About this trip.
A food trip that happens to cross India
Fifteen days from Delhi to Goa, routed through Agra, Jaipur, Udaipur, rural Rajasthan and Mumbai. The framing here is food rather than monuments, though you still get the Taj Mahal, the Amber Fort and Jaipur's Palace of the Wind — they just aren't the whole point. The point is the hole-in-the-wall kulfi falooda place your local leader takes you to after the welcome dinner, the thali that opens the trip, and two weeks of following that same thread through several regional cuisines.
Group size is capped at twelve, minimum age fifteen. The style is Intrepid's Original tier — tourist-class hotels, a mix of included meals and free time, local transport throughout.
Eating through Delhi, Rajasthan and Mumbai
Day two is a fair indication of how the trip works. Breakfast is street food in Old Delhi — bedmi, potato curry, jalebi, paratha, chai from the local wallah — followed by the metro to Jama Masjid and a rickshaw into Chandni Chowk. You spend time in the back alleys of Khari Baoli, where the spice warehouses are, meeting a seller who talks you through the mixes he sends out to market. Lunch is vegetarian, served at a Sikh temple. Dinner, optional, is home-cooked with a Delhi family.
From there the route heads to Agra for the Taj Mahal, Jaipur for the Amber Fort and the Palace of the Wind, and on to Udaipur. A 17th-century fort in rural Rajasthan breaks up the itinerary with a couple of nights somewhere genuinely quiet. Mumbai brings its own street food scene — a different register from Delhi's, coastal and industrial rather than Mughal. Goa at the end is the decompression: beaches, Portuguese-influenced cooking, a slower pace after a fortnight of constant movement.
The cooking side
There's a chance to cook a meal yourself rather than only eating your way through other people's kitchens, which is the difference between this and a standard sightseeing trip with meals attached. Markets feature heavily — the spice trade in Delhi, Rajasthani produce inland, Goan markets at the coast. If you want to come home and actually replicate some of the dishes, that's the part of the trip that matters most.
The cuisine is predominantly North Indian and Punjabi through the first week, shifting to Rajasthani, then Maharashtrian in Mumbai and Goan at the finish. A lot of the meals are vegetarian, which reflects the regions rather than a dietary choice — thali, paratha, paneer, Sikh temple cooking are part of everyday food culture here.
Booking and practicalities
Starts in Delhi, ends in Goa. Fifteen days, priced from £1,740. You'll need to fly into Delhi and out of Goa. The welcome meeting is at 6pm on day one and is compulsory — insurance and next-of-kin details are collected there, so late arrivals need to let the hotel know.
The pace is brisk rather than exhausting: a lot of walking through markets and old cities, nothing strenuous. Suited to travellers who want India through its food and markets rather than a monuments-first tour, and who are happy eating street food, temple meals and home-cooked dinners alongside the hotel breakfasts.
The shape of the trip.
What's typically in the price, what isn't.
A general guide for food holidays of this kind. Check the operator's booking page for the final inclusions on this specific trip.
Typically included
- ✓Hotel or guesthouse accommodation — double or twin rooms, often locally-owned
- ✓A local leader or tour manager throughout
- ✓Most cooking classes, market visits and producer tours on the itinerary
- ✓Some meals — typically breakfasts, a few shared lunches and the cooking-class dinners
- ✓In-country transport between towns on the route (train, minibus, driver)
Typically not included
- ×Flights to and from the start city
- ×Travel insurance (strongly recommended)
- ×Most evening meals and lunches — eat where the group or your nose leads
- ×Drinks beyond what's included with set meals — wine flights and cocktails are extra
- ×Single-room supplements on shared-room departures (often £200-500 per trip)
- ×Tips for the tour leader and host families (customary but discretionary)
Everything you might be wondering.
Q1How much cooking is there?
Varies widely. A 'real food adventure' is typically 1-2 cooking classes plus market visits, food tastings and restaurant meals on an otherwise normal small-group trip. A cooking-school week is 4-5 hands-on sessions — that's most of the holiday. Check the day-by-day.
Q2Can I get vegetarian / vegan / gluten-free?
Yes. Cooking-focused holidays handle dietary requirements well — the organiser speaks to local hosts and cooks ahead of time. Flag requirements at booking, not on arrival. Some remote itineraries (street food in Marrakech, markets in Vietnam) are harder for strict veganism — ask before paying.
Q3Is the food high-end or everyday?
Most trips we list focus on everyday local cooking — market produce, home kitchens, family-run tavernas. Michelin-tier dining holidays exist but are niche. The ones worth travelling for are the home-cook-led ones.
Q4Will I gain weight?
Probably yes — but the good ones build walking into the day so it evens out. Tours that include long walks between meals (Tuscany, Puglia) keep you honest. Pure cooking-school weeks are where the damage happens.
Q5Can I travel solo?
Cooking classes suit solo travellers well — you're in a group for the cooking, then free between sessions. Single-room supplements apply; some operators offer shared-room matching. Escorted food tours (Intrepid, Flavours) are set up for solos.
Q6Do I need to speak the language?
No. English-speaking hosts are the norm on organised trips, and a local co-translator is common. Learn a few words for ingredients — it makes the hosts smile.
Q7Is it family-friendly?
Some trips explicitly welcome families (teen+ usually); others are adult-focused. Kids love market visits and pasta-making; they hate three-hour wine tastings. Read the age policy before booking.
Q8What about cancellation?
Typically 20-25% deposit at booking, balance 8-10 weeks before departure. Check the operator's own terms — food tours sometimes have tighter windows because small-group trips have low break-even thresholds. Travel insurance strongly recommended.
Three food holidays, side-by-side.
Other food holidays on Mooch in the same spirit. All prices per person, from the operator.
