Day 1 Arrive Mumbai Arrive  Mumbai International Airport.  You will be met upon your arrival and transferred to your hotel. 

Day 2 Mumbai Morning is free to rest and relax. Afternoon, you visit the highlights of Mumbai including the Gateway of India, the Prince of Wales Museum and walk through the Fort area. Tonight, at a welcome reception, your tour briefing will be followed by a Konkani dinner. Konkan food hails from the coastal regions of Maharashtra, Mangalore and Goa…essentially specializing in seafood! It uses kokum (Guttiferae) and raw mango as souring agents along with tamarind and lime. Many dishes use coarsely ground spices that give the food a different feeling.

Day 3 Mumbai to Cochin Today you will take the flight to Cochin…the backwater port known for its spices, which are exported all over the world. The high ranges of the state boast of vast plantations of cardamom, pepper, nutmeg, tea and coffee while in its lower elevations there are clove, ginger and turmeric. During your sightseeing tour, you will visit the Portuguese church of St. Francis; the Jewish Synagogue of 1568, walk through the Jew town where you will visit the spice market. Later visit Mattancherry Palace. This afternoon there will be an introductory talk on Kerala cuisine and a demo on authentic dishes from Kerala. Kerala has a distinctive cuisine, featuring unpolished rice as a staple, and a variety of vegetable, meat, poultry and seafood preparations that use the locally grown coconuts lavishly. Kerala cuisine can be very hot and spicy. Evening watch a Kathakali dance performance. Dinner at a seafood specialty restaurant.

Day 4 In Cochin Morning backwater boat-cruise on the Kettuvallam (the houseboats of Kerala). Observe the preparation of your lunch by one of the boatmen who also doubles up as an expert chef on board the ‘Kettuvallam’.  Evening lecture cum demo on Ayurveda at the hotel followed by a demo on the preparation of dishes made in accordance with the Ayurvedic principles. Ayurveda describes six major tastes by which all foods can be categorized. To maintain perfect balance and be completely nourished, we should ideally have all six tastes at every meal…sweet, sour, salty, pungent, astringent, and bitter.

Day 5 Cochin to Bangalore Morning you will fly to Bangalore. Sightseeing of Bangalore visiting the Vidhan Soudha, Lalbagh and Tipu Sultan's Palace.  Afternoon talk cum demo of the Coorgi cooking style of the state of Karnataka. The Kodavas or Coorgis, who are culturally quite different from the rest of the state, have an equally distinct cuisine. Most of the Coorgi curries noted for their flavor and taste are coconut based, lightly spiced and moderately sour.  Evening visit a local restaurant 'Jolly Nawabs' serving Anglo Nawabi cuisine that developed during the time of the British rule in India.

Day 6 Bangalore to Hyderabad Morning visit Nrityagram - a dance academy followed by simple lunch at Kuteeram Resort. Evening you will fly to Hyderabad. What was once a wealthy Muslim court in the heart of Hindu South India, developed a rich and royal cuisine combining the best of Muslim foods and South Indian flavorings, creating a style patronized by the Royal Nizams of Hyderabad. The Shahi Nizam cuisine is very popular for its rich and aromatic taste. "The food is a dream of deliciousness", said the Persian Ambassador who came to the Qutub Shahi Kingdom in 1603. The most famous Hyderabadi delicacy is undoubtedly the biryani…subtle, fragrant and unforgettable!

Day 7 In Hyderabad Today you visit the spice and vegetable market at Char Minar followed by a Hyderabadi meal at a local restaurant. Afternoon visit the Golconda Fort, one of greatest fortresses in medieval India and the Salar Jung Museum, which houses the largest one-man collection of object d'art. Evening talk cum demo of the skillful art of slow cooking, Nawabi cuisine. The art of 'Dum' or slow cooking (the process by which an item gets cooked in its own juices) is reputed to have originated from the 'Nawabs of Awadh', the rulers of the Northern Provinces of India during the 18th century.

Day 8 Hyderabad to Delhi Today you will fly to Delhi. Visit Qutab Minar built to establish the might of Islam and onset of Muslim rule in India and the tomb of Emperor Humayun's. Lunch at Karims a local restaurant having chefs whose forefathers have served in the kitchens of the Moghul rulers. Evening talk cum demo on Kashmiri cuisine - laden with nuts, dried fruits and saffron, Kashmiri food is a gourmet's joy. The ultimate formal banquet in Kashmir is the royal Wazwan. Of its thirty-six courses, between fifteen and thirty can be preparations of meat, cooked overnight by the master chef, Vasta Waza, and his retinue of wazas. Guests are seated in groups of four and share the meal out of a large metal plate called the trami.

Day 9 In Delhi Morning visit the Old City of 'Shahjahanabad'. Walk through the narrow famous street selling a special kind of flat unleavened bread. Lunch at a specialty restaurant serving one of the types of Mughlai food cooked in steam on low fire. Drive past the grand buildings of the British period - India Gate, the Parliament building and the Rastrapathi Bhawan, the President's residence. Evening farewell dinner at 'Bukhara' restaurant serving mouth-watering North-West Frontier Cuisine… featuring some of the best kababs and tandoori meats in India.

Day 10 Depart Delhi Transfer early this morning to the International Airport for your homeward bound flight.

Rates Available on request