Honeymoon in India

Honeymoon in India

Believe in ‘forever-n-ever’?India hosts Earth’s most gorgeous monument, that a lover dedicated to his beloved (the Taj Mahal), is a honeymooning paradise, rated ‘Incredible’ by couples from across the world. Marriages will continue being made in heaven, but great honeymoons are plotted best in India. And considering the swelling tourist influx into India’s earmarked sites, the Tourism Industry has chiseled each of them to perfection with the best infrastructure, international standard amenities, accommodation facilities and so on.

Now, this one is going to be a dream-ride, are you ready?

India - a tale of loveIndia’s tale of love is as old as the nation itself. Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh) cradled the celestial romance between the iconic couples Radhika and Lord Krishna, worshiped in unison. Shiv-Shakti (Lord Shiva and His consort Parvati) form another cosmic couple and the insignia of the belief that man and woman are halves of one another and one is incomplete without the other. India’s ancient and world’s most famous literature on the art of love-making, is the 4th century scholar Vatsyayana’s Kama Sutra or the technical text on the Aphorisms of Love. Translated first into English in 1883 Sir Richard Francis Burton, and then to almost all languages in the world and with shelves of literature, volumes of movie dedicated to it, a copy of Kama Sutra is a must buy, to gift your beloved as a memento of your special trip.

Designer sites for HoneymoonersNature, when She laid open Her variegated bounty, must be done with by the time She reached India. For whatever was left of each type She emptied it all here. This is to say, India’s diverse landscape - deserts, beaches, backwaters, hill stations - offer a whole legion of vacationing ideas for you and your beloved to pick from.

Beaches: Laze around in the palm-laced beaches at Kerala, just perfect if you can afford sometime to indulge in laxity building sand-castles and deciding which one would be which room. Quickies are those at Goa. Known for their feverish fun and rave parties, Goa is just the place for couples who love hip-shaking and salsa. Dance the nights away and sleep all day long.

Snuggling idea at beaches- How about gifting her a bronze-hued halter-neck jeweled with sea-shells? While you can surprise him with a Sabyasachi Mukherjee (famed Indian designer) fuchsia sarong.

Hill Stations: Shimla, Kullu-Manali, Nainital, Ooty, Darjeeling, Tawang, Dalhousie, Mussoorie, Patnitop are the best bets for that cozy honeymoon. Snowfall or no snowfall, you are bound to remain glued to one another. The resorts and their romantic saunas, skiing through the ice one after the other, swaying together to the waltz held in your honor, joining some jungle camps and spending the whole night counting the shooting stars, visiting one of the Indian temples or monasteries (you know what to pray) --- your honeymoon in India’s highlands has many enchantments waiting to be explored.

Snuggling idea at hillstations- If you are in South India, impress the chef of your resort to teach you to make filter coffee. The next morning you sneak out of bed early, make your own breakfast and return impromptu. The aroma of fresh coffee will wake your mate before you do!

Honeymooners pickThe backwaters at Kerala with the tree-top resorts and houseboats incubate the best honeymoons and romances. Something you should not miss is a resplendent Ayurdevic massage and a herbal sauna therapy. The Heritage Resorts , the camel safari in the Thar desert, a night in the rolling caravan or one of the ancient havelis, luncheon in an oasis restaurant, taking part in folk performances, all these and more await you at India’s desertland Rajasthan. The sculptures of Khajuraho, a World Heritage site, are undoubtedly the best expressions in stone inspired by Kama Sutra and a sheer visual delight. The adventurous one’s will find many a tip to make it one of their most exciting honeymooning experience ever. Kashmir is India’s apple-pie and a ride in the Shinkara boats amongst valleys of myriad flowers is an experience that cannot be equaled with diction. Once there (safe and secure for tourists), you will realize why India has so jealously held on to it.

Snuggling idea - Time you read out your old love-poetry (write one if you haven’t written any). Buy a pair of Rajanthani puppets and the easy to use-strings help you do that cameo puppet show while your mobile plays your recorded poem. What say?

Off-the-beaten track spotsAndaman and Nicober Islands, a fantasy archipelago of 572 emerald islands, of sapphire skies, white sands, coral reefs, in the Indian Ocean. One of India’s richest marine reserves, the islands are a haven for scuba divers, anthropologists, adventurers and honeymooners. For a rendezvous with pre-historic life and for that secluded honeymoon, with just ‘you-me and the world as god made it’, fly to Port Blair from Chennai and Calcutta, or still better, sail from Chennai (1190 km), Calcutta (1255 km) and Vishakapatnam. Daman and Diu is another cloistered piece of land, where the tourism flood-lights are yet to be turned. Arunachal Pradesh in the North East India is another quite, yet overtly romantic destination. The hill-station Tawang is simply out-of-the world.

‘Beauty lies in the eyes of beholder’ is passe, for with almost every tourist destination revamped so as to please the vision, and meet the basic requirements, every couple will find their share of paradise in India’s honeymooning destinations. Honeymoon is an affair of a lifetime (unless you are very sure of marrying again) and so is the vacation. Welcome to India and you will find more than one reason to recall it with pride in the years of togetherness that will follow.