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Bespoke and customised luxury travel options and itineraries throughout India

Bespoke and customised luxury travel options and itineraries throughout India.jpg

At The Explorations Company we love luxury and style but we also love to engage with the destination and its local community. If that means the odd bumpy road or eccentric hotel in order to see something truly special, that's fine by us.

Take in the breathtaking landscapes with expert guides, staying in tastefully decorated, comfortable, spectacularly located atmospheric homes set in valleys, or a luxury lodge set high on a ridge commanding uninterrupted views of the mountains.

Walk from village to village, observing the peaceful, rural culture – watching farmers harrow their fields with oxen, whilst the women plant chillies, beautifully attired in colourful saris – and not another tourist in sight.

The Himalayas harbour a great diversity of habitats squeezed into narrow altitudinal belts from lush sub-tropical mosaic forests of grasslands and semi-evergreen woodlands to alpine meadows. This is an area where The Explorations Company has particular expertise.

We offer some of the finest customised luxury travel options throughout India, accompanied by specialist naturalist guides, who take you deep into tiger country spending nights in remote forest bungalows where you spend the days searching for tigers, leopard, elephants, sloth bears and a rainbow array of birds – almost 500 species in just one park.

I recently arranged a very interesting holiday for one of our clients who were keen to have a superb wilderness experience followed by walking and enjoying the stunning landscapes of the Western Himalayas. After a brief stay in Delhi, they boarded a comfortable train to Kathgodam which is the nearest railhead to get to the famous Corbett National Park.


They spent a couple of nights at the main lodge and a further three nights at Raj era forest rest houses which was one of the most fascinating experiences for them.

Corbett has several zones and each one of them has something different to offer. Dhikala is good for tiger viewing where as Sarpduli offers great bird watching opportunities.

Soft linen, comfortable mattresses, essential toiletries etc are all arranged at the rest house to ensure you have a very comfortable stay. Corbett is the only tiger reserve in India which allows you the chance to stay inside the park and offers fantastic wildlife viewing opportunities. If it’s a superb wilderness experience that you are looking for then you should consider a minimum of three night stay.


From Corbett they travelled south east to arrive at Bhimtal, a short three hour drive to spend a couple of nights at an imposing colonial-style homestead nestled among cypress and deodar trees, on a peaceful wooded hillside, overlooking the Bhimtal valley and the mountain slopes beyond. Located in the midst of acres of dense oak forest, this is a peaceful haven where only the sounds of nature break the silence: the wake-up song of the resident Whistling Thrush, the sharp call of a Barking Deer in the distance; the hoot of a Spotted Owl signaling dusk.

This part of the Kumaon Lake Region, home to a large variety of flora, fauna and aquatic life, has always attracted bird-watchers, butterfly-collectors and nature lovers as well as writers in search of solitude and city-dwellers seeking to renew their spirits.

The bungalow was home to Freddy Smetacek Sr. who was a passionate Entomologist and Lepidopterist, a researcher of butterflies, which are an important indicator of changing climates and resultant environment change. Smetacek Sr. started a butterfly collection in the 1950’s, which grew to over 10,000 specimens.


His son Fredrick Smetacek Jnr known as Freddy and from whom the bungalow gets its name, cared for and added to this collection along with his siblings. This Butterfly Collection is among the largest in Asia and includes many rare specimens. Much of the collection is on display at Freddy’s Bungalow and the rest can be viewed in a Butterfly Museum close by. Bhimtal is indeed a birdwatchers paradise!

After enjoying the large and airy living room that boasts large windows and the fireplace with a Franklin stove they travelled by road to Almora a mere 2.5 hour drive where they spent the last four nights at the gorgeous Itmeenan Estate. A fairytale getaway in a peaceful rural setting in the Kumaon Himalayas this 10-acre estate includes virgin pine, oak and rhododendron trees; terraced fields laden with seasonal fruits and vegetables; and to top it all, a small private perennial natural spring. The estate offers panoramic views of the Himalayas including the majestic Nanda Devi.


The 100-year-old traditional Kumaoni style stone house on the estate has been painstakingly restored and offers 3 tastefully designed en suite bedrooms. Near to this house is a large two-story independent cottage built in traditional style. In and around the accommodations are abundant places for you to unwind and relax - the courtyard overlooking the mountains and verdant valleys, the semi open-air dining area, numerous nooks and corners perfect for reading or for fulfilling your spiritual quest.


The beautiful Kumaon region is land of rich cultural heritage, age-old temples, majestic Himalayan peaks, picture postcard terraced fields and tempting fruit orchards.

To experience this stunningly beautiful region on foot is truly inspiring and more rewarding than words can describe. Our clients walked through the unspoilt villages of Kumaon to experience them from close quarters. They walked around freely and interacted with the local communities, exchanged stories with the elderly people over a cup of ‘chai’ and also enjoyed helping villagers working in the fields.

We had customised their stay at Itmeenan to include a few interesting walks as well as time to sit back and unwind. With a big smile on their face, they arrived back at the Kathgodam railway station to board a train to Delhi.

We like to share the rejuvenating effects of remote surroundings – to provide privileged access to places far removed from the noise and clutter of the modern world, where space, peace and epic landscapes provoke the imagination and nourish the soul.

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