Frequently Asked Questions

1) Which airport will we be leaving from and will we all be meeting there prior to departure? We will be departing from O'Hare in Chicago. We will be meeting there at the check-in counter prior to departure to travel as a group. We don't want anyone to have to worry about their travel plans-- so we'll be helping everyone with the check-in and departure process. We'll also be meeting as a group (for a group orientation) in early summer in order to answer any questions you may have about your travel to India, as well as to fill out any last-minute visas for submission. Please be sure to have your passports up-to-date by the end of June.

2) I don't live in the Milwaukee area, do I need to make separate flight arrangements? If you live in the USA, you have two options: OPTION ONE: You can arrange your own flight to India (we do not recommend this option-- see next note for explanation), in which case you will be on your own to assure that you arrive at our hotel destination (or ashram destination, should you miss connecting with the group upon our arrival). We can certainly give you reliable cab contacts to assist in your transportation once in India (should you miss connecting with our group), but be aware that travel and interactions in India can be challenging and difficult, especially if it is your first trip to India. OPTION TWO: You can make your arrangements to meet us at the Chicago airport where we will be departing for India as a group. We HIGHLY recommend this option, as it will facilitate your connection with our group, and ease your transition to India. If you do not live in the Chicago area, you might even consider flying in a day early and staying overnight at a local hotel just to insure the flight connection with us to India. Once at the airport, we will plan to meet everyone at the American Airlines check-in counters. Note: Tour price only includes the Chicago to Delhi roundtrip flight and does not include any travel to Chicago. Flight details: We are departing on American Airlines flight #292 from Chicago to Delhi (departs in the evening), and returning on American Airlines flight #293 from Delhi to Chicago (departs very early morning). American Airlines has only one flight per day to India. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about flight arrangements.

3) If I make my own full flight arrangement to India, what is the Tour price? If you make your own full flight arrangements to India and back, the Tour price is $1000 less than the posted fare. Tour price would be $3799* (check) or $3939* (credit card) per participant, including accommodations, but NOT including airfare. This option is NOT recommended for travelers from North America (see #2 above), but it is an option for participants who live in other countries. Please contact us for more information if you are planning to fly separately. We want to make sure to find us in India!

4) If I want to go on the Tour and will be scheduling my flights separately (or scheduling a flight to meet up with you in Chicago O'Hare), should I go ahead and book my airline ticket now? Our Tour groups are set to run with a minimum of 12 participants (conducting the Tour with less than the minimum number would eliminate our group discounts and greatly increase the cost of the Tour). If there are insufficient registrants for any year's Tour, the Tour will be cancelled on or shortly after the final payment due date, and all deposits/payments will be refunded to any participants who registered. Therefore, it is best to wait until after the final payment is due (and received by the Tour organizers) before you schedule any additional flights. (This will prevent you from being stuck with additional airfare tickets in the case that the Tour is cancelled due to insufficient registration.) If you are considering scheduling any additional flights, please contact us and we will assist you with these timings. If you are on an India Sacred Retreat Tour that requires separate flight arrangements and payments (that is, you are required to make your own flight arrangements through a recommended travel agent), you can discuss the best timings for airline ticket purchases with the travel agent.

5) I don't live in Milwaukee, what about attending the group orientation meeting? Group orientations are a practical and helpful way for us to provide orientation and to answer your questions for the India Sacred Retreat Tour. If you live outside the Chicago/Milwaukee areas (and are thus unable to attend our group orientation meeting), please contact us and we will send you the topics covered. If you live outside the meeting areas, you are responsible for contacting the Tour organizer PRIOR to the group orientation meetings in order to ensure materials and information reaches you in a timely manner. Tour organizer is not responsible for any failure on participant’s behalf to submit appropriate visa and/or passport application(s) in a timely manner. All participants who are unable to attend the group orientation meeting are responsible for contacting Tour organizer in a timely manner with any questions they may have regarding travel to India.

6) Can I pay the Tour deposit by credit card and make the rest of the payment by check? Or can I make partial payments by check and partial payment by credit card? Yes. You can pay any portion with credit card and/or cashier's check or money order. The total amount due will be prorated according to the total that was paid by credit card. The fee for credit card payments is a little over 2.8%. So, for example, if you pay the $500 deposit by credit card and the remainder by check, there will be an additional $14.17 cost for the Tour (and your total Tour cost would be $4799 plus $14.17 or $4813.17 total). Sample fees are prorated here as an example:
If you pay $1000 by credit card, the fee would be $28.35 (or $4827.35 total Tour price)
If you pay $2000 by credit card, the fee would be $56.70 (or $4855.70 total Tour price)
If you pay $3000 by credit card, the fee would be $85.04 (or $4884.04 total Tour price)
If you pay $4000 by credit card, the fee would be $113.38 (or $4912.38 total Tour price)
We'll calculate it for you, so no need to worry about it. Just let us know what you are planning to do and we'll do all the calculations for you.

7) For Milwaukee area residents: Is there a bus that goes from Milwaukee to Chicago O'Hare airport? Though each participant is responsible for booking his/her own rides to the airport, most participants coming from the Milwaukee area usually use United Limo (bus service). This bus service costs around $24 one-way and $43 roundtrip from Milwaukee to O'Hare (roundtrip means you'll carry your tickets with you to India and back, of course). For tickets and more information, visit the United Limo website or call them at (877)3-AIRPORTS. And be sure to allow plenty of travel time to O'Hare airport, as there can be traffic troubles and rush hour difficulties (in the past we've been stuck on this bus for more than two hours in traffic!). And you don't want to miss your flight! Call the airlines (or check their website) to find out what time they recommend you arrive for check-in-- usually it's AT LEAST 3 hours prior to departure for international flights.

8) How are roommates selected for the accommodations in India? You are most welcome to choose your own roommate, or we can select one for you. If you know (or meet) someone coming on the Tour and wish to be his/her roommate, just let us know and we'll make arrangements. Roommates are not automatically assigned, so there is some flexibility, and if you meet a group member at the group meetings or on the flight to India and you would like to have them as a roommate, just let us know. If you do not know anyone on the Tour and do not have a roommate chosen, we will select another same-sex Tour member to be your roommate. If you decide at any point during the Tour that you'd like to change roommates, you can do so independently with other Tour members.

9) I have a slight knee problem, an arthritic condition. Will we be doing any strenuous climbing on the trip? There will be plenty of walking on the trip, and our hike up the mountain side to Renuka's temple will cover 2-3 uphill kilometers at about 3880 feet above sea level. This will probably be the most strenuous part of the trip, though Gangotri may feel more strenuous because of the higher altitude. We all will take things a little slower, as needed-- there is certainly no hurry in India! Aside from these experiences, we are not planning to take the group through any difficult climbs or treks. In India, however, not all places are easily accessible by bus and road, so in many places there will be a lot of walking (even a mile or two total for some days), but the walking will be on mostly level ground (in India this means packed dirt trails, or pebble/gravel roads).

10) What will the altitude be for this trip? I've never been to any high altitude-- is there anything I need to do to prepare myself? Rishikesh is about 1200 feet above sea level, and that is where we will be staying for the first half and end portion of our Tour. In Uttarkashi, the altitude is about 4000 feet, and the altitude of Gangotri is about 10,500 feet. It's always recommended that you spend some time walking more prior to any tour or site-seeing adventure. We will have guides with us who are accustomed to these altitudes (and much higher!), and they are also accustomed to working with westerners and people who are new to these altitudes (and to treks in general). So you'll be in good hands! The mystical energy in these higher altitude places in India is powerful, and they are such beautiful places for meditation and spiritual retreat!

11) How long is the flight, and will be be making any stops? What time are we leaving and what time do we arrive in India? We have made group discount reservations to fly on American Airlines to fly direct to India. All trans-Atlantic flights depart Chicago in the evening and arrive in Delhi, India on the following night. The flight is a total of 14-16 hours, and you'll have your own new release movies to watch throughout the flight. India is 10.5 hours ahead of Chicago CST time (see actual time in India now). The direct flight was specifically selected for our group, as we have traveled many times to India, and lost luggage is a terrible experience to have, especially in India, where many of the western accessories are not available. Taking a direct flight will eliminate the risk of lost luggage for flight transfers, as there won't be any plane transfers on our trip. Inflight movies and meals will be provided to passengers, though it is recommended that you bring a few extra snacks, as well as earplugs and eyecovers for sleeping (see additional tips).

12) Do they serve meals on board the flights? While meals are served on board, we always recommend that participants carry extra snacks/food with them for their flights. Any special flight meals (i.e. vegetarian) need to be requested in advance with the Tour Organizer. We will assume that you do not need special meals for your travel unless you contact us. Special meals on American Airlines are listed on their website page >> We say "special" ironically, because, as many of you probably already know, airline food is really not so "special". But if you'd like something other than their standard fare, please let us know!

13) How many people can come on this Tour with you? What if you have too many registrants? We have 20 seats available on our Sacred Retreat Tours, and a minimum of 12. Once you send us the completed registration forms to us with deposit payment, we will reserve your seat. If you send your deposit by check, your seat will be reserved the day that we receive your registration/deposit. If you are paying by credit card, you can go ahead and make the credit card payment when you mail your registration, as that will hold your seat until the registration arrives. If you are concerned about making sure you have a seat on this year's Tour, we recommend paying the deposit with your credit card, as all Tour seats are first-come, first-serve, and paying by credit card will avoid any mail delays (unless you are hand-delivering the registration/deposit to our home!). We reserve all seats at the time that the deposit payment is received by us. As soon as we receive your completed registration/deposit, we will process your application and mail you a written confirmation.

14) How fast will you need to know about Tour reservations (i.e. Is the Tour already filling up?) This one is hard to predict, as reservations will be taken on a first-come, first-serve basis. There is limited seating on all of our India Sacred Retreat Tours. We've sold out in the past, and we expect to do so in the future. If you wish to know the most updated status of the tour, please contact us. For speeding up the registration process, see details on deposit payments (#11 above).

15) How will I know if you received my deposit and completed registration form? We will mail you a written confirmation as soon your completed registration and deposit are received by us. We mail written confirmations for ALL payments you make to us. So once the full payment is made, you will receive an additional confirmation from us as well. We just love to send you mail! :)

16) Are the daily yoga classes suitable for us non-yoga and unflexible folks? All classes will be gentle and for ALL levels, so you can certainly participate at your own level. No power yoga or hatha-jock classes on our tours! And for you hatha jocks who really want a power workout, we think you'll find some surprising advancements and improvements in the restrictions of your body with the practice of the techniques that will be shared with you in our daily yoga classes. And actually, if you want to learn from an authentic hatha yogi, you will find him working as the gardener at the ashram.

17) Will there be a place for me to check my e-mail messages or make phone calls? Yes, but with some difficulty once we are out of Delhi. The Oberoi hotel will surely have facilities for phone calls and checking e-mail messages; however, you will likely be charged a goodly sum of money for their use at that 5-star hotel. Once we are in Rishikesh, there are what's called STD booths, where you can make phone calls to the US (and they usually don't cost too much). You have to look a little harder to find STD booths with internet connections (ones that work!) in order to check your e-mail. Usually that means having to take a separate trip into the town of Rishikesh. At our tented resort in Gangotri, they have a new STD/ISD calling facility at the camp, so you will be able to make calls from the distant mountains of the Himalayas. Amazing! Still, and considering everything, we recommend that you contact your loved ones once you've made it safely to Delhi, and from then onward, let yourself enjoy the splendors of India without the troubles of phones and internet connections!

18) Will there be a way to do laundry at while we're in India? In the Rishikesh portion of our Tour, we'll have a dhobi (laundry man) come to the ashram several times during our group's visit. You'll usually get your clothes returned 1-2 days after washing (they need to hang a day in the sun to dry). Be forewarned, however, that you should not send your fancy garments to the dhobi for cleaning, as they are bashed against the rocks and may come back with new tears or color stains in them. I've had several outfits ruined due to stains (when they stack wet clothes and yours is next to someone's red pants, you get stains!). The dhobi is generally inexpensive, and a good way to get a few things laundered if you don't have the time to wash them by hand yourself and hang them to dry. When we are up in the mountains (Uttarkashi and Gangotri) laundry will be more tricky. We'd recommend bringing a few changes in underwear (long underwear, etc.), and leaving the rest to be washed upon return to Rishikesh, if you wish. At the Oberoi, of course, you will have optional laundry service, but it will likely cost an arm and leg! Any charges for laundry services are the responsibility of the participant.

19) Will the rooms to our accommodations be lockable? What about the hotel? I've stayed in India in the past and it was recommended to chain our luggage to the bed so the maids and porters wouldn't steal them. Is this recommended? Geez... You probably weren't staying in a 5-star hotel, though of course, thieves can be anywhere. We've stayed at 5-star hotels in the past (including the Oberoi), and we've never had a problem with stolen luggage. We haven't ever chained our luggage to the bed, though I suppose you are welcome to do so, should you feel the need. The hotel rooms are lockable (of course), and the ashram rooms also have padlocks for the door. However, we (Tour Organizers) will be bringing special door locks for everyone in our group, so that you each have your own key (the ones at the ashram only have one key, and the staff has the other key!). You will also have the option of leaving a key with us, in case you get locked out of your room (no one else will have any keys for our locks). In the mountains of Uttarkashi and Gangotri, accommodations will not be as secure, so we recommend that you don't take many valuables with you for this portion of the Tour, and that you carry whatever valuables you do have (i.e. camera, passport, cash, etc.) with you at all times.

20) What are the beds and pillow like? Are there blanket and sheets? Do we need a sleeping bag? India is an incredible land of contrasts, and this Tour reflects some of those contrasts. That means that in Delhi, at the 5-star hotel, the beds and pillows are top notch, and you'll sleep like royalty. In Rishikesh and Uttarkashi, the accommodations are pleasant, but more rustic. Beds are firmer and with considerably less cushion. They provide plenty of blankets and a bedsheet (and you can request a top sheet, if you wish too), though we generally suggest that participants bring a thin sleeping bag for comfort. Sleeping bags are not required, though we find that having our own bag to crawl into at night is comforting, even if it's just a medium weight liner underneath the India bedsheets and covers. And especially for the mountain portions of the Tour, you may consider bringing a medium weight sleeping bag (there will also be plenty of blankets and covers, as sleeping bags are not required in our mountain accommodations). So it's in part preference, and we like to zip ourselves up into the warmth of our own sleeping bag after a good days journey! In the Gangotri tented resort, we'll be sleeping in thatched tent huts. There are two comfortable cots with proper bedding in each hut, and sleeping bags are not necessary (read our prior note about sleeping bags). At our tented resort in Gangotri, they will also provide hot water bottles to warm the bed, if necessary! :)

21) What are the bathrooms like? At the 5-star hotel, bathrooms are very western, fully equipped with hair dryers, shampoos, soaps, bath slippers, bath robes, etc. They are very nice! The ashram bathrooms are more rustic, and they do have western toilets (seats), with hot water showers (if you want a hot shower, you turn on a "geezer" which electrically heats up the water for you in about 15 minutes). The ashram bathrooms are shared by two double rooms. We usually recommend flip-flops for the ashram shower, as the cement floor can feel cold in the mornings. The Uttarkashi hotel will also have more rustic bathrooms. In our tented resort in Gangotri, the bathrooms are attached to each tented hut (there are western-style toilets that have running water facility), and there will be hot water showers available.

22) Are there bugs in India? What about mosquitoes? Do I need a mosquito net? Yes, there are bugs. Just like here. But they can be a little bigger in India. Generally, we don't see a lot of bugs, especially in the cooler fall seasons. Winter is their dry season, and the bugs and mosquitoes are generally at their worst during the days following the monsoons and rains (June/July). So we like to avoid going to India during those times (unless we're headed to the mountains, where it's cooler). You are welcome to bring mosquito netting, though in the past we've only found that we don't use it much (in Rishikesh), and it takes up a lot of room on the luggage.

23) What's the weather like in India? Weather in India varies greatly depending upon what region you are visiting. March to June are generally the hottest months, and it can be unbearably hot and dusty! Many people head to the hills during these months for relieve from the heat extremes of the lowlands. Monsoons (rainy season) comes generally from July through September, and there can be daily torrential downpours and high possibility of flooding in areas, making travel difficult at times. Though weather varies greatly from the lowlands to the foothills to the mountain regions, generally the fall and early winter months are some of the best times to visit India, as the weather is very pleasant, with minimal rainfall in most places. The mountains of Uttarkashi and Gangotri are best to visit during the September and October months, as the temperatures are still pleasant during the day and there is usually very little rain.

As far as expected temperatures, in mid-September, Delhi temperatures can rise into the high 90's during the day and cool into the 70's in the evening (we're only there for three nights, and our 5-star hotel has good air-conditioning). In Rishikesh, mid-Sept temperatures in the day can peak into the sunny 80's and go down to the 60's at night. In Gangotri, we can expect sunny days with temperatures in the high 60's and 70's during the day, and temperatures in the 50's at night. (And Uttarkashi is warmer than Gangotri.) It's a great time to visit India, as rainfall is minimal at this time of year (though you still want to carry some rain-protective clothing, just in case!)

24) I don't speak Hindi. How will I communicate with people in India? Actually, the official language of India is English, though few people speak English in the smaller village areas of northern India (where we are going). We will have a translator with us for some portions of the trip in northern India, and in Delhi you will find that many of the people in the larger hotels and stores speak English. No need to worry... we will be assuming that no one speaks Hindi on our Tour, and we will make sure you are well taken care of! :)

25) Trip insurance would cost extra, correct? Yes. We do not sell or provide trip insurance, so you would need to purchase it separately through a travel insurance company. We highly recommend purchasing travel insurance to cover any unforeseen emergencies or cancellations.

26) What should I bring to India? We have a few suggestions on our Travel Tips page, and once you send in your registration payment/deposit, you will receive your seat confirmation along with a list of suggested items to pack for your trip to India. We've also posted our personal list of packing items on this special page: Ragani & Dale's packing list.

27) Do you recommend Traveler's Checks or cash, or both? It's really up to you what you wish to take for the trip. We've usually carried a combination of both, though we prefer Traveler's Checks as they have the best exchange rates at the banks, and they have the extra safety feature if they were to be lost or stolen. Both cash and Traveler's Checks are easily exchanged at the banks and the 5-star hotels of India.

28) What are TSA-approved locks and where do I get them? While you are welcome to leave your suitcases unlocked in the airport, we recommend getting the TSA-approved luggage locks (see photos). They are a replacement for the old-style locks, and they allow the airline security personnel to open your luggage (they have special keys) and lock them again afterwards. Generally, it helps to discourage others from helping themselves to the goodies in your luggage! You can purchase these at luggage shops and generally at any place that you've previously purchased luggage locks.

29) What are recommended reading materials for this Tour? There are no required reading materials, though we recommend the following books (you can find them at your local library, or purchase them from places such as the Yoga Society of Milwaukee, Borders books, Amazon.com, etc.):

Swami Rama: Living with the Himalayan Masters (Himalayan Institute Press)

Paramahansa Yogananda: Autobiography of a Yogi (Self-Realization Fellowship Publishers)

 

Have more questions about our India Sacred Retreat Tour? Feel free to contact us!