The Deccan Odyssey was an absolutely unforgettable trip for multiple different reasons. Not only did I get to experience this luxury train journey in India for my 29th birthday, but I got to share the adventure with some truly awesome travel-bloggers! I remember being at a music festival in Vietnam when I received the news that I had been selected for the “The Great Indian Blog Train“, and I knew it was going to be a bucket-list worthy experience!
The entire week I spent on board The Deccan Odyssey was a consistent mix of pure luxury, utter fun, and jaw-dropping sights. This was my first trip to India, and I honestly could not have imagined a better way to explore this incredible country. It was also my time on board a luxury train, and was pretty great being pampered with our own private butler, unbelievably delicious meals, and of course the 24-hour open-bar for birthday celebrations ;-)!!
Take a read through my day-to-day recap, browse through some photos, and start planning your own trip to India! I only had 10 days in total in the country, but this trip has got me super excited to get back!
The Deccan Odyssey Day 1 – Embarking Mumbai
After spending a day exploring the chaotic (yet charming) city of Mumbai, the group made our way to the train station to begin our journey on board the Deccan Odyssey train.
We were surprised with quite an extravagant send off including colorful flowers, talented dancers, and loud Indian drummers. This type of “welcome” ceremony became quite typical for everyone, as I can’t actually remember a morning when we began our Indian explorations without an amazing variety of music and dance.
The crew all got settled into our luxuriously cozy rooms, and dined together as the train made it’s way to the first stop on the trip.
The Deccan Odyssey Day 2 – Nashik
This is the INDIA that I came to see!
I had never heard of Nashik before, but was instantly captivated by the vibe of this place. While we walked around the Godarvi Ghats, I quickly learned that this ancient holy city is home to several important Hindu rituals that were super interestinging to witness.
As we strolled through the markets, visited beautiful temples, and took selfies with the locals – I had this overwhelming feeling of joy for having the opportunity to be on this trip. It was only the first couple of hours, but was already loving INDIA! It’s such a massive country, and I feel like Nashik is still an unique and off-the-beaten path destination visit.
While I wish I had a few more hours to continue walking around, taking photos, and soaking it all in…our tour group had to make it’s way to go wine-tasting and for lunch! After we briefly explored the vineyards, sampled some delicious local Indian wine, and destroyed a tasty buffet – we returned to the Deccan Odyssey to relax, shower, and get ready for dinner & bedtime.
The Deccan Odyssey Day 3 – Ellora Caves
I made my way to the dining hall, enjoyed an omelette, some toast, and a foamy cappucino – and then disembarked the train.
“Where are we today…? Aurangabad? I wonder what’s in these caves we’re going to.”
These “caves” are actually Hindu-temples carved into the side of a basaltic hill, and is definitely a sight you need to see to believe. As we walked to the entrance of this massively impressive place, I couldn’t help but think of the castle of “Helms Deep” from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, as well as the iconic archaeological city of Petra in Jordan. If those two analogies don’t inspire you to visit the Ellora Caves, then just stop reading this post, lol.
I spent an hour so or running around this place with my tripod, and was having tons of fun taking epic photos of this unique landmark. The only thing on my mind was…how have I never heard of this place before? I’m on Instagram nearly everyday, and have never seen this place! It really could be the next big Instagram destination!
The Deccan Odyssey Day 4 – Ajanta Caves
Now that I was well aware of what “caves” are in this region of India, I was beyond excited to get to another spot for some more photography and exploration.
The Ajanta Caves date back to the 2nd century B.C, and are located in an absolutely gorgeous valley. Walking along the path and checking out the various temples will really leave art & history fans speechless! Me and the crew made our way to the very end of the path, and started taking our pictures there, and then worked our way towards the (to avoid the crowds).
These caves are one of the oldest UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the entire country, and really should not be missed! I’d actually go as far as saying that the Ellora and Ajanta Caves were my favorite places visited during this entire trip! When I eventually make it back to India, I’m planing on spending several days exploring as many of these caves as possible!
The Deccan Odyssey Day 5 – Kolhapur, India
My birthday in India could not have been more perfect!!
Well…actually, I take that back. I was battling a tiny hangover all day because the Deccan Odyssey crew had a pretty great time feeding me birthday cake & birthday shots at midnight. ;-) But we had tons of fun, and it didn’t affect my day at all in Kolhapur! Special thanks to all the beautiful people who made me feel so incredibly loved on my big day! :-)
It was one of our busiest days, but was filled with gorgeous museums, architecture, culture, temples, food, and a pretty fantastic martial arts demonstration!
One of my favorite parts of the day was actually just walking around the city during our free time. Walking through the chaotic streets, talking photos with large groups friendly children, and doing some shopping at the markets. I can’t put my finger on it – but there’s definitely something special about Kolhapur!
The Deccan Odyssey Day 6 – Goa, India
The day I had been waiting for finally arrived!!
Goa is one of the most popular regions of India, and I had been dreaming of visiting for years! I was supposed to attend a music festival in Goa during New Years Eve awhile back, but it ended up not happening (and ever since it’s been on my wish-list).
Out of all the destinations we visited, Goa is really the only place I could see myself staying for an extended period of time. I know it’s quite a popular hotspot for digital nomads and people who work online, and I’d love to base myself there for a few months in the future.
Our day began by visiting a beautiful old Portuguese house, and that’s when I discovered that Goa is heavily influenced by Portugal! The two Portuguese speaking bloggers on the trip even had full-on conversations with locals in Portuguese, which I think is pretty awesome!
The day continued with stunning churches, a spice plantation for a delicious feast, a cheeky taxi ride to the beach for some photography fun, and concluded with a mini-walking tour around Goa. As the sky turned bright pink, and our group had to return to the Deccan Odyssey Train…I caught myself thinking “this isn’t goodbye Goa, it’s see you later!”
The Deccan Odyssey Day 7 – Sindhudurg
“I can’t believe it’s almost over! I’m not ready for it to be over!”
After another delicious breakfast on board, our crew made our way to Pinguli Village to attend a Tribal Puppet show. At first, to be honest – I wasn’t all that excited to see the puppet show. I don’t know why, but it just didn’t really intrigue me all that much. BUT WOW! It was actually super entertaining, but mainly for the guys singing and playing drums alongside the puppet show! The lead singer was a total badass, and had such an awesome voice as he belted various songs and shared the story.
It was pretty hard to follow the storyline, as everything was in Hindi – but still really interesting to see!
We then continued to our final activity – a cultural dance performance and lunch at the beautiful Sawantwadi Palace. The meal was incredible (as always), the dance was fun to watch, and it was just really cool to eat and be entertained in this stunning ballroom!
After a bit of free time, our group made it’s way back to the Deccan Odyssey! We were pleasantly surprised with local Indian outfits laid on our beds, and I must say we all looked quite stunning in them as we enjoyed a final Bollywood night party on board!
NO trip to India is complete without a Bollywood party!
Mumbai Goodbyes
As our train arrived back to the station, I couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional that this trip had come to its end. I had fallen in love with India during the past week, and was simply not ready to leave! Hell, I flew all the way from Bogota, Colombia to get to Mumbai! The majority of other bloggers on the trip had extended their stay to explore different regions, visit the Taj Mahal, and party it up for the upcoming Holi Festival…but my flight to Costa Rica (to attend Envision Festival) was already booked for that night.
So we had one final day in Mumbai, a blogger debrief on board a cruise ship (and learned that the cruise industry is taking off in Mumbai), and a farewell dinner with the Deccan Odyssey Blogger Train crew.
On the taxi ride to the airport, I caught my mind wandering and reflection about what I had just experienced. The beautiful sights I had the pleasure of exploring, the new friends that have come into my life, and on why I have the best job in the world. :-)
I want to express my extreme gratitude to the wonderful people at the Ministry of Tourism, Republic of India for inviting me out to be apart of the first ever Great Indian Blog Train! It was such a fantastic trip, and has definitely got me pumped to get back to India again soon!
I’ll end this post with a quote from arguably the most famous Indian in the world…
Where there is love there is life – Mahatma Gandhi
