India Travel Guide

India is the largest country in the Indian Subcontinent in the south of Asia. Though it's the seventh largest country in the world by area, it's second only to China in population. India prides itself on being the largest democracy on earth (by population). It's also an extremely diverse country, with vast differences in geography, climate, culture, language and ethnicity across its expanse.

India is administratively divided into 28 states and 7 union territories. The states are broadly demarcated on linguistic lines. They vary in size; the larger ones are bigger and more diverse than some countries of Europe. The union territories are smaller than the states - sometimes they are just one city - and they have much less autonomy.

These states and union territories are grouped by convention into the following regions.

Himalayan North - Mountainous and beautiful, a tourist destination for the adventurous and the spiritual. This region contains some of India's most visited hill-stations and religious places. Also includes the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir

The Plains - India's Hindi-speaking heartland. The country's capital New Delhi is here. The rivers Ganga and Yamuna flow through this plain. Many of the events that shaped India's history took place here.

The West - deserts and beautiful cities like Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Bikaner, Goa, vibrant and biggest Indian city Bombay (now known as Mumbai), wonderful beaches and Bollywood (Indian film industry in Bombay)

The South - colorful Hindu temples, tropical forests, Backwaters of Kerala, beaches and ghats of Karnataka and islands off the mainland.

The East - India's mostly rural region, its largest city Calcutta (now known as Kolkata), the temple cities of Puri of Lord Jagannath fame and Bhubaneswar, both in Orissa.

The North-East - remote and sensitive, the country's tribal corner, with beautiful landscapes and famous for Tea Gardens.