Expertise and Specialisation

As a qualified mountaineer Nazir’s love has been and is the mountains but his reputation spread and clients requested not only trekking and walking trips, but off the beaten track cultural adventures. To meet these requests more than 25 years ago we expanded and started to provide a whole range of tours, covering the length and breadth of the Indian Subcontinent. In addition to classical sightseeing tours we are proud to have developed many specialised tours such as bicycle trips through remote areas of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Explore Culture & Tours offers to the addictedtotravel.com community a range of suggested tours which can be taken as shown, or alternatively adapted as much as you need, together with the facility to totally tailor-make a bespoke itinerary. We have great experience in operating a wide range of interests from culture and wildlife, village, walking and trekking, horse safaris and even pilgrimage tours.

Licences and Associations

Officially recognised and licensed by the Government of India, Ministry of Tourism as both a Tour Operator and an Adventure Tour Operator. Public Liability insurance covered; policy no.272300/48/2007/1302, renewed annually.

Active members of: IATO (Indian Association of Tour Operators), ATOAI (Adventure Tour Operators Association of India), IMF (Indian Mountaineering Foundation), TAAI (Travel Agents Association of India), TASK (Travel Agents Society of Kashmir).

Responsible Travel

At Explore Culture and Tours we take Responsible Tourism seriously by creating new and supporting existing projects, which benefit the land, nature and people, ensuring as we do so the sustainability of both projects and the local communities in which they are based. We believe in fair, respectful treatment of local people, whether they be our own employees right through to porters, villagers we stay with, shepherds who provide pack animals, or indeed any local people our trips come into contact with.

A secondary aim is to educate our clients about the environmental, social, and political issues surrounding the areas we visit, in the hopes that our visit to the area raises awareness of the issues that exist. In turn we hope that this will be beneficial to local people and the environment through which we travel.

Thirdly, we educate our local partners about sustainability and environmental concerns that arise through tourism so that we can work to a solution to issues such as waste management, instead of contributing to them.

All of this directly or indirectly promotes sustainable tourism, enabling our current and future guests to continue to experience the true culture, traditions and heritage of each place they visit.

Cultural and mixed-interest tours

Season: Year round

Whether you choose one of our suggested itineraries or ask our expert staff to create a tour exactly to your requirements we can help. One of our fortes is creating itineraries that include a range of interests from seeing the Taj Mahal and Rajasthan’s forts and palaces to a tiger safari in some of India well-known and less visited National Parks. Whether you want 3* hotels or a 5* palace – or a mix of both – we can tailor-make a trip for you.

Special interest trips

Season: Year round

Perhaps you want to see a particular festival or maybe understand more about Rajasthan’s tribal groups, textiles or focus on the country’s wildlife we are able to assist. With our experience we have a bank of guides who will bring to life the aspect of India you want to see, with arrangements made ensuring you get the most from your trip. Join us for horse-riding safaris accompanied by professional riders, single or multi-day camel safaris into the Thar Desert and beyond, low-impact stays with villagers, take a sailboat down the Ganges, enjoy birding experiences, photography and painting trips and much, much more.

Cycling and biking trips

Season: Year round

India's tremendously diverse terrain offers an infinite abundance of tracks and trails, ideal for biking. From the challenging mountain roads that climb thousands of meters to reach spectacular viewpoints, followed by exhilarating descents. Whether biking on the smooth tracks of the princely desert state of Rajasthan or traditional Madya Pradesh, biking in India is a great experience, both adventurous and unforgettable.

Wildlife tours

Season: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Oct, Nov, Dec

India’s National Parks abound with wildlife, from the cheeky langurs to majestic chitals, leopard, crocodile, bears, countless bird species and the mighty Bengal tiger. Decreasing in number and shy and elusive the tiger is difficult to spot however our unrivalled knowledge of where is best to see this great animal markedly improves the enthusiast’s chances of a sighting. We can provide qualified and experienced local guides to accompany your visit to help enhance your wildlife experience.

Wellness and Spa

Season: Year round

India’s heritage in the arts of yoga and ayurvedic massage and treatments is well known. We are able to arrange tours that have a specific focus on these traditions, allowing you to learn, participate or just relax whilst with us.

Trekking

Season: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec

The captivating landscape, with an incomparable diversity of flora and fauna: India is regarded as a ‘trekkers’ paradise’ and with good reason, offering everything from short and easy excursions to the long challenges of snowy Himalayan peaks. More than 30 years of experience walking and climbing in the mountains means we are able to suggest and arrange any type of trip. Please contact us for details.

Food and Beverages

Experience has taught us that many clients prefer to be accommodated on a bed and breakfast basis, leaving them free to explore local restaurants on their own each evening. Some tours in more remote areas are offered on a full board basis because there is no other option, nevertheless we are quite flexible in the approach to included meals.

Accommodation

Accommodation varies from well-priced 3* accommodation to some of the most luxurious hotels to be found anywhere in the world. We can cater to any budget or requirement and when selecting hotels only choose those that we know will compliment our own high standards of service, reliability and safety.

India abounds with heritage properties and we pride ourselves on our knowledge of most of them. We can make suggestions for those based in towns and cities or those that lay off the beaten track.

Transport

Transport requirement will always be provided as per the clients’ needs and/or request. We have access to a fleet of vehicles of all sizes and standards both larger and small vehicles, 4WD’s and even the traditional, much-loved Ambassador. If your group is larger we are able to provide minibuses or midi-coaches. No size of group presents a problem.

Local Guides

Having worked for so long with guests from many different countries as well as with some of the UK’s leading adventure tour operators we know exactly what makes for a successful tour. No small part of that is due to the selection and training of guides. Every tour leader or guide in India has to pass an exam to obtain a special license: we go way beyond that by carefully selecting our staff and organising additional training as we know that their performance on tour is crucial. We are proud to say we have some of the best guides and tour leaders in the business.

Age Restrictions

Generally the minimum age on our tours is 7 years (occasionally lower by agreement) and the maximum 80.

What to Bring

Each tour requires a different packing list and details are shown within each tour. Contact us with specific questions if the details within this site do not answer your queries.