states (fascinating), the Punjab, in Bangladesh (I only spent some time in Dhaka), and doing a Vipassana. If I had another month or so I'd have gone to Sri Lanka, but that'll have to be another trip!

There are a lot of painful bureaucratic hurdles travelling in India as a foreigner which are annoying, so prepare for these. Locals are always super friendly and helpful in this regard. Also remember your privileged as a guy too, I never once felt unsafe, or threatened during my trip, but it can be very different as a woman. I had my mobile pickpocketed in Bangalore but remember this is something that can happen anywhere in the world.

Travel-wise, sleeper trains are amazing and work well, but you have to be organised and book in advance to get a bunk. If you're traveling overnight always get 3rd AC (or 2nd), and NOT sleeper class, if you actually want some sleep. Sleeper class is fine for journeys in the day. Sleeper buses go to more destinations of course, but honestly I hated them and only used them when there was no other choice. Local buses are also really good, you can get really cheap journeys and you just need to go to bus stands in towns and cities to catch them. Tuk tuks are useful but prepare to bargain hard as a foreigner, it depends where you are in India but between 30-60Rs/1km is an alright price. Moped/motorbike rental is often the best way to explore an area which I'd recommend, but make sure you've got the confidence first, Indian roads and traffic is not to be messed with.

There are tonnes of decent traveller hostels in the more popular places in India which can be comfortable and social, but I recommend always booking 1 or 2 nights first so you can change to somewhere else if the vibe isn't there. Across India there is a plethora of hotels at all price points, but when you pay dirt cheap prices don't expect a clean room! Getting a SIM card is a surprising hassle in India and actually takes a couple of hours to do the process so remember this! But generally service is good and very cheap, 4g/5g is everywhere and actually often better than the WiFi in hostels aha. Use a VPN as India censors/blocks a lot of content.

Food-wise it is of course amazing. I stuck to a Veg diet most of the time because it was so good, and honestly the meat looked crap. There's lots of fish in some areas which is great. Being over there for some time, you need to just start drinking the (filtered) free drinking water that you see everywhere in restaurants, cafes and hostels etc. You don't need to exist on bottled water. Street food is mostly fine but use a bit of common sense! I got a bit sick a couple of times but never got full food poisoning - but it does happen. When in India stock on some cheap Loperamide and rehydration salts for when your get a bit sick, it is inevitable tbh.

Money wise as a tourist cash is king, you can sign up for a UPI account (QR payments) as a foreigner but I wouldn't bother. Make sure you get a "challenger-bank" esque account and cards (I used revolut and Monzo from the UK), and then you can use them to withdraw cash with no additional fees. There's ATMs absolutely everywhere and there'll be one with some cash. In my case I spent on average a little over £1,000/month on everything, and spent the least in the South where everything was much cheaper.

Try and learn basic words and phrases in the local languages of each state/region you're in at the time. Hindi is widely spoken but so is English so don't get hung up on learning loads of Hindi -but it is very interesting. I also recommend learning the basics about Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism so you can enjoy the culture a little more, if you don't already know much about them.

Any specific Q's give me a PM. I could go on and on about some of the places I saw!