Overall, our trip to India & Kashmir were amazing except for some minor glitches. We enjoyed it very much! Best experiences as follows :
1 : The hospitality of our caretaker Mr. Habib at the houseboat in Srinagar was really outstanding and incredible - he took care of all our needs. Our tour guide in Kashmir, Hajj Yaakub was also excellent. We felt very safe with him around. The landscapes of Kashmir are just awesome, no wonder people call it "heaven on earth."
2 : The snow in Gulmarg is so beautiful. The kids enjoyed the ski very much. Thanks to our snow guide Mr. Ghulam for his great service. Wish we could stay another day !
3 : In Delhi, Jaipur and Agra, we were chauffeured by our great amazing friend Mr. Raj - his service and hospitality are just indescribably excellent! He is so accommodating, never-complaining and very helpful. If we were to tour India again, Mr. Raj would be our first choice to carry us around - he is just a wonderful person !.
4 : The tour guides you provide us are good.
Some of the not so wonderful experiences are as follows :
1 : The service at the restaurants in Hotel Shahneshah (Kashmir) and Taj Resorts (Agra) were very poor. Restaurants staffs (specifically the managers) at both hotels were rude and looked down on Asians. Services were also very slow. If we have the chance again to visit these places, these two hotels must be avoided at all cost !
2 : Due to unforeseen circumstances which were beyond our control, we missed a few places like Agra Fort in Agra and Gandhi museum in Delhi. The itinerary should have been planned more precisely to fit the intended tour. Attached are some snapshots of our tour of India and Kashmir for your perusal.