We travel to Rajasthan, the desert region of northern India, where our exciting cycle challenge takes us through an historic and beautiful area known for its characteristic old palaces, forts and painted houses. We cycle through National Parks, home to tigers and a huge diversity of other wildlife, and finish at India’s most iconic monument, the Taj Mahal. This is a tough, hot but ultimately unforgettable challenge.
- DAY 1: Fly London to Delhi.
- DAY 2: Make our way to our hotel, where we can check in and relax. In the afternoon we’ll meet up again for a trip briefing before dinner.
- DAY 3: Board our train to Jaipur in time for breakfast! Check in to our hotel and prepare our bikes ready for the challenge and then head off to explore the city. There should be time to visit the famous Observatory, or Jantar Mantar – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – as well as the City Palace and the striking Hawa Mahal, or ‘Palace of the Winds’.
- Day 4: We make time to visit the magnificent Amber Fort, a hill-top fort perched above the city. We then head east to Bhanderej. Our route is predominantly flat, but it’s a long, hot day and we’ll be glad to reach our destination, where we stay in a Maharaja’s palace.
- DAY 5: Cycling through a variety of terrain we head towards Ranthambore National Park – famous for its magnificent tigers and its conservation projects.
- DAY 6: An early start for our sunrise safari into Ranthambore National Park, where we can spot wildlife from canters (open minibuses). Back on our bikes, our route then takes us past small villages to Karauli, an ancient holy city dotted with bright blue buildings and home to an impressive palace.
- DAY 7: Today’s destination is Keoladeo National Park, where we’ll see plenty of other people cycling as in order to preserve the park and wildlife, bicycles are the only vehicle permitted.
- DAY 8: We head for the impressive ‘ghost’ city of Fatehpur Sikri. From the rocky ridge the city sits upon we cycle our last section, to Agra and the Taj Mahal.
- DAY 9: The Taj Mahal at sunrise is an unmissable experience and a wonderful finale to our Indian challenge. TWe then make our way back to Delhi by train.
- DAY 10: Fly Delhi to London.