COVERSTORY
#341
#342
Booking Railway Tickets in India
In the Lap of Himalayas
“If you’re travelling to India,
I’d recommend you to visit
the International Tourist
Bureau to book your train
tickets. Navigating the
process online is just nearly
impossible. I spent so many
hours looking for tickets,
trying to get on the waitlist but was unable to buy
them. Then I finally walked
into a Tourist Bureau
and it took me maybe
five minutes to book the
ticket.”
The Foreign Tourist
If you are coming to Delhi
and not heading up to the
mountains, you are wasting
your time. My favorite
place in whole of India
is Palampur in Himachal
Pradesh, is a bustling little
market town surrounded
by tea plantations and
rice fields about 35 km
southeast of Dharamsala.
Nestled amidst lush
green pine forest, Palampur
is one of the most scenic
hill station in India. Situated
at an altitude 4,829 feet
above sea level, it is a
paradise for people who
like adventure sports.
From Cody Mullikin, Student, USA
Quota (commonly referred
to as FTQ) allows visitors to
India who hold tourist visas
to book seats/berths on
certain trains from a special
quota that is not available to
Indian Residents. FTQ is also
available to Indian Passport
holders who can prove NRI
status. FTQ tickets are often
available when the General
Quota for a train is fully
booked. The International
Tourist Bureaus are located
at various important cities all
over India.
From Masterchef Bill Marchetti of Spaghetti Kitchen
Whether it is rafting, paragliding, mountain trekking
or ski diving, Palampur is
the perfect place to get
that adrenaline rush. You
can take a free 20-minute
tour to observe the teamaking process at the
Palampur Tea Cooperative
Factory, 1.5 km south of
the bus station on the
Kangra road.
Palampur is surrounded
by lush green forests and
pastures. You’ll find a lot
of orange groves growing
against the backdrop of
snow-capped mountains.
What more do you want?
November-December 2015 Travel Secrets 53