India is a country filled with diversity, culture, landscapes and cuisines. If that wasn’t enough, a variety of weather conditions too! How can you choose in between traveling destinations, say the North or North-East of India?
Well, there are three kinds of people. One, who wish to travel to a particular place and have an itinerary set. Two, who choose a destination and let the journey pave way for them. The third kind is the dubious lot! Determined to travel, but unsure of where to begin from.
Do you fall in the third category? Well, you needn’t worry. We have all been through this phase in our lives.
I come across travelers from different countries, intrigued about India. Some do come with pre-conceived notions!
But when it comes to telling them about all that India has to offer. They crave! Yes, they crave to visit our country and experience all that there is. The assortment of choices that it offers.
Dubious About Your Travel Plans?
It surely can get difficult at times. When you want to explore the best, and make the most of it! But you also need to make a choice.
To break down your confusion about choosing between traveling the North or North-East. Here is how you can go about making your final decision.
1. Mode of Transport
The commute is your base for any travel. Are you going to fly your way down and travel using public transport? If dealing with locals in the buses is overwhelming for you, you can choose to drive.
Are you willing to drive from your current location or do you intend on renting a vehicle! The same goes for biking your way through.
2. Accommodation Choices
There are backpackers who can hitchhike and travel overnight to save on accommodation costs. Then, there are those who do not wish to compromise on their lavish stay!
Some choose hostels, as they are hubs to socializing the best. And lastly, the homestay goers, who want to experience native culture to the extremes.
3. Your Pocket Evaluation
When someone tells me, traveling is expensive. I straight up disagree!
If you know you have to travel in a budget friendly manner, your trip will be so. If you believe that travel is an opportunity to loosen the spendthrift in you, that’s your choice.
4. Companionship
A very important factor to consider when traveling. Do you wish for company? Is it a trip that your group had planned for, back in those college days! Or, are you happy traveling by yourself?
The reason it plays a key role is; one uncertain person can find their way through. A group of five without a plan, can get a little too much at times. Unless, you have the group that intends on living the wild way!
5. Weather Conditions
This is the easy one to make. Do you wish to dawn jackets and visit locations where you make the most of the cold weather? Or, you’d rather be comfortable roaming about in your khakis and trekking boots?
Identifying how you wish to travel is the first step to a definitive conclusion. Now that you have some structured answers, we can move to the next step.
What Culture Do You Wish To Surround Yourself With?
The beauty of India is that traveling to no two places will feel the same. Reason being, the warmth and hospitality you endure.
The culture exhibited at each point in the country is so dynamic, that it’s a charm to experience them all.
The food, the religious practices, and the heritage borne in North India as well as the North-East vary elaborately.
Albeit, the natives of each region are warm and welcoming. It is up to you to explore the culture you have always wanted to uncover.
What Does Your Stomach Crave For?
Heard of the ‘Keeda Market’ in Nagaland! The thought of it can either excite you or make you run in the other direction altogether.
The vegetarian delicacies of the North, or the striking meats in the East! Which one do you have the stomach for?
It’s important to know what it is that you want to explore more in terms of delicacies. While each has their own specialties, if you aren’t a meat lover, you’d rather prefer villages in the North. If you cannot live without meat, the East is your calling.
However, there are riches in each cuisine that cannot beat the other.
The Enthralling North
Riding through those roads diverging through the captivating mountains. Trekking for weeks in the majestic glaciers. Or, camping by spellbinding lakes engulfed by the Himalayan landscape. You watch villagers enjoying the solitude and living the life you call a vacation.
Be it the dreaminess of Leh Ladakh, the Himalayan ranges of Uttarakhand or the Pristine villages of Himachal Pradesh.
The North has so much more to discover. Time is never enough here, to explore all the jewels in this crown.
The Captivating East
The seven sisters, the spices in the food, the glorious churches, the wild forests and abundant nature that treats your soul. Fishing in rivers where you see the bottom so crystal clear, boats seem to float in thin air.
The North East allows you to travel to experience nature at its finest. The rains that pour; the weather absolves you of reality. The wildlife is so rich, it rivets you. The folklore that each state in the East exuberates, enlivens your expectations.
The festivals and heritage that you learn and experience, no book could do justice. The aura of the East is charming.
Are You Ready To Choose Yet?
We know its not an easy choice to make, considering there is so much that each place has in store. However, at the end of the day, you might know one thing for sure. Every traveler does.
Waking up to clouds floating away. Unmasking the glorious mountain ranges of the Himalayas. Or, the birds chirping through the forests. And, the sound of the waterfall against the rocks.
Which one can you connect with the most? There it is. Your choice between the North and the East wasn’t that hard to comprehend.
Still confused about your travel plans to North East? I don’t think so. But if you have any confusion, do tell in the comments.
