January, February, March, October, November & December
This tour is designed for those interested in textiles, tribes and photography. We travel in West Indian beginning in Ahmedabad, travelling west to Dwarka and then onwards to Bhuj, exploring the rich textiles traditions of the Kutch and Gujarat regions. The participants will have ample opportunity to study and discuss a broad range of contemporary and historic textiles including silk and cotton saris, mirror embroidery, ikat, tie-dye, wood block printing, and vegetable dyeing. Meet directly with artisans in their workshops. The itinerary is designed for modest travel, a mix of heritage hotels and lodges in order to make the trip cost low and to travel in a way that reflects the lifestyles of local people.
EXPERIENCES AVAILABLE:
Walking tours
Early morning walking tour of the old town in Ahmedabad
Dwarka Residency is a budget property, located in proximity to the Dwarakadheesh Temple and Dwarka Beach. For accommodation, the hotel offers well-furnished rooms appointed with basic amenities like television and telephone. Facilities like travel desk and restaurant are also available at the hotel.
Hotel DetailsLocated in the heart of Ahmedabad, The House of MG is a 20th century family mansion that is renowned for its traditional hospitality. The House of MG has been tastefully restored, with all its furniture and fixtures designed and sourced from local artisans. The House of MG has 38 beautifully appointed rooms offering all modern amenities in a grand but homely ambience. The decor is heavy on wood, stained glass and old-style furniture. The modern touch is evident in the Wi-Fi connectivity, flat-screen TVs with DVD players, and work tables with iPod docks. There's no room service, so guests have to head to one of the two restaurants for a bite. Agashiye, the terrace eatery, offers a Gujarati thali and is the go-to place for dinner. Within the house of MG is an indoor swimming pool, a gym and a textile gallery showcasing spectacular antique textiles from the family collection.
Hotel DetailsThe Orchard Palace is maintained by the family of royal family of Gondal, descendants of the Jadeja family who ruled the state. It was erected by one of the last official Maharajas of Gondal State. The hotel offers seven large rooms featuring antique furniture and a sense of an era gone by. Ask to see the room of miniatures with its collection of paintings, bras and antique furniture. The grounds are large with fruit orchards, gardens and lawns. Gondal is an hour from Rajkot by road and known for its handicraft and textile industry. The staff can organize tours of the town including the splendid Naulakha Palace, a 17th century Naulakha palace.
Hotel DetailsRann Riders is an ethnically designed eco-resort, set among wetlands and agricultural fields. The resort has imaginatively designed cottages that blend with the rural countryside in which it is situated. Rann Riders is an eco-friendly boutique resort with 32 cottages offering cultural and wildlife experiences in the Little Rann of Kutch and surrounding rural areas. Accommodations are in cottages, resembling the kooba houses of the Bajania community of Dasada and the bhunga houses of the Rabaris of Kutch, decorated with mirrors, mud-plaster work and embroideries. Each of the cottages has an a/c twin-bedroom, with a comfortable cane bed, a dry dressing area and a tiled bathroom with western-style toilet fittings and hot-and-cold showers. Rann Riders offers Continental and Indian cuisine that can be served on the buffet table, preplated or camp-style around a fire. For vegetarians, the Flamingo Restaurant has an extensive Indian, Chinese and Continental ala carte menu. The resort offers jeep, horse and camel safaris in the Little Rann of Kutch, habitat of Asiatic Wild Ass and a birdwatching paradise. The resort has its own fleet of brand new open vehicles (Jeeps) for safaris, indigenous breeds of horses including prize winning Kathiawadi and Marwari mares, and guides/naturalist for bird watching, photo safaris and village tours. Rann Riders also offers village tours and bird-watching safaris.
Hotel DetailsThe Shaam-e-Sarhad resort, owned and managed by local Hodka people is located about 70 kms from Bhuj. Accommodation comfortable, simple and clean. Thera are total 12 rooms which are set up in local style and decorated with crafts of the area. There are different types of accommodation at the resort: Eco-friendly Tents, Family cottages, Suite Bhungas and Standard Bhunga. All of them have attached bathrooms with a western-style toilet and shower with running water. The resort has a remote location - just short of the Indo-Pak border in the Kutch district of Gujarat—and on the edge of one of the most fascinating landforms in the country, the Great Bairn of Kutch. The resort can organize visits to the nearby India Bridge (the last civilian point on the border, with salt deposits that make the river bed look like a snow field), and visits to traditional water catchments' structures. Visits to nearby villages reveal a thriving tradition of handicraft, especially in mirror embroidery, leatherwork and woodcraft.
Hotel DetailsThe Bhuj House is a traditional Parsi courtyard house in the historic town of Bhuj. Built in the late 1800's, it has stood through seven generations of the Bhujwala family. The family have lovingly restored the house, opening it as a delightful four-room heritage homestay. The Bhuj House is located on a busy side-street, complete with wandering cattle, food-carts, beeping rickshaws and the evocative call-to-prayer. Step away from the hustle-and-bustle and into another world. Guests can immerse themselves in the history of the house or soak in the tranquility of the inner, leafy courtyard. The Bhuj House has four individual guest rooms set with restored furniture and beautiful Kutchi fabrics. Each has an en-suite bathroom, A-C and Wi-Fi access and open on to the inner courtyard.
Hotel DetailsBuilt in the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture with domes and columns, the Utelia Palace has and arched gateway that leads to a hall decorated with age old chandeliers. Utelia Palace towers over its tiny village; a jewel in the dust. Set in a place “as flat as a forehead†a local expression to describe the arid land as far as the eye can see from its rooftop rooms. 14 beautifully furnished rooms come with exquisite antique beds and doors, old portraits and modern amenities. The ground floor rooms look out onto a lovely courtyard filled with green plants and a space for performances and celebrations. The top floor rooms have panoramic views of the huge 360 degree vastness, with gorgeous sunrises and sunsets. The food is very fresh and tasty and boasts of having the most expensive and sought-after wheat grown in the country. Great tour options include the neighboring villages by bullock carts, horses and jeeps, the Velavadar National Park and Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary. What singles out this eco-conscious destination is responsible water management that sustains a thirsty village.
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