Is Maldives the right location for your next travel?

There are lot of factors that one needs to consider before making an international travel plan. If you have been considering Maldives, let me break this down for you to help you in your planning.

1. VISA

VISA is a critical factor that travelers tend to look at while planning for vacations. Since the VISA process and requirements are overbearing for the first world countries, travelers tend to choose popular tourist destinations which offer Visa on arrival.

If your passport has a validity of six months or more then you would be given a free VISA on arrival for 30 days (which would be 90 days for Indian passport holders).

2. Flight Options

Maldives has an island airport and with good air connectivity to popular airports in Asia and Middle East. So if you are flying from elsewhere, you are likely to have at least a one stop layover in one of these locations.

If you are an Indian traveler, don’t be deceived by the airline ticket budget as this would be a small fraction of your overall travel cost.

3. Attractions

Unlike other tourist destinations, you have less touristy stuff in the form of monuments or places to visit in Maldives. The main attraction are their resorts, most of which are located on an exclusive island surrounded by pristine beach and sand bank. You can look at the images below to get an idea of how beautiful the resorts are. 

   

Also, if you love the beach and scuba diving or snorkeling, this place is a must visit. However, if you are looking only for water sports or sea excursions, Maldives might end up being an expensive option.

Pro tip – Plan you stay in such a way that you stay a few days in regular BNB hotels in Hulhumale or other large islands if you are looking to do water sports or sea activities (scuba diving, dolphin spotting, island hopping, submarine, etc) at lower prices – resorts can be really expensive. 

4. Budget vs Luxury

Now that we have discussed VISA, flight options and attractions it is very important that you factor the most important decision making factor, which is the cost of your vacation.

The best way to enjoy Maldives is to be lavish in choosing your resort and also loosen your wallet when it comes to ancillary spends. This is because there are certain experiences which are unique to Maldives and it’s a one time experience if you were to view it so.

My recommendation would be you reserve a trip to Maldives for later if you are planning to do a budget trip. However, if you are still looking to put your foot on the map then I would suggest you base yourself out of one B&B joints in the populated islands and do day trips to the island resorts.

While this post is an easy decision making tool for choosing to visit Maldives or not, I request you to read my next post to understand better on how to choose the best resort in Maldives to make your experience better.

Trident, Udaipur

We stayed here on the last day of our trip to Udaipur. After having decided not to over spend on palace hotels, this was our attempt to experience a lake-side, yet relatively affordable luxury stay. (I am sure that's a lot of oxymorons together)

Hotel Category - Five Star
Location - Udaipur

Service

The Oberoi Group (of which Trident is a part) is known for endearing hospitality and this was evident not only from the care and affection extended by the front office staff, but also the pleasant surprise they had waiting for us when we entered the room after a small site seeing; they took the cue from our discussion during checkin when we mentioned we were here as part of our honeymoon and had the room decorated with baloons and a heart shaped creating using bath towels, To top that, they had a delectable chocolate cake ready to be sliced. 

Mr. Mahi from the front office, his deputy and the F&B manager require special mention for making our stay a very comfortable one. They also extended their support in suggesting places to visit and restaurants to try in the city during our stay here. 

Room and Facilities

It's a large commercial hotel with over 137 rooms. What this also means is, there are going to be a lot of people buzzing around and this hotel might not be the best option if you are looking for a quaint and private space. 

Our room had a brilliant lake view, but when I look back I tend to think wasn't the lake a distant mile away from the room? Is that worth the premium I paid? Also, the room was compact sized and comparable to a business class hotel you find in Tier I cities. 

For the positives, the room had flawless hygiene and had good quality bathroom essentials. 

Location

The hotel shares its compound with the ultra premium Oberoi Udai Vilas and is easily accessible when in the city limits. 

Food

We had only their buffet breakfast and it was easily the best breakfast we had during the trip. While there may have been a few failed dishes, the lavish spread made up for it. 

On a summary note, the hotel has everything going in it's favor if you are looking for a commercial/quasi business class hotel. While the same may not be the recommendation if you are in the city for a holiday, their outstanding hospitality is BIG enough reason to revisit. 

P.S - used my Citibank premiermiles credit card points to part fund the room booking cost. 

Ramada Resort & Spa, Udaipur

We stayed here on our first day in Udaipur. We chose this hotel based on the pricing and pictures/reviews on Tripadvisor. On arrival, we were given an option to choose for a room upgrade to the premium category for INR. 1500 - which we were happy to opt for. 

Hotel Category - 5 Star (Resort)
Location - Udaipur

Location 

This is a hill-side property located at Rampura Circle. While I may not be the best judge for commenting on the locality, the hotel is ticked away from the busy lake-side localities - which are preferred locations to stay for tourists. 

Room & Facilities 

It was a twin room designed in a ground plus one model; we occupied the one on the ground floor. The room was reasonably large sized (something that might be otherwise rare in a crowded travel city like Udaipur) and had a great visual appeal - could not decide whether it looked better in day or night. 

But that said, the hotel maintenance was below par. Our issues ranged included: broken bathroom flush, dis-functional telephone (this is a big no for a property where the lobby is a kilometer from the room), stained bathtubs, etc. 

Their other facilities included spa, swimming pool, few indoor games, a fully functional pub, etc. Specifically referring to the pool facility, they have two options - one central pool accessible to all customers and other being a private one which had a paid entry. 

Food 

Our dining here was restricted to the complimentary breakfast. The spread was decent and food just above average, 

Service

The service was patchy. While they attended to most requests instantly, our efforts to get the telephone fixed went unanswered - despite informing twice. 

On a summary note, this is a good resort if you are looking to spend time with family and relax. That said, they need to maintain the place better; which is an essential for five star properties. 

My rating for the hotel is 6/10. 

Essentials for a Luxury Vacation to the City of Lakes - Udaipur

If you are planning your travel to Udaipur there are several questions you would like to ask yourself. To make your job simple here are some struggles I went through in making the plans:

1. How many days?

Well, everybody you speak to or every place you research would tell you that you don't need more than 3 or 4 days to fully cover Udaipur. 

While that might make sense if your target is only to cover the city, visiting nearby places of interest (Ranakpur, Kumbalgarh, Mount Abu and Chittorgarh) could make your trip a longer one.

An ideal vacation would be for 3 to 4 days if you are looking to get a comprehensive feel of the city and its culture and a day or two each for all nearby places of interest. 

2. Where to stay? 

The biggest question one needs to answer is the kind of vacation they plan to have. Especially given that Udaipur has some of the country's most premium hotels - it might be worth considering them:

Ultra Luxury Hotels (priced INR 40-60k per day range)

a. Oberoi Udai Vilas

b. Taj Lake Palace - Heritage hotel located in the middle of Lake Pichola; there are no options to even dine here unless your staying with them)

c. Leela Palace 

Other Luxury Hotels (priced in INR 10-25k per day range)

a. Trident (part of Oberoi group)

b. Fateh Prakash Palace
c. Lakeend

d. Lalit Lakshmi Vilas
e. Shiv Niwas Palace

Other Hotels - Just search on trip advisor and you would find a decent number of options across all price segments. Interestingly, the city has palace styled hotels in all price segments.

3. How to get here?
For travelers from Chennai - it is likely that you would have to stop over at Mumbai/Delhi if you chose to fly.

Not discussing train routes here as I am no authority on the same.

In my next few posts, would talk about my experiences - hotel stays, places visited and dining sessions; stay tuned for more

Top 3 Travel Credit Cards

Every aspiring traveler in India is envious of his global counterparts when they talk about cheap airfares and redeeming air-miles for holidays. While this is a growing fad in our country, the system and the credit cards have not fully matured to support the model.

So, while you wait for things to catch heat, here are some of the credit cards that could be handy given the current scenario. 

1. Citbank Premier-Miles Credit Card

Source: Google, Citi

Pro's:

1. You get to redeem your miles for travel and hotels: most of the travel cards have airline tie ups and miss the other essential element - 'stay'. 
2. Miles utilization is linked to the ticket/room pricing: a fair system that benefit travelers who plan their trips in advance
3. Never expiring miles: this is possibly the best feature of this card. Unlike JP miles or gift vouchers these miles have an infinite validity period

Con's

1. Redemption pricing is slightly higher than the pricing in their travel partner's website (GoIbibo is their official travel partner)
2. Low on miles granted: They offers 10 miles for every INR 100 spent for airline bookings and 4 miles for every 100 spent on other expenditure. 
3. Low credit limit for non Citibank customers: Card offers low credit limit for non citibank customers

Best recommended usage strategy: For all your travel bookings (except Jet if you have a JP partner card). For other expenses, depending on benefits available in your other cards. 

Fees: This card comes with an annual fee of INR 3000

2. AMEX Platinum Travel Credit Card

Source: Google images; Amex

While this is not exactly a travel card, it has some excellent rewards which Indian travelers would love to get their hands on. The cards has a milestone based rewards system whereby the customers get Indigo vouchers upon sign up and spending INR. 1.9 lakhs and Indigo and Taj vouchers when cumulative spend reaches INR. 4.0 lakhs. 

So the most cash equivalent of rewards that one can avail in a one year cycle is worth around INR. 33,800. 

Pro's

1. High on rewards: their rewards is easily among the highest you would find among comparable credit cards
2. Lounge access - You get limited free access to select Amex lounges and also a free membership to Priority Pass; however, entry to priority pass lounges would be charged. 
3. Enjoy high credit limit: Amex typically offers a higher credit limit than your other cards

Con's

1. Voucher benefits come with a limited validity and are restricted to their airline and hotel partners
2. No benefits for spends over INR 4 lakhs in a year
3. No accelerated points or miles privileges for frequent travelers except small discounts on travel booking partner Makemytrip. 

Best recommended usage strategy: Use this card for all your non-travel expenses if you use more than one travel card. Limit usage once you have availed maximum rewards (i.e reached the INR. 4.0 lakh milestone). 

Fee: First year fee - INR. 3500 (plus taxes) and renewal fee INR. 5000 (plus taxes)

Hack - You could apply through paisa bazaar and get the first year free. 

3. JetPrivilege HDFC Bank World Credit Card

Source: Google, HDFC

I am wannabe Jet loyalist and have been trying hard to accumulate jetmiles. They are among the few and earliest Indian airline's to launch a loyalty program and is also possibly the best connected in terms air-routes. 

Pro's

1. High on miles (rewards) - You earn 18 miles for every INR. 150 spent on flights booked using Jet airways website and 6 miles for every INR. 150 spent on other bookings. So if you are a frequent traveler on Jet Airways - this card could come handy. 
2. Lounge Access: The card provides access to mastercard lounges and also offers free priority pass membership. Unlike your Amex travel card, the cardholder gets 5 five free entry's to the priority pass restricted lounges. 
3. Receive miles across a host of  non-airline expenditure which include stay, dining, subscriptions, etc
4. 5% discount on Jet airways flight Bookings

Cons

1. Only Jet Airways flights: Miles redemption is restricted to airline ticket bookings only and comes with a prefixed validity period. 
2. Low value for miles: Though the redemption has been linked to airfare, it works on a slab based model; therefore the miles spent per booking might be slightly higher than your bookings with PremierMiles or other cards. (e.g - a round trip from Chennai to Bangalore would cost you INR. 3,500 if booked in advance. The same would however cost you 10,000 miles if one was to redeem miles for this booking. 

Best recommended usage strategy: For all your flight bookings on Jet Airways and hotel bookings through partner websites such as Agoda, Booking.com, Rocketmiles, Kaligo, etc. Some of these sites may be priced slightly premium, especially for bookings with miles as rewards. 

Also, check Jet Privilege website to know what other expenses you can get miles for. 

Fee: First year and renewal fee of INR. 2500 per annum. The renewal fee would be waived based on expenditure milestone being achieved. 

Jet privilege platinum members can get this card for free.  

Note: There are Jet Privilege partner cards, but this had the best return on annual fee. 

About Me

I use all of the above cards and I am currently accumulating miles to see India (if not the world). The above views are based on my personal experiences (positives and struggles) and the views may vary from other users. 

Fern Residency, Mumbai

Star Category - 4 star
Location - Chembur, Mumbai

Had stayed at Fern Residency as a part of my official visit to Mumbai a couple of months ago.

About the Hotel:
Its a four star eco-tel business hotel and shares quarters with a club; the club partners as the gym and and pool facilities provider to the hotel.

Location:
Located in Chembur and a stay here would be advisable if the locality has a reason of interest for you. Personally, I found dining options limited in the neighborhood and neither was I inclined to go in search for one after long work days.

Recommended For:Business travelers

Pricing
The room rents are priced between INR 6-7k. I paid different rates as my last day's booking was through an offer I found on trip-advisor, while other days were through direct bookings.

Personally, I found that to be a tad premium given their setup and offerings.

Hospitality & Service (8/10)
The staff are pleasant and welcoming; check-in, stay extension and checkout process was smooth and I have absolutely no complaints about their service.

The first night I noticed the washroom had a minor fix was required, which they had got done without request and seamlessly during the daily room cleanup.

Room (Facilities and comfort)
The room had the basic essentials and maintenance and quality was appreciable. However, the wifi seldom worked during my stay here and I was told they had some server issues; for a business traveler these are certain basic essentials and a failure for 3 nights is impermissible.

Secondly, the beds were excessively soft. Like I could feel a part of myself drown into cotton every-time I neared it. While this is an initial wow factor, frequent hotel users would agree that excessively soft beds does give you back pain; or at least if you have a ponch like me and have a habit of lying on your tummy.

Food
Their breakfasts were a big pass for me and that did not motivate me to try their 'paid dinner'; despite it having a slightly better spread. The masala dosa and chole poori were the two decent offerings in their breakfast menu.

On a summary note, a decent business class hotel but one that I would not be motivated to visit again. 

Sahara Star Hotel, Mumbai

Star Category - 5 Star
Location - Ville Parle, Mumbai

Was on a business trip to Mumbai and had checked into this hotel for experiencing their luxury.

About the Hotel:

A beautiful property centered impressive lagoon theme. Given my brief stay here, I was not able to experience/use much of their common amenities like spa, gym and swimming pool. 

Below pictures are the night and day views of the lagoon from the room

Recommended for: 
Business travelers and those looking to stay close to stay close to Chatrapati Shivaji Aiport (Domestic Terminal/Terminal 1)

Pricing (8/10)

The room tariff's were relatively well priced when compared to other airport hotels. I made a reservation through Agoda for INR 7300.

Hospitality & Service (4/10)

Walked myself to the front desk and there was absolutely no hospitality offered to sail through the check-in process or for carrying luggage to the room. The front office staff found an opportunity to dump the room farthest from the elevator on me (considering it's a circular shaped hotel, the room I was initially allocated was a good mile from the elevator). After cardio intensive trip to the room I rushed all the way back to the reception to get the room switched. Thankfully, this time around I was attended by a staff who was kind enough to offer a room closer to the elevator.

The staff mentioned about their free airport pick up and drop for 'domestic' flights. The moment I mentioned T2 (Jet's domestic flights fly from Terminal 2), there was silence - indicating the revocation of the offer. I wanted to get it clarified anyways and when asked was told no such facility will be provided for Terminal 2.

Room (Facilities & Comfort) (9/10)
The room was a moderately spacious one and each room has an attached balcony facing the lagoon; the lagoon is one of the wow factors of the hotel and occupies the central area of the hotel's circular layout. Key room facilities include: a mini sofa and table, well stocked mini bar, study/work table. The room I stayed in had a bath tub and a separate glass enclosure for shower.

The facilities were top notch and the unlike the usual excessively soft beds you find in a few hotels, their mattress was just what I was looking for after a long tiring day.

 

Food (4/10)

The breakfast at Earth plate was a disappointing one despite their huge spread. In simple words, it was quantity over quality.

On a summary note, the room and facilities were impressive but the hospitality and food was underwhelming. 

Solang Valley

Solang valley is one of the prime locations for adventure sports when you are at Manali. Though this place is famous for it ski activities during the winter during ourSolang valley is one of the prime locations for adventure sports when you are at Manali. Though this place is famous for it ski activities during the winter during our visit in the month of June there was no snow cover. However the adventure enthusiasts could reap some fun as there was paragliding apart from the government initiative cable cars. 

Paragliding had three courses of varying length. The longest option was from a hill top and looked really interesting. The best part about this course was one could also get to experience the cable car as the ride up to the hill top had to be using the same. Unfortunately for us, the climate change wouldn't permit us to take the long course so we had to content ourselves with the medium option which I bet was no less fun for a first timer. 

The cable car however was a big disappointment. In my search online I read the Gondala (Cable Car) had a 500meter rise in its 1.3 km course. This sounded fancy more so because cable cars is something that has been showcased in our movies from the early 80's and I had great expectations from it. This was not something worth paying Rs.500, also there was no scope for negotiation as it was run by the government functionary. However as a tourist this is something you might want to do especially if your group consists of people who are there for leisure more than adventure and also in case you want to catch a glimpse of the beautiful view from the mountain top.

Other than this you can find a small carnival of sorts for kids along with rock climbing courses, ejection bungee and other similar activities that you find in usual adventure zones. To sum it all up, this is a must visit location in case you visit Manali as it offers a complete package for tourists across demography and interests. visit in the month of June there was no snow cover. However the adventure enthusiasts could reap some fun as there was paragliding apart from the government initiative cable cars. 

Kulu Manali- Intro

Beside river Beas and the snow covered moutains in the backdrop

I got a chance to visit Kullu-Manali, one of the most famous summer retreats in India. Located in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh, this is one of those places which is a must visit for the young and adventure savvy. Their adventure activities in addition to the regular doses of trekking and mountaineering include skiing, ATV's, paragliding, river crossing and several others. 

The travel route we chose from Chennai was to take a train to Delhi (Nizamuddin Station) from Chennai Central. There are several train options, some of which may get you to Delhi sooner than 30hrs from departure. Manali is a further 15hrs travel (approx) from Delhi. There might be wiser travel options en route Chandigarh and others which you may opt depending on your budget.

The weather in Manali according to my I Phone was a max of 33 degrees and min of 13. Though one might assume that this is not really cool by hill station standards, the maximum temperature is witnessed only during daytime and temperature drop is evident between late evening and early morning hours. During winters there is heavy snow fall and several places might not be accessible. This makes summer and months extending up to September the ideal time to visit Manali.