Travel Information

Day 1/ Delhi
Arrive Delhi, meet assist at the airport transfer to hotel. Night stay in Delhi.

Day 2/ Explore Old Delhi and New Delhi
Morning after breakfast proceed for tour of Old & New Delhi.
OLD DELHI -The 350 years old walled city was built by Emperor Shah Jehan in 1648 as his capital. Opposite the fort are the black and white onion dome and minarets of the Jama Masjid, the most elegant mosque in India. Raj Ghat is worth a visit where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated in 1948.
New Delhi : The new capital designed by Sir Edward Lutyens. An interesting drive in the one passing through the impressive Rajpath from the World War I memorial arch, the India Gate towards the Presidential Palace. Visit Humayun's Tomb built in 1565 AD, Safdarjung's Tomb, the Qutab Minar, 72 meters high and the most curious antique, the uncorroded Iron Pillar, which dates back to the 4th century AD.
NEW DELHI - An extensive sight-seeing tour of New Delhi would include a visit to the Humayun's Tomb, the Qutub Minar, a drive along the ceremonial avenue - Rajpath, past the imposing India Gate, Parliament House, the President's Residence and would end with a drive through the Diplomatic Enclave Visit the powerful, majestic Hindu Temples of Delhi: Chattarpur Temple, Yogmaya Temple & Lakshmi Narayan Temple.

Day 3/ Delhi - Bangalore - Puttaparthi
After late breakfast, transfer to Domestic Airport for flight to Bangalore, and continue to Puttaparthy by surface. Reach Puttaparthy. Transfer to hotel. Night stay in Puttaparthi.

Day 4/ Puttaparthi (Christmas with Sathya Sai Baba)
After breakfast, full day at Puttaparthi and visit Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ashram. Night stay in Puttaparthi.

Day 5/ Puttaparthi - Tirupati
After breakfast, drive to Tirupati and transfer to hotel. Visit to Lord Balaji Temple. Night stay in Tirupatty. Tirupati is a dusty bustling little town at the foot of the Tirumalai Hills in the southern tip of Andhra Pradesh. Every day thousands of pilgrims descend on Tirupati spilling out of buses, cars, taxis and trains. They are all on their way up to the temple of the Lord Venkatswara up in the Tirumalai hills. It is an old temple, that has witnessed the rise and fall of powerful dynasties. The Pallavas, Cholas and Pandayas were all patrons of the shrine and they endowed it with jewels and wealth. It is a pleasant drive from Tirupati up to Tirumalai and as the road winds its way up the forested slopes there are splendid views of Tirupati and the plains. The temple is a perfect example of the Dravidian style of temple architecture. Within the three parakarams or enclosures of the temple complex is the main shrine with its exquisitely worked and gilded vimana above it, gleaming in the sun. This early morning ritual is an unforgettable experience - as the myriad flickering oil lamps light up the sanctum and the majesty of the deity decked in glittering ornaments, the absolute silence is broken by the chant of the priests. It is the beginning of another day at the temple.

Day 6/ Tirupati - Chennai
After breakfast, drive to Chennai. Reach Chennai and later on half-day city tour of Chennai. Night stay in Chennai. Chennai (previously known as Madras), the first city of South India and the capital of Tamilnadu state, is a historic land of ancient culture. India's most southerly city brims with magnificent architecture, exotic pageantry, and age-old traditions. The Dravidian dynasties of Pallavas, the Cholas and the Pandiyas, all left their marks on the culture and architecture of the region. Chennai, a thriving seaboard that did business with the Chinese, Greeks, Phoenicians, Romans, and Babylonians 2000 years ago and later the French, Portugese, Armenians, and Arabs. Chennai remembered history goes back to the 4th Century. Night stay in Chennai.

Day 7/ Chennai - Kanchipuram - Mahabalipuram
After breakfast, leave for Mahabalipuram, en route visiting Kanchipuram and Kamakshi Temple. Reach Mahabalipuram in the evening.
Mahabalipuram: Globally renown for its shore temples, Mahabalipuram was the second capital of the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram. 58 kilometres from Madras on the Bay of Bengal, this tiny sea - side village of Mahabalipuram, is set in a boulder - strewn landscape. Tourists are drawn to this place by its miles of unspoiled beach and rock-cut art. The sculpture here is particularly interesting because it shows scenes of day-to- day life, in contrast with the rest of the state of Tamil Nadu, where the carvings generally depict gods and goddesses.

Kanchipuram is among the most famous of the 'temple cities' of Tamil Nadu. Its temples house different Hindu sects. Though today it is only a destination for pilgrims, and a repository of major architectural monuments, in antiquity it occupied a more preeminent place in the history of South India.The Ekambareshvara temple is the principle Shaiva sanctuary and its soaring gopuras dominate the city's skyline.

Day 8/ Optional Day Trip to Thiru Annamalai and Ramana Maharishi Ashram.
Optional: Visit to Thiru Annamalai and the ashram in Arunachala of famous Vedanta Advaita (Non-dualism philosophy) saint, Ramana Maharishi.

Day 9/ Mahabalipuram - Chennai - Madurai
After breakfast, tr.ansfer to Domestic Airport for flight to Madurai, Reach Madurai. Afterwards, visit to the Meenakshi Temple and transfer to hotel. Night stay in Madurai.

Day 10/ Madurai - Kanyakumari
After breakfast, half-day sightseeing of Madurai and continue to Kanyakumari. Reach Kanyakumari and transfer to hotel. Madurai, situated in southern Tamil Nadu, is a district with its headquarters in Madurai city, on the banks of Vaigai river. Madurai is the second largest city in Tamil Nadu. It is more than 2,500 years old and is an important cultural and commercial centre. Madurai, once the seat of Tamil learning and still the place where Tamil language is spoken in its purest form, is an ancient city planned in the shape of lotus. Night stay in Kanyakumari.

Day 11/ Explore Kanyakumari - New Years Eve at Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram
After breakfast, full day sightseeing of Kanyakumari and Vivekenanda Memorial Rock.Cape Comorin, Land's End ­ mainland India's southernmost point, where three seas meet and where the shore temple to the virgin goddess Kanyakumari stands. It is one of the sacred pilgrimage places of the hindus. There are two significant memorials here. One is the Gandhi Mandapam, built to commemorate the immersion of the ashes of Mahatma Gandhi in the waters by the temple. The other memorial, dedicated to Swami Vivekananda, is built on the rock 656 ft. from the shore where he meditated in 1892 before taking the message of the Hindu philosophy to the west. Swami Vivekananda was the foremost disciple of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. Night stay in Kanyakumari.

Day 12/ New Years Day at Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram - Trivendrum
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day at Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram and later on continue to Trivandrum. Transfer to hotel. Mata Amritanandamayi is believed to be an avatar--an incarnation of Mother Divine in human form. She is the first Indian saint to give her blessings by hugging each aspirant who visits her. To receive a hug from "Ammachi," as she is called by her devotees, is to experience the nectar of divine love flowing into your heart and illuminating your mind. This is something that has to be experienced in order to understand its power. A feeling of true spiritual grace is bestowed upon every person who visits this wonderful saint. We will have the honor of spending New Years Eve and New Years Day with her. Night stay in Kanyakumari.

Day 13/ Trivandrum - Delhi
After late breakfast, transfer to Airport for flight to Delhi After reaching Delhi, transfer to Village BISTRO for Farewell Dinner and later on transfer to Airport for onward destination.