I have recently come across this great Indian Tour Company Periplus Getaways. There are quite a few women who lead some great tours for women to India, but Periplus is different in that is owned and run by a local Indian woman Nutan Thangan. Like Moksha of Back and Beyond Motorcycle Tours,  Nutan is keen to work with people in other parts of the world to organise tours for women in India. Read more

Dianne Sharma-Winter writes:

One of the many names for the river Ganga (or Ganges) translates to “Roaming around delighting in Apple Tree Island”

Anyone who has plotted the course of this river knows that this is exactly what the Ganga likes to do. Her riverbanks have changed many miles over the course of time and then there is the monsoon where she breaks her banks exuberantly.

Slow travel is a bit like that. I have had the luck to roam around delighting in India like a river, slow and languid at times and rushing with purpose and intent at others. Read more

Studying Ayurveda in Kerala

Dianne Sharma-Winter Writes:

Every cloud has a silver lining, sometimes even gold.

This belief had sustained me through the first month of a course of training in Ayurveda in a small-unexplored area of Kerala, India’s premier state for the practice and study of this ancient science.

Even though I was aware that one-month course would barely scratch the surface of the vast ocean of knowledge that is Ayurveda, I was more interested in learning about the practical forms of massage and herbal treatments to adapt to my own massage practice in New Zealand. Read more

Moksha is India’s first woman to become a professional in motor-biking. She has set up a motorcycle touring company in India and offers 11-22 itineraries for biking around India. Get a group of 10+ together, and head off with Back and Beyond – a journey beyond imagination

Motor-biking has been Moksha’s passion since teen-age. She was never encouraged to have her own bike in a conservative Indian society.

Her father had a progressive thinking and was aware of the confidence Moksha had her in driving skills. He taught her how to ride a scooter. From there, she never looked back. She never learnt riding a motor-cycle from anybody.

She used to ride her friends’ bikes around. Now she has her own Royale Enfield 350cc mo-bike and she enjoys riding it for hours together. Woman, riding a bullet, is not a common sight in India and she gives a bright smile when she finds onlookers watching her in amazement.

For 18 year Moksha worked in hospitality industry and adventure tourism. Her job took her to different places in and around India. She got valuable experience in travel & tourism industry. Being very well qualified and well read person, she worked in middle and top management level with different organizations. She always wanted to venture into motor-biking as a professional which was her passion. As there is a saying,’ Dreams do come true. We should never stop dreaming’. She started her own co. three years back in Manali. Since then, she has led various groups to Lahul & Spiti, Ladakh, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Nepal and Tibet. She plans to expand her tours in the other parts of India and Bhutan.

Contact: Back and Beyond – a journey beyond imagination

Lyn Baker the founder of Tiger Travel spent many years travelling extensively throughout India as a professional photographer  – she has an eye for the country, for its people and its culture.

The idea of sharing India with small groups of women travellers seemed a great way of adding to her relationship with India.  So Tiger Travel was born. Read more

I have just added a whole lot more tours for women to India onto the Women Travel the World Tour Calendar. There is so much choice from some wonderful companies, you can do a tour, and add some extra stays to explore by yourself once you have gained some confidence.  As a woman travelling on my own, I find this a great way to travel.  Join a small tour where I can get the feel of a country and then branch out confidently to explore on my own.  There is now a choice of 17 tours in India on the Tour Calendar on Women Travel.

Read more

March 2010 Dianne is no longer offering this service, but is offering some great personalised tours in India. find out more

New Zealander Dianne Sharma-Winter is a poet, a peregrine (pilgrim), and a practitioner of the healing arts.  She was a late starter as a traveller, but it is now in her blood, and one of her passions in India.  Combining a passion and a business, Dianne has set up a small business welcoming women to New Delhi. Read more

Traveling through the colourful Indian state of  Rajasthan you might find your eyes watering:  women saunter through the streets in vivid saris, farmers sport large bright turbans, elephants are painted in rainbow colours, and even the cities are known for their different shades – Jaipur the pink city, Jodhpur the blue city and Jaiselmer the golden city. Read more

Venus Adventures have had a request by a client to put on a trip to India in November this year. Julie writes:

India is such a treasure-trove of affordable and beautiful handicrafts, for all your shopaholics out there, it would be a great Xmas-shopping trip! But who needs an excuse to shop, that just comes naturally to us women. India is also historically and culturally very interesting – and we all know that Indian food is just the best!

If you are interested please Venus know asap so  – they need a minimum of 5 clients for it to run. See the 16 day India trip on the website for February 2010, we would use the same itinerary.

More on India - I have just come across Ibex Expeditions in India

Guides: Mandip & Anita Singh Soin “Since 1979 people have entrusted their dreams to us. Ibex has been a leader in adventure travel, off-the-beaten-path holidays, wildlife safaris, family vacations, specialised journeys in luxury hotels and quaint lodges. Ibex arranges authentic, cultural immersive journeys; be it camping in the Himalaya or dining at a fine palace. Read more