India & Sri Lanka Uncovered — Self-Launched

Land at DEL, take the Airport Express metro (~₹60, £0.60) or an Ola/Uber (~₹400) to Paharganj. Settle into a hostel dorm, swap cash/activate a UPI-friendly card, and take an easy evening wander through Connaught Place and the spice lanes of Khari Baoli. Get an early night — day 2 starts with a walking tour.

🚌Airport Express metro or Ola/Uber from DEL

🛏Hostel dorm in Paharganj (£8–14)

• →Connaught Place evening wander
• →Khari Baoli spice market

Book the Salaam Baalak Trust City Walk direct (their own website, ~₹800–1,200, funds street-children programmes) — the same NGO walk the tour includes, led by former street kids. In the afternoon ride the metro to Central Secretariat and walk Rajpath past India Gate and the Rashtrapati Bhavan gates (exterior; palace tours need advance booking). Finish with street food in Chandni Chowk — parathas at Gali Paranthe Wali.

🚌Delhi Metro day pass ~₹150

🛏Hostel dorm in Paharganj (£8–14)

• →Salaam Baalak Trust guided city walk (direct booking)
• →India Gate & Rajpath walk
• →Rashtrapati Bhavan exterior
• →Chandni Chowk street-food crawl

Morning flight DEL–UDR (IndiGo/SpiceJet, book ~6–8 weeks ahead, £35–55) or the overnight Mewar Express train (~£8, 12h) if you want the budget route. Check into a lakeside guesthouse in the old town. At sunset, hire a shared shikara boat on Lake Pichola (~₹400, £4) — cheaper than the tour boat but the same view of the Lake Palace.

🚌Domestic flight DEL–UDR (~£45) or overnight train (~£8) + airport taxi ₹500

🛏Old-town guesthouse, Udaipur (£12–18)

• →Lake Pichola sunset boat ride
• →Lakeside rooftop dinner

Buy a City Palace entry ticket (~₹400) plus the Crystal Gallery add-on if you like; audio guide is enough, no need for a private guide. Walk five minutes to Jagdish Temple (free), then take an auto to Saheliyon-ki-bari gardens (~₹150 round trip). Afternoon for the bazaar lanes — miniature paintings and block-print textiles — or a rooftop lassi by the lake.

🚌Auto-rickshaws around town ~£4

🛏Old-town guesthouse, Udaipur (£12–18)

• →City Palace Udaipur entry
• →Jagdish Temple
• →Saheliyon-ki-bari gardens
• →Old-city bazaar browsing

No useful direct train — take a private/shared taxi or the RSBTC bus to Ajmer (~5h, ₹450–700 then a ₹150 auto to Pushkar), or book a shared cab direct to Pushkar (~£18–25). Pushkar is small and walkable; drop bags at a guesthouse near the lake and wander the ghats and the main bazaar at dusk.

🚌Bus/taxi Udaipur–Ajmer–Pushkar ~£10–20

🛏Pushkar guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Pushkar ghats and bazaar evening

Start early: walk or take the ropeway up to Savitri Mata Temple for sunrise over the desert (ropeway ₹130, or a 45-min uphill walk). Descend for breakfast, then visit the rare Brahma Temple (free, shoes off, no phones) and circumambulate Pushkar Lake's 52 ghats. Sunset from a rooftop café terrace.

🚌Walking + ropeway

🛏Pushkar guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Savitri Mata sunrise (ropeway)
• →Brahma Temple
• →Pushkar Lake ghat walk

Bus or shared cab to Jaipur (~3h, ₹350–600 / ~£8–12). Check in near the Pink City, then book an evening home cooking class — the tour's included class is easily replicated: options like Cooking with Anju or a Klook/Airbnb Experiences class run £15–25 and cover dal, chapati and a masala. Optional: catch a Bollywood film at Rajmandir cinema (₹150–300).

🚌Bus Pushkar–Jaipur ~£10

🛏Hostel or guesthouse, Jaipur (£10–18)

• →Indian home cooking class
• →Rajmandir cinema Bollywood screening (optional)

Buy the composite Jaipur monument ticket (~₹1,000 for City Palace + Amber + Hawa Mahal + more). Ride a local bus or auto (₹40) to Amber Fort rather than a 4x4 — you can still walk the ramparts and the Sheesh Mahal. Back in town, photograph Hawa Mahal from the Wind View Café opposite, then explore Johari and Bapu bazaars.

🚌Local bus/auto to Amber Fort ~£3

🛏Hostel or guesthouse, Jaipur (£10–18)

• →Jaipur City Palace
• →Amber Fort
• →Hawa Mahal
• →Bazaar shopping

Train (Jaipur–Sawai Madhopur, ~2.5h, second class ~₹150 / sleeper ~£2–4) or bus. Many Ranthambore guesthouses offer a village/farm visit to a local family — arrange it the day before via your host (₹1,000–1,500 including a home meal). Evening at the guesthouse garden, early night before the safari.

🚌Train Jaipur–Sawai Madhopur ~£3 + shared jeep to town

🛏Ranthambore guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Local village/farm visit and home-cooked meal

Book a jeep safari through the Rajasthan Forest Department's online portal or via your guesthouse as soon as your dates confirm — permits sell out, especially the 6am slot. A shared jeep safari is ~₹1,800–2,500 (£18–25) per person for 3.5 hours and gives the same zones and tiger odds as the tour's safari. Afternoon rest, then a walk up to Ranthambore Fort for sunset views.

🚌Safari jeep included in permit

🛏Ranthambore guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Ranthambore shared jeep safari
• →Ranthambore Fort sunset walk

Train to Agra (Sawai Madhopur–Agra Cantt, ~4h, sleeper ~£3–5, or a shared taxi ~£20). Stop at Fatehpur Sikri en route — easiest is a taxi hire for the leg (~₹3,500 split) or a bus to Bharatpur then local transport; entry ₹610. Arrive Agra, check in near Taj Ganj, and see the Taj from Mehtab Bagh at sunset if there's time.

🚌Train + taxi to Fatehpur Sikri ~£15–25

🛏Guesthouse in Taj Ganj, Agra (£10–16)

• →Fatehpur Sikri visit
• →Mehtab Bagh Taj sunset view (optional)

Buy the Taj Mahal ticket online in advance (₹1,100 foreigners, sunrise slot, closed Fridays). Enter at opening — it's the only way to dodge the crowds and the same move the tour makes. Optional official audio guide or a ₹600 ASI-approved guide at the gate. Midday: Agra Fort if you have energy, then a Gatimaan Express train to Delhi (~1h40, ₹1,000 / ~£10) or a bus (~£5). Night in Paharganj for the early flight.

🚌Gatimaan Express Agra–Delhi ~£10

🛏Hostel dorm, Paharganj, Delhi (£8–14)

• →Taj Mahal sunrise entry
• →Taj Mahal interior/tomb visit
• →Agra Fort (optional)

Fly DEL–CMB (SriLankan/IndiGo, £70–120 booked early). Get the Sri Lanka ETA online in advance (~£40, or free for many nationalities — check current rules). Airport bus or tuk-tuk to Negombo (~£2–5, 30 min). This is a rest/reset day: beer on the lagoon, seafood curry at a beachfront shack.

🚌Flight DEL–CMB ~£90 + airport tuk-tuk ~£4

🛏Negombo guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Negombo lagoon evening

Slow day: swim at Negombo beach, visit the fish market (best before 8am) and St Mary's Church, and take the canal boat if you want a bit of movement. This buffer day also protects against flight disruption before continuing to the Cultural Triangle.

🚌Local tuk-tuks ~£3

🛏Negombo guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Negombo beach
• →Fish market & St Mary's Church
• →Lagoon canal boat (optional)

Bus from Negombo to Dambulla (~4h, ~£2) — take the Kandy/Dambulla route or ask your host for the direct bus. Stop at Dambulla Cave Temple (entry ~£4) and the Golden Buddha; the caves are the highlight and easily self-guided. Then bus or tuk-tuk on to Sigiriya (~1h, £1–4) for two nights in a guesthouse with a view of the rock.

🚌Bus Negombo–Dambulla ~£2 + bus/tuk-tuk to Sigiriya ~£2

🛏Sigiriya guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Dambulla Cave Temple
• →Golden Buddha statue

Get to the Sigiriya fortress gate at 7am — entry ~£32, and it's far cooler and quieter than later. Climb the ~1,200 steps for the frescoes and the summit palace view. Afternoon: hire a bicycle (₹—LKR 500) and cycle to Pidurangala Rock for a second, opposite view of Sigiriya at sunset (LKR 1,000 / ~£2.5). Village dinner at a local homestay can be arranged through your guesthouse (~£6).

🚌Bicycle hire ~£3

🛏Sigiriya guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Sigiriya Rock climb
• →Pidurangala Rock sunset
• →Village homestay dinner (optional)

Bus to Kandy (~3h, ~£2). Visit the Temple of the Tooth (entry ~£5.5) in the late afternoon — the evening puja around 6:30pm is the atmospheric time. Walk the lake loop at sunset and stay in a guesthouse up the hill for the views.

🚌Bus Sigiriya–Kandy ~£2

🛏Kandy guesthouse (£12–18)

• →Temple of the Tooth (evening puja)
• →Kandy Lake sunset walk

Morning bus to Nuwara Eliya (~2.5h) or the train to Nanu Oya. Visit a tea factory — Pedro Estate or Mackwoods near Nuwara Eliya, ~£4–6 with tasting — then take the famous Nanu Oya→Ella train, booked 30 days ahead on the Sri Lanka Railways website (2nd class ~£1, 3rd class ~£0.50; unreserved is doable but stand early). Add a Sri Lankan cooking class in Ella or Nuwara Eliya (~£15–20) through your guesthouse.

🚌Bus Kandy–Nuwara Eliya ~£2 + train to Ella ~£1

🛏Ella guesthouse (£10–18)

• →Tea plantation & factory tour
• →Nanu Oya–Ella scenic train
• →Sri Lankan cooking class

Self-guided morning: walk from town to Little Adam's Peak (~45 min up, free) for the Ella Gap views, then descend to Nine Arch Bridge — check the train timetable at the Demodara side so you catch a train crossing. Afternoon: Ravana Falls or a café afternoon in Ella village.

🚌Walking + tuk-tuk ~£3

🛏Ella guesthouse (£10–18)

• →Little Adam's Peak hike
• →Nine Arch Bridge & train-track walk
• →Ravana Falls (optional)

Bus Ella→Wellawaya→Udawalawe (~2.5h, ~£2) — ask for the Udawalawe junction stop. Drop bags and book an afternoon shared safari jeep (LKR 6,000–8,000 per jeep split 4–6 ways plus park entry ~£6; total ~£20–25 pp) — Udawalawe's elephants are near-guaranteed. If there's time, stop at Ravana Falls or Diyaluma on the way.

🚌Bus Ella–Udawalawe ~£2 + safari jeep

🛏Udawalawe guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Udawalawe National Park jeep safari
• →Waterfall stop en route

Bus to Galle (~2.5h, ~£2 then local bus/tuk-tuk). Explore Galle Fort on foot — ramparts at golden hour, lighthouse, Dutch Reformed Church, the boutique lanes — free, and better self-guided with a map than on a scripted tour. Then a 15-minute tuk-tuk (£2) to Unawatuna for a beach guesthouse and a seafood dinner.

🚌Bus Udawalawe–Galle ~£2 + bus/tuk-tuk to Unawatuna ~£2

🛏Unawatuna beach guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Galle Fort walking exploration
• →Ramparts sunset

Full beach day: swim in the bay, rent a lounger, and snorkel the reef at the east end. Late afternoon, walk to Dalawella Beach to spot sea turtles feeding in the shallows (free; don't pay the men with buckets — ethical turtle watching means no touching). Optional: a surf lesson at Weligama (~£15).

🚌Walking + tuk-tuk ~£3

🛏Unawatuna beach guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Unawatuna beach & snorkelling
• →Dalawella sea turtle spotting
• →Surf lesson (optional)

Sunrise swim, then take the coastal bus or train to Colombo Fort (~2–3h, ~£2) for the airport bus, or organise onward travel. If you're continuing, the south coast (Mirissa, Tangalle) and Colombo are easy hops from here — book via 12Go or at the bus stand.

🚌Bus/train to Colombo ~£2 + airport bus £1

🛏—

• →Morning swim
• →Travel to Colombo/airport