[TROOPER]

Land in Jaipur. A maximum of two days should be enough with a hired cab to check things around. Another day in Jaisalmer if you're interested in sand dunes and stuff.

Then off to Mumbai, only if you've never been (as a kid) and are curious about the infra situation and how it's turned into a megapolis over the years. A day and half max should be enough. A cab ride around old South Bombay, checking out all the famous spots, or even strolling around and a visit to Shivaji Maharaj/ erstwhile Prince of Wales Museum.

Next could be Goa, if it appeals to you. Although last week of December it would be crowded thanks to Christmas and half of Mumbai and Pune would be in Goa due to the mini vacations.

Then you could cover the western coast and visit Coorg and Mysore enroute to Bangalore. Weather would be cold, but 'pleasant' as per your standards. Maybe off to Norway from there.

Or you could land in Bangalore and do the circuit the other way round, and top it off with Delhi in the end. Should be easier to fly to Norway from there.

[girishglg]

Firstly welcome BACK to India and rightly so that you have made an decision to visit albeit for a short period of time.

As you are flying in from Singapore, I would suggest you fir a soft landing at Bangalore via a direct flight and then go up north to end at Delhi, then fly out to Malaysia or Europe as Delhi has the best international connections, more than Mumbai

A quick itinerary-
Bangalore and Mysore - 2 nights
Goa - 3 nights
Mumbai - 3 nights
Jaipur - 2 nights
Agra - 1 night
Delhi - 3 nights

All travel by air except Blr to Mysore which you can cover as a day trip from Blr, Jaipur - Agra - Delhi which you can hire a cab preferably Toyota Innova

Few pointers-
Do not drive after such a long time
Stay in star rated hotels which are well known.
Hire out all day city cabs if you are not for Uber else it works fine
Domestic flights - book only Indigo or Air India/ Vistara and no other airline, period
Most of India is now cashless, so if you can get on to UPI payments somehow with friends or relatives it would be a breeze

Enjoy your stay and welcome again

PS - if in Bangalore do DM me and it would be a pleasure helping you out

[Briarean]

@ Indian2003 Welcome back to India.
Regarding the itinerary, it all depends on where all you wish to visit here.

Spiritual paths: Varanasi, Rishikesh, Kashi, Haridwar.
Nature tour: Kerala, Kashmir, Himachal, Leh-Ladakh, North-East.
History: Delhi, Agra, Ajanta Ellora, Khajuraho, Hampi, Jaipur & Udaipur.
Luxury Train rides: The Deccan Odyssey, The Golden Chariot, Palace on Wheels,
Normal train journey: Delhi-Thiruvananthapuram Rajdhani Express via Konkan railway, Jammu–Baramulla line, etc.

My take: Use any of the Luxury train rides.
 They will take you to the most visited destinations.
 You do not have to book 4* or 5* hotels.
 You will be their exclusive guests so you can trust the food.
 They have their own, tie-ups with luxury taxis/buses, tour guides, and hotels, so nothing much to worry about.
 You can experience the journey as well as the destinations.
 However, it is COSTLY.

As you are visiting after a long time, allow me to give you some advice:
1. Reduce the luggage as much as possible. Many of the things are cheap here and you can purchase, use, and discard them once you leave.
2. Have a cheap / mid-range phone (secondary phone with your bare minimum data and contacts ) and a good point & shoot camera. Do not use your iPhone -14-Pro-Max-Ultra in the streets.
3. Medicines: Have a copy of your medical records and visit a reputable hospital as soon as you land. Ask the doctor to refer to the records and prescribe the medicines which are equivalent to the ones you / your family are using there. Please do not go directly to any pharmacy to get substitute medicines.
4. Frankly speaking, I never recommend city sightseeing, unless you have some specific places to visit. Be it Mumbai, Delhi, or Bangalore, the traffic is horrible. Just check the Google map of any Indian metropolitan city traffic during daytime and you will understand.
5. Food: Avoid non-veg unless the eatery/restaurant is famous for its non-veg food.
6. Major tourist destinations in India will be crowded during vacations. While planning, make sure to give enough buffer time for every place you visit. As in India the IST is not Indian standard time, it’s Indian stretchable time.
7. As mentioned in earlier comments, digital payments work fine here. So please check if your Google-pay works here.

I wish you a very pleasant and happy time in India.

[Indian2003]

Originally Posted by montsa007

Altough I stay in Mumbai I've heard Delhi weather is quite cold during winters + pollution factor/fog,

Hope this helps.

How cold is quite cold? I am used to severe cold here in the winter. The clothes and shoes I normally use are used all year except a heavier jacket and a scarf when temperatures hit around -15 and colder.
Right now the temperature is +17 and I am in the room, heater off and wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
The pollution is another matter because of my COPD and asthma so I always use a mask when in Malaysia and Singapore. I dont cough or wheeze.

[NomadSK]

Originally Posted by Indian2003

How cold is quite cold? I am used to severe cold here in the winter. The clothes and shoes I normally use are used all year except a heavier jacket and a scarf when temperatures hit around -15 and colder.

Hello,

The minimum temperature would be in the range of 0-5C in worst case scenario during nights, days minimum could be somewhere 5-10C. Generally, central Heating is not available anywhere except in 5* hotels. Homes are not thermally insulated. So if it’s 5C outside, it will be 5C indoors too.

You will require warm clothing probably few layers of them during winters. And not to forget, if it rains, you will need another layer for rain protection. Also, do anticipate some foggy days.

Just be prepared with warm layers of clothing and you are good to go.

Cheers

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by Indian2003

How cold is quite cold? I am used to severe cold here in the winter. The clothes and shoes I normally use are used all year except a heavier jacket and a scarf when temperatures hit around -15 and colder.
Right now the temperature is +17 and I am in the room, heater off and wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
The pollution is another matter because of my COPD and asthma so I always use a mask when in Malaysia and Singapore. I dont cough or wheeze.

Cold only for Bombay wallahs {said with that derisive cackle Delhi wallahs reserve for Mumbaikars} who feel cold once the mercury touches 21 degrees C.

Day temperatures in Delhi in December-January are 14 to 21 degrees and night temperatures vary from 3 to 12 degrees. It might go down a bit beyond that to 2 or 1 degrees on ten nights in the year to make us Dilli types feel those samosas & hot jalebis were justified. By your standards not cold. If the hotel you stay in has central air-conditioning (cold & heat) then you are fine. Most Delhi homes don't have that so the inside areas are also cold and I have far too often found Europeans struggling with the home being 10 degrees in the room on a winter night. Hope this helps.