Learn more
Solo Travel in India
We’re seeing more and more travellers exploring India entirely on their own, and it’s easy to see why. This isn’t a generic group tour: it’s private, luxury solo travel, with your own driver, vehicle and guides throughout, so you get all the freedom of travelling alone without managing the details yourself.
Whether you’re taking a belated gap year, ticking off a long-held ambition, or simply prefer travelling at your own pace, we’ll make the whole trip feel effortless.
Unlike tour operators working from fixed departure dates and itineraries, every trip we plan is ultra-personalised and built from scratch around you, your interests, your budget and your requirements.
Total flexibility, from arrival to departure
You won’t be joining a group or keeping to anyone else’s pace. Fancy an extra morning at Amber Fort before the crowds arrive, or a change to the day’s plan to fit in one more temple? Your holiday is built entirely around you, and we’ll adjust it as you go.
A private vehicle, driver and guides throughout
You’ll have your own vehicle, driver and guides for the whole trip, so there are no tour buses and nobody else’s itinerary to work around. You don’t have to rely on shared transfers or work out local buses and trains.
Your driver will know the roads well and adjust to whatever the day brings and whatever you want, whether that’s an unplanned stop at a roadside market or simply taking things slower than planned.
Specialist guides matched to your interests
Whether it’s Mughal architecture, wildlife, crafts and textiles, food or photography, your trip to India will be perfectly matched to your interests. To make sure you experience the country to its fullest, we’ll provide guides who know that subject inside out, many with years of focus on one region or specialism.
For textiles, a specialist guide can take you into block-printing workshops around Jaipur and introduce you to the families still hand-blocking cloth the traditional way. A food-loving guide can build a day around markets and backstreet food tours, while a historian can bring Rajasthan’s forts and palaces to life with stories a general tour won’t cover.
It’s entirely up to you whether you’d rather have one guide travel with you throughout, or a different specialist in each location.
Solo travel in Rajasthan, Kerala and beyond
Rajasthan is a natural fit for solo travellers, easily combined with a luxury Golden Triangle route through Delhi and Agra alongside Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur. Kerala offers a different pace: a night or two on a houseboat through the backwaters near Cochin, spice plantations, and an Ayurvedic treatment if you’d rather slow right down.
Further south, Madurai and Pondicherry offer a change of scene, and both combine easily with Kerala. For wildlife lovers, a private jeep safari with a specialist naturalist in Ranthambore or Bandhavgarh is hard to beat. We cover every corner of India, so just tell us where you want to go and we’ll make it happen.
When to go
October to March is generally the best time to travel to India, with the coolest, driest weather between November and February. This is also the high season, so it’s worth booking early. The shoulder months on either side — September and April — offer fewer crowds and better value.
April and May bring real heat but excellent wildlife viewing, as animals gather near water in places like Ranthambore. The monsoon, roughly June to September, has its own appeal in Kerala, and is traditionally the best season for Ayurveda. For a fuller picture, our India weather guide has a month-by-month breakdown by region.
Safety, thought through at every stage
Safety sits behind every decision we make when you’re planning a solo holiday to India with Red Dot Tours. Every hotel, driver and guide we work with is personally vetted, and having guides with you throughout means you’re never navigating somewhere new entirely alone.
You’re also backed by 24-hour support while you’re away, with our own teams in the UK and Colombo alongside our long-standing partner office in India, so help is never far off if you need it.
Travelling solo as a woman
Many of the people who come to us for a luxury solo trip to India are women, and because our team of specialists are also all women, we understand what you need to experience India with complete peace of mind. We plan with you in mind, so you’ll feel safe and secure without compromising on your trip.
Boutique hotels in Rajasthan and Kerala, chosen for solo travellers
Where you stay matters just as much when you’re travelling alone, so we choose beautiful boutique hotels with a warm welcome, attentive service and, where it suits you, the chance to meet other guests over a shared meal.
A small haveli, ancestral home or homestay can be especially rewarding, offering warmth and a local connection larger hotels often can’t. From a heritage haveli in Rajasthan to a quiet stay by the Kerala backwaters, we’ll match the choice to how you like to travel.
Start planning your solo trip to India
Tell us what’s drawing you to India and how you like to travel, and we’ll build a private journey around it, with a driver, guides and hotels chosen with you in mind.
Common questions about solo travel in India
It’s entirely up to you whether you have a guide with you every day. Some solo travellers want a guide throughout, but we find that most prefer a driver only, picking up specialist guides in each location. We’ll set it up however suits you.
Yes, you can meet other travellers if that appeals. Some of the hotels and homestays we choose have communal dining tables or shared spaces where it’s easy to strike up a conversation. Equally, if you’d rather keep to yourself, that’s just as easy to arrange.
No, every hotel is booked just for you. Room rates are usually based on two sharing, so a single supplement may apply depending on the hotel, and we’ll give you the exact cost upfront before you book.
For a single woman travelling alone in India, Rajasthan and Kerala offer a wonderful introduction to the country. They’re both easy to travel around with an established tour operator like Red Dot Tours, with fantastic sites and a range of accommodation.
Red Dot Tours is ATOL protected for air holiday packages booked in the UK, and a member of ABTOT, which covers other package travel arrangements. We’ll let you know exactly which applies to your trip when we put your quote together.
Choose your adventure
Speak to one of our team to get started. After all, your travel journal won’t write itself.