Travel to India frm Houston (IAH)
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Travel notes India (roughly chronological)
- upon arrival at Schipol on KLM 662, exchange boothes are open and can exchange dollar-guilder-rupee
- KLM 662 has rather tight seating, encourage people to get aisle seats
- the secure boarding lounges open 25 minutes prior to boarding
- secure host's address and distribute to everyone as it is required of the disembarkation card for India
- exchange office were open upon arrival at Mumbai, and after immigration and customs (midnight)
- Orchid hotel in Mumbai is very nice, and has its own shuttle from the airport
- India hotels charge a 20% tax on the room
- shuttle from the Orchid run every 1/2 hour to the domestic terminals (1 & 1A) and every hour for the international terminals (2, 2A, 2B)
- Jet Airways is the preferred carrier within India
- Indian Airlines flys old to very old (all printing in passenger area worn) Airbus A320s
- upon departing hotel for domestic terminals, there will be two stops--be very clear which is the correct one
- two different names can signify the same place (Trivandrum & Thiravananthapuram) so focus on flight number
- each carry-on requires a security tag, be sure to get one, one cannot board without it!
- ignore the sign about batteries
- average roadway speed when traveling by car is roughly 40kph (25mph) on a good day, 32kph (20mph) on a 'normal' day
- be sure and secure return flight confirmation well in advance, security is heightened at the regional airports, and failure to confirm could result in a loss of seat
- pad the trip from assiqnment to regional airport by at least an hour
- security is double- and triple-checked at the regional airports due 1999 highjacking, even immediately prior to ascending the stairs to the plane, may even be required to identify bags on oirport baggage carts, no sharp objects permitted in carry-ons (i.e., Swiss Army knife)
- be sure someone on the team has a watch set to local time, clocks in public places are rare or non-existant, even at airports (India is +11.5 hours to CST, +10.5 hours to CDT)
- Mumbai's international terminal 2A: enter where you find KLM listed among the airlines and go to the right, there is a restuarant to the left as you make your way to security, and immediately past the restuarant on the right is Cyberzar.com, which offers internet access (75r/20min, 105r/40min, 135r/60min) so you can use web-based email to communicate back home (restuarant & Cyberzar require rupees and exchange counters are available. If you need 1 liter bottles of water, go to the from which you entered and go to the left instead of the right, they sell 1 liter for 30 rupees (the restuarant will nail you for 70 rupees and only give you a 350ml bottle)
- restuarant in main gate area (after immigration & customs) is nicer than that in the main terminal, also a snack bar down there
- once again at Schipol, showers are available at $10USD, comes with private bathing area, towel (no wash rag), shampoo, and soap, enjoy.
- internet access is available, follow the hallway past the Hotel Mercure, past the business center towards the British Airways lounge; at the BA lounge veer right, you are now staring diagonally across "The Network Bar". Upon entering, immediately on your right are two credit card accessed internet terminals, or you may continue diagonally across the bar to a free-standing office and get internet access there at roughly $0.50/min (I don't know how much the other stand-alone machines cost for access)
- the coffee is great at Schipol
- upon arrival at Schipol on KLM 662, exchange boothes are open and can exchange dollar-guilder-rupee
- KLM 662 has rather tight seating, encourage people to get aisle seats
- the secure boarding lounges open 25 minutes prior to boarding
- secure host's address and distribute to everyone as it is required of the disembarkation card for India
- exchange office were open upon arrival at Mumbai, and after immigration and customs (midnight)
- Orchid hotel in Mumbai is very nice, and has its own shuttle from the airport
- India hotels charge a 20% tax on the room
- shuttle from the Orchid run every 1/2 hour to the domestic terminals (1 & 1A) and every hour for the international terminals (2, 2A, 2B)
- Jet Airways is the preferred carrier within India
- Indian Airlines flys old to very old (all printing in passenger area worn) Airbus A320s
- upon departing hotel for domestic terminals, there will be two stops--be very clear which is the correct one
- two different names can signify the same place (Trivandrum & Thiravananthapuram) so focus on flight number
- each carry-on requires a security tag, be sure to get one, one cannot board without it!
- ignore the sign about batteries
- average roadway speed when traveling by car is roughly 40kph (25mph) on a good day, 32kph (20mph) on a 'normal' day
- be sure and secure return flight confirmation well in advance, security is heightened at the regional airports, and failure to confirm could result in a loss of seat
- pad the trip from assiqnment to regional airport by at least an hour
- security is double- and triple-checked at the regional airports due 1999 highjacking, even immediately prior to ascending the stairs to the plane, may even be required to identify bags on oirport baggage carts, no sharp objects permitted in carry-ons (i.e., Swiss Army knife)
- be sure someone on the team has a watch set to local time, clocks in public places are rare or non-existant, even at airports (India is +11.5 hours to CST, +10.5 hours to CDT)
- Mumbai's international terminal 2A: enter where you find KLM listed among the airlines and go to the right, there is a restuarant to the left as you make your way to security, and immediately past the restuarant on the right is Cyberzar.com, which offers internet access (75r/20min, 105r/40min, 135r/60min) so you can use web-based email to communicate back home (restuarant & Cyberzar require rupees and exchange counters are available. If you need 1 liter bottles of water, go to the from which you entered and go to the left instead of the right, they sell 1 liter for 30 rupees (the restuarant will nail you for 70 rupees and only give you a 350ml bottle)
- restuarant in main gate area (after immigration & customs) is nicer than that in the main terminal, also a snack bar down there
- once again at Schipol, showers are available at $10USD, comes with private bathing area, towel (no wash rag), shampoo, and soap, enjoy.
- internet access is available, follow the hallway past the Hotel Mercure, past the business center towards the British Airways lounge; at the BA lounge veer right, you are now staring diagonally across "The Network Bar". Upon entering, immediately on your right are two credit card accessed internet terminals, or you may continue diagonally across the bar to a free-standing office and get internet access there at roughly $0.50/min (I don't know how much the other stand-alone machines cost for access)
- the coffee is great at Schipol
