New Delhi Warnings Or Dangers

Walking around Cannaught Place can be joyful but for us we had bad experience. Just 2 days ago as walikng through the garden over Palika complex we did not pay attention to what would happen. Suddenly, a man pointed to the right shoe of my son showing the big yellow poop. They claimed it was from a bird and said the shoe shiner was there. He started cleaning the shoe and asked for 500 rupees. Another man came interfere telling us not to give him as 500 too much, just only 200. I told him to go away as not his business and I would nego myself. I only gave him 20 rupees and told him that he offered the service for cleaning for us, we did not ask him to and we went away. The shoeshiner dared said that it was a lucky day for us and it did not fall on the head, but the shoe.

Destination India
Blog: Leave Me Here - 27 October 2009
By: leavemehere

One of the more confusing things when in Delhi is trying to arrange your onwards travel, and being confident in what your told is correct.

There are countless fake ‘Government Approved’ Tourist Info places, Tuk-Tuk drivers will always take you to these.

Examples of fake “Government Approved” Tourist Offices.

But there is only 1 Official Government India Tourism office. That office is located at 88 Janpath Rd, and shown on the Lonely Planet Map of Connaught Place.
The fake offices will also go so far as to point on the map at that office, and tell you thats where your now standing.

The problem is though, they’re not really good for any info, can’t book you tickets, and basically just hand over a bunch of maps.

Official India Tourism shop front

So what happens now?

You need to go to a legitimate Government Approved Tour Operator, the LP book says as much, but doesn’t list any! The easiest way to find these is by asking India Tourism Office when your there.

For us Destination India (www.indiatripmakers.com)was only 5 more doors down from India Tourism, and the logical choice.

They helped us sketch out our whole itinerary with room to move, booked all our train tickets in advance, recommend great hotels/guest houses within our budget, and were generally just the most informed/genuine Tourist Info people we have dealt with. Which in turn made the rest of the trip alot more relaxed as we had a time frame to stick to and knew that it could work.

Over the course of the weeks, we continually went back/called/emailed them to change our itinerary, and none of this was a problem either.

Destination India shop front. 5 doors down from India Tourism.

In a city that’s so chaotic, it gets quite hard to asses whats a legitimate business and whats not, based on our experiences though, I can only say Destination India is fortified, and were more than helpful attending to all our requests and inquiries.

Delhi (especially in Old Delhi, around Chandni Chowk) gets VERY crowded. People jostle for space to walk, and pick-pocketing happens. Carry money in a money belt. Never carry a wallet in a back pocket. Same for passport. Be aware of your surroundings always. When removing money from wallet or moneybelt, find a quiet spot, if possible.

I had very bad experience with food from roadside stalls in Delhi and I would like to beware tourists of the same. Being an Indian, I have had never had this problem anywhere before. Delhi was the first and only time.

.At all the tourist spots, there are always guys hanging around - offering their services as a guide. Some are honest and sincere, and only want to earn a few rupees- others are not so honest.They will lead you to "Cheap Shops" or Good Market - "JUST FOR LOOKING ONLY" is the catch-phrase- Don't be taken in by this. They get comission for bringing tourists, and the price is never less than anywhere else. This trick applies all over India. Take it with common sense and good humour.

There are two airports in New Delhi. They are Palam Airport, and Indira Gandhi International Airport (or IGI). They are actually both located in the same part of the city, south and west of the city center. If you are flying out of New Delhi, you might want to go to the right airport for your departure. :)

IGI is basically the international airport. Most of the flights leaving IGI are international departures, although I did see some larger jets headed to Mumbai and Kolkata. When you fly into New Delhi from abroad, you're sure to be landing at IGI.

However, if you have a domestic connection somewhere in India, it's very possible that you may be leaving from Palam Airport. And if the departure is to somewhere other than, say Mumbai or Kolkata, it's almost assured that your flight leaves from Palam. So... be sure of where you want to go when you get into the cab and say "take me to the airport, please".

Oh, another thing about Palam - or something I've been told. There are two terminals there and they're quite a distance apart. Find out from your airline, when you reconfirm, WHICH terminal you need. It might save you both frustration and a long hike.

I hired a pedal rickshaw driver for the afternoon. Near the end of the tour he demanded his payment, 400rs, at the end of a winding alley. I told him to drop me, at the Metro at Chowdri Bazaar and I shall pay him. He actually threatened me with violence so I told him to leave. He then changed his tune and took me to the Metro. I paid him the money and left. I was buying my Metro token when a tap on the shoulder came. It was my driver telling me that one of the bills i gave him was forged. I ignored him and went through the Metro turnstiles. The sad thing is, I am a very generous tipper and he got no more than we agreed on.

I would recommend brining a cell phone, with or without and Indian SIM and pretend to call a 'friend' once you have entered the taxi and advise them you will be at your destination in 1/2 an hour or so. It helps if you acutally have an Indian SIM as usually you'll get a annoying welcome to the neighborhood call from the provider which can double as the friend calling you back. In this way the taxi/crook driver will suspect you're connected here and may not fillet you. This is a very optimistic assessment but has worked for me in Bangalore. Not quite the same lofty standards of scam there but it worked like a charm.