Now over a week since we touched down in Manchester after our tour of India, we’re reminiscing about our favourite memories from our luxury Indian holiday. If you didn't get the chance to read Part 1, Part 2 or Part 3 of Our India Trip, or even if you did, here's a countdown of some of our Best Bits...

10 – The Road Trips

A superabundance of zooming cars, beeping tuk-tuks, mooching cows, casual pedestrians and unexpected roundabouts normally equates to a catastrophe. Our experience, though, was to the contrary. Although the roads lack a highway code to a western eye, somehow it works; we didn’t encounter casualties or close calls, and simply sailed down the streets with little bother. We spent a sizeable quotient of our India Trip travelling on such roads, in such conditions, and were entranced by the entertaining road game going on outside our windows. Not only was it entertaining, driving through these areas introduced us to authentic culture at its most unadulterated, from rural agricultural practises to small town food-markets.

Our vintage car ride to the entrance of The Rambagh Palace in Jaipur

9 – Vintage Car Ride

As briefly mentioned in Part 3, Every new guest at the inspiringly elegant Rambagh Palace in Jaipur is invited to descend upon the property onboard a luxury vintage car, chauffeured by a turbaned gentleman, like timeless film stars and royalty. Our jade green 1920s convertible had bouncy leather seats in the back which soothed the slight bopping made by the small speed bumps, as the wind brushed past us and Rambagh Palace made herself apparent in our eyeline. What an exciting, novel way to arrive at this luxury accommodation.

8 – Ranakpur Temple

Midway between The Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur and Umaid Bhawan in Jodhpur lies the most exquisite Jain temple in India. Renowned as one of the best temples in the world, Ranakpur Temple is a peaceful marble structure with unbelievable intricacy and atmosphere, in Rajasthan, western India. Make sure to wear modest clothes, or one of the provided tunics, and then rent a headset that guides you through a tour of the temple, explaining its history and surrounding culture as you marvel at its beauty.

Marwar Hall at Umaid Bhawan Palace

7 – Champagne Tour

Merely entering Umaid Bhawan Palace was one of the most memorable experiences from our India trip. Even better though, we were lucky enough to be escorted through the (almost entire) majestic grounds, into the Maharaja and Maharani Suites, the tranquil indoor pool at the spa, the Trophy Bar, Billiards Room and other beautiful features whilst we drank Indian bubbly named "Sula".

6 – Village Tour in Bandhavgarh

Our first excursion at Mahua Kothi was a tour of a local rural village. We rode upon dirt-track paths, past sandstone and mud huts, elders engaging in agricultural manual labour, children playing with hoops and sticks, cows grazing in back yards, and field-upon-field of luscious green crops. Children came running to greet us, with huge smiles and waves; it was an incredibly friendly community, and a fantastic excursion of our luxury India holiday.

5 – Indian Deep Tissue Massage

After a morning of travelling, we decided to treat ourselves to an Indian Deep Tissue Massage at Taj Lake Palace. One of Taj’s signature Jiva spas, the spa at this luxury Indian palace was infinitely tranquil and ruled by a philosophy rooted in an ancient Indian approach to wellness. The masseuse took care to make a note of any preferences, injuries or other physiological ailments, as well as introducing the fragrances of the massage oils before sending us into a state of complete and utter relaxation. My posture was restored, the knots in my back muscles were unwound and I walked out feeling a whole lot lighter.

4 – OM Art Shop

Udaipur has some lovely shops selling a wide array of merchandise, from small, un-costly handmade objects, to jewel-laden necklaces or intricately threaded tapestries. Amongst our favourite was OM art shop; as we entered, there were paintings hanging on the walls, leaving hardly a speck of bare wall exposed, with small artefacts, large embellished pieces of art, and larger statuettes of Hindu gods. We met one of the local painters who was working on a large silk painting using paints made of ground minerals. The artist even painted us a small token each: a horse (the national symbol of power) and an elephant (the national symbol of wealth).

Traditional Indian dance and music at The Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur

3 – Traditional Indian Entertainment

The Taj Lake Palace luxury Indian hotel has traditional Indian singing and dancing every evening. The male singer’s voice resonated in atmospheric fluctuations throughout the property, as he also played an accordion-style instrument and his companion played the tabla (traditional Indian drums). Ladies in saris sat before the musicians, swinging bells in time to the music as the female dancer took centre stage. This dancer was somehow simultaneously graceful and powerful, as she performed beautiful movements and stunts.

Fresh henna, intricatedly piped onto our skin in the early evening at The Rambagh Palace

2 – Henna and Bangles

Approaching the end of our stay without having had the chance to have henna painted on our hands, we were thrilled when we were invited to have it done at the Rambagh Palace, as mentioned in Part 3. Henna is a plant with leaves that produce a strong and fragrant dye that can be piped onto skin (usually hands, arms and feet) in intricate patterns. As the patterns usually remain visible anywhere between 5 days and 3 weeks, having our henna done on the penultimate night of our luxury India holiday meant that we were likely to be able to show our friends back home. After we had our henna done, we were invited to watch a local man talk us through the traditional method of bangle-making, using lac, a natural substance secreted from trees all around Asia. He measured each of our wrists, and then proceeded to make a personalised bangle for each of us: the perfect palace memento.

1 - Fireflies at Banjaar Tola

Located in the middle of the jungle in Kanha, Banjaar Tola plays host to hundreds of thousands of fireflies showcasing their glistening lights in a stunning courtship display. We drove around the camp in our safari vehicle, stopping at the trees that were alight with the flashing lights of the creatures, going on and off in an intricate pattern of waves. The fireflies danced in unison and in canon as we gazed in awe of the beauty of nature.

Condensing our myriad exotic adventures into one, small list proved something of a challenge; if you’d like to hear more about the highlights of our Indian tour, including our safari adventures, and other original information about India or our exclusive holiday experience, there is more information in our Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3 blogs or you can read our review in our Autumn Newsletter.