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A riot of colour

by Sally Macmillan | 31 Mar 2015

Culture, history and chaos – the fascinating Indian sub-continent has it all in spades. And exploring its massive waterways is an increasingly popular choice for the most discerning of travellers.

 

First-time visitors to India are often overwhelmed, not just by the scenic beauty of the temples, villages and dramatic countryside, but also by the teeming crowds and crazy traffic in big cities. This is one reason why river cruises on peaceful waterways such as the Ganges, Hooghly and Brahmaputra rivers are becoming an increasingly popular way to explore this ancient, complex and fascinating country.

The home of Mother Teresa

Kolkata (Calcutta) is the start and end point for several river cruise itineraries on the Lower Ganges. This city of 14 million is packed with cultural landmarks from its days as the capital of the British Raj, as well as markets – the flower market is an extraordinary sight, although the smell can be intense and not necessarily floral – Mother Teresa’s house and orphanage, and the famous urban park, Maidan.

Next year, APT, Cruiseco and Travel Indochina are running fly-land-cruise holidays of varying lengths that start or finish in Kolkata, and include voyages on the new 56-passenger river ship Ganges Voyager.

This stylish vessel will be the most luxurious to cruise the Ganges, and has been specifically designed to navigate the river’s sometimes challenging conditions. It is 56.5 metres long and has 28 spacious cabins – all have French balconies and the suites offer butler service. There’s also a spa, dining room and super-luxe saloon on board.

APT’s fly-land-cruise packages that include a seven-night Lower Ganges cruise on Ganges Voyager range from 14 to 20 days, and typically include Delhi, Agra (for the magical Taj Mahal) and the beautiful pink city of Jaipur. Travel Indochina offers a similar 15-day itinerary.

A journey to spirituality

Varanasi is one of India’s most extraordinary, atmospheric places and has been at the heart of Hinduism for centuries. It’s also played an important role in Buddhism and Jainism. You will see pilgrims bathing in the sacred river, the burning ghats where bodies are cremated – and a tour of the crumbling temples and buildings in the Old City is a must-do for anyone interested in Indian culture and history.

The Ganges is frequently too shallow to sail into Varanasi, so a short flight to India’s holiest city is usually offered as an add-on to the Lower Ganges cruise.

Active Travel and Travelmarvel run land-cruise holidays that include cruises on another new ship, the Assam Bengal Navigation (ABN) Company’s

RV Rajmahal. The ship was launched in February 2014 and is larger than its two fleetmates, RV Sukhapa and RV Chairadew – at 50 metres long with 22 cabins, it accommodates 40 passengers. While both companies offer similar Lower Ganges itineraries as the above, Active Travel also runs cruises on ABN’s RV Chairadew in Assam, north-east India.

A walk on the wild side

River cruising on Assam’s vast Brahamaputra river takes passengers even further off the beaten track. RV Chairadew is a 24-passenger colonial-style river ship operated by an Assamese crew who have expert local knowledge of this remote region. Active Travel’s eight-day ‘Wild Assam’ trip combines river cruising with visits to three little-known national parks: Manas, Orang and Kaziranga. Manas and Kaziranga are World Heritage-listed and Kaziranga is home to elephants, one-horned rhinos, wild buffalo and tigers.

The serene, four-day river cruise is bookended by stays in lodges in Manas and Kaziringa, where you can take elephant rides to view the wildlife – the Bengal tiger population in Manas is slowly increasing now it is protected. At stops in remote villages along the Brahmaputra, Western passengers are given a warm welcome by local people. The chaos and crowds of India’s big cities seem to be part of another world entirely.