Reply Submitted by kaylouise on Sat, 01/14/2012 - 20:16
Overseas Adventure Travel's trip to northern India includes the Taj Mahal. We enjoyed this trip very much. The 6-day pre-trip extention to Bhutan is wonderful. I would be happy to answer questions.
Moderate:
Peregrine
Kumuka
Explore
Intrepid
GAP Adventures
Druk Air - Bhutan's national airline and the only one allowed to fly in/out of Bhutan has flights to Delhi every day and many tour companies will offer an extension to Agra to see the Taj. If not, once you get yourself to Delhi, it is very easy to arrange a trip to Agra/ Taj Mahal. You could even do this as a day trip - though it would be rushing things a bit. From Delhi, you could also do 5 days exploring "The Golden Triangle" of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur with a car/driver and using licensed local guides at the historic sites.
Reply Submitted by redcheetah on Tue, 01/17/2012 - 09:42
Hi,
Don't book Bhutan without checking Far Fung Travel based in San Francisco. Kathleen Fung and her husband Dennis run this company and specialize in Bhutan. They often go with the group and take excellent care of everyone meeting individual needs without people asking. Kathleen was with our small group and was keenly aware of the group dynamics and special situation of each of the 7 participants. They arranged a post tour extension to the Taj Mahal for two of our group. Our tour actually ended in Delhi as we spent a few days in a game park in northern India. We went all the way across Bhutan, though they also offer shorter trips. Kathleen resolved a situation when a hotel had overbooked and had no room for our group. She arranged a special hike for my husband who was bored with the slower participants - without us asking! She found people to allow us to watch the new coronation of the new King in their home when the hotel did not have working TV's. (We also saw his motorcade pass us and he said hello to us directly.) It was not the cheapest company, but the extra service and attention were so worth a bit more. I am only going on these trips once, and a poor guide or lackadaisical tour coordinator can really diminish the experience.
Reply Submitted by LarryrF477 on Tue, 01/17/2012 - 10:59
I would highly recommend Third Eye Travel. ( website is http://www.thirdeyetravel.com ). We traveled with them to Bhutan few years back and excellent trip. The company is run by Bhutenese husband and wife team and they often lead tours. They also arranged an Indian tour just for me, which included the Taj. We met the husband in Bhutan, as he was leading a trek. They are very easy to work with and also advertise in ITN. Let me know if you would like more info. Larry
Reply Submitted by Jack Manes on Tue, 01/17/2012 - 15:37
I second 3rd Eye Travel, we used them for Bhutan and had excellent tour. We had seen Taj previously. They also arranged a fly-by of the Himalayas and Mt Everest and got to take pictures from the front pilot's cabin.
Reply Submitted by travelseg on Sun, 01/22/2012 - 13:40
This is more of a comment than an answer. I took the Eldertreks tour to Bhutan in 2010 and we flew on Buddha Air from Paro to Kathmandu. I was surprised, as I had read (as adventuregirl states above) that only Druk Air was allowed to fly to/from Bhutan. It was a very small plane, but an amazing flight. It was in November and very clear. We saw Mt. Everest and 5 of the 6 tallest mountains in the world, or something like that. The friendly flight attendant had a map identifying the different peaks, which she was very happy to share with us.
Bhutan and Taj Mahal
Overseas Adventure Travel's trip to northern India includes the Taj Mahal. We enjoyed this trip very much. The 6-day pre-trip extention to Bhutan is wonderful. I would be happy to answer questions.
Trip to Bhutan and India
Hi: finding a trip to Bhutan is no problem at all. Lots of good companies that have itineraries to Bhutan have been mentioned on this board -
Higher end in price:
Geographic Expeditions
Eldertreks
Midrange:
Overseas Adventure Travel
Bestway
World Expeditions
Adventures Abroad
Wendy Wu Tours
Moderate:
Peregrine
Kumuka
Explore
Intrepid
GAP Adventures
Druk Air - Bhutan's national airline and the only one allowed to fly in/out of Bhutan has flights to Delhi every day and many tour companies will offer an extension to Agra to see the Taj. If not, once you get yourself to Delhi, it is very easy to arrange a trip to Agra/ Taj Mahal. You could even do this as a day trip - though it would be rushing things a bit. From Delhi, you could also do 5 days exploring "The Golden Triangle" of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur with a car/driver and using licensed local guides at the historic sites.
Bhutan and Taj Mahal
Hi,
Don't book Bhutan without checking Far Fung Travel based in San Francisco. Kathleen Fung and her husband Dennis run this company and specialize in Bhutan. They often go with the group and take excellent care of everyone meeting individual needs without people asking. Kathleen was with our small group and was keenly aware of the group dynamics and special situation of each of the 7 participants. They arranged a post tour extension to the Taj Mahal for two of our group. Our tour actually ended in Delhi as we spent a few days in a game park in northern India. We went all the way across Bhutan, though they also offer shorter trips. Kathleen resolved a situation when a hotel had overbooked and had no room for our group. She arranged a special hike for my husband who was bored with the slower participants - without us asking! She found people to allow us to watch the new coronation of the new King in their home when the hotel did not have working TV's. (We also saw his motorcade pass us and he said hello to us directly.) It was not the cheapest company, but the extra service and attention were so worth a bit more. I am only going on these trips once, and a poor guide or lackadaisical tour coordinator can really diminish the experience.
Bhutan and Taj
I would highly recommend Third Eye Travel. ( website is http://www.thirdeyetravel.com ). We traveled with them to Bhutan few years back and excellent trip. The company is run by Bhutenese husband and wife team and they often lead tours. They also arranged an Indian tour just for me, which included the Taj. We met the husband in Bhutan, as he was leading a trek. They are very easy to work with and also advertise in ITN. Let me know if you would like more info. Larry
Bhutan and Taj
I second 3rd Eye Travel, we used them for Bhutan and had excellent tour. We had seen Taj previously. They also arranged a fly-by of the Himalayas and Mt Everest and got to take pictures from the front pilot's cabin.
This is more of a comment
This is more of a comment than an answer. I took the Eldertreks tour to Bhutan in 2010 and we flew on Buddha Air from Paro to Kathmandu. I was surprised, as I had read (as adventuregirl states above) that only Druk Air was allowed to fly to/from Bhutan. It was a very small plane, but an amazing flight. It was in November and very clear. We saw Mt. Everest and 5 of the 6 tallest mountains in the world, or something like that. The friendly flight attendant had a map identifying the different peaks, which she was very happy to share with us.