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Most first-time visitors manage India comfortably once a few basics are sorted before landing. Get your e-Visa approved and file the separate e-Arrival Card within 72 hours of arrival, carry small notes alongside a card, set up an eSIM or local SIM, and drink only sealed or filtered water. On the ground, our usual advice is simple: cover shoulders and knees at religious sites, use your right hand for food and money, agree auto-rickshaw fares upfront, and don't plan the Taj Mahal for a Friday.
Founder of Discover India by Car
Ankit has spent 14 years driving and hosting first-time international travellers on the roads between Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and the rest of Rajasthan. Most of what’s below he learned in the front seat.
Everything we wish first-time visitors knew before landing: money, SIM cards, etiquette, health, and the small things that make India easier.
The questions start before we’ve left the airport car park. Can I drink the chai? Why won’t the ATM take my card? Where do I get a SIM? None of them are silly. India just runs on a set of unwritten rules that nobody hands you at immigration.
So here they are, written down. Official rules link to the government or health body that sets them. Everything else is what I’d tell you myself on the drive into the city.
Two forms, two different jobs. Filing one does not cover the other.
The e-Visa is your permission to enter India. Most nationalities can apply, though not all, and the eligible list sits on the only website you should use: indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa. Copycat sites charge extra for the same form. For the 30-day e-Tourist Visa you apply at least four days before arrival and no more than 30 days ahead. I tell guests to do it two or three weeks out, because a photo rejected the night before your flight is a miserable way to start a holiday. Your passport needs six months of validity from the day you land, and immigration will take your fingerprints and photo.
The e-Arrival Card is the newer one, and the one people miss. It replaced the paper slip that used to be handed out on the plane, ran alongside it from October 2025, and became mandatory on 1 April 2026 for every foreign national, OCI cardholders included. You fill it in on indianvisaonline.gov.in/earrival within the 72 hours before you land. It’s free and takes about five minutes.
Then the part nobody warns you about. When you submit, you get a confirmation with a QR code. Screenshot it straight away. Immigration advisers report that once you close the browser, you can’t pull it back up. Reports differ on what happens if you arrive without one, from extra checks at the immigration desk to airlines asking for it at boarding, so don’t test it.
Know which documents you need, when to complete them and the important requirements to check before arrival.
| 📄 Document | ✓ Requirement or advice? | 🕒 Timing | ℹ Strict notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| e-Visa (or regular visa) | Requirement | 30-day e-Tourist Visa: 4–30 days before arrival | Apply only at indianvisaonline.gov.in |
| e-Arrival Card | Requirement (since 1 Apr 2026) | Within 72 hours before landing | Free; screenshot the QR confirmation |
| Passport | Requirement | Check before booking | Valid 6+ months from arrival |
| Yellow fever certificate | Requirement for some | Before travel | Only if arriving from, or a national of, a yellow-fever-risk country; otherwise quarantine is possible |
| Travel insurance with medical cover | Our advice | When you book | Make sure it covers treatment and evacuation |
| Offline copies of everything | Our advice | Before the flight | Visa, arrival card, insurance, hotel bookings |
See a travel clinic four to six weeks before you fly. Some vaccines need weeks to work, and a clinic visit the Friday before departure is mostly paperwork. For India, the US CDC recommends hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccines, and typhoid vaccine even for short trips, on top of your routine shots.
Malaria is where people get mixed messages. The CDC lists malaria risk across India, Delhi and Mumbai included; the only exceptions are areas above 2,000 metres in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Sikkim. Other countries’ health services weigh the risk differently, and the season matters too. Whether you take tablets is a decision for you and your doctor, with your actual route on the table.
Whatever you decide, pack repellent. Dawn and dusk are the bite hours, and dengue cases rise in the months after the monsoon.
Nobody forgets sunscreen. These are the things guests end up buying on day two:
India runs on small notes. ATMs mostly hand out big ones.
Arrivals hall, a little after midnight. A backpacker turns away from the ATM holding a fan of crisp ₹500 notes, and the first chai stall outside can’t change a single one. Nothing has gone wrong, exactly. He just has the wrong size of money.
The rupee (₹) comes in notes of 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500. ATMs lean towards ₹500 notes because they pack more money into each cassette. The Reserve Bank of India told banks in April 2025 to stock ₹100 or ₹200 notes in at least one cassette at 90% of ATMs by March 2026, so you may get smaller notes now, but you can’t choose them and you can’t count on them.
So break big notes every chance you get: hotel reception, pharmacies, supermarkets, fuel-station shops. Keep ₹2,000–3,000 a day in tens, twenties and fifties for chai, water, snacks, tips and the man who minds your shoes at the temple.
You may also be handed a ₹2,000 note. It was withdrawn from circulation in 2023, and the RBI says it is still legal tender, but it can now only be exchanged or deposited at RBI Issue Offices and many shops refuse it. Politely ask for smaller notes instead.
Bringing money in, there’s no cap on foreign currency, but you must fill in the RBI’s Currency Declaration Form on arrival if your foreign currency notes are above USD 5,000, or your notes and travellers’ cheques together are above USD 10,000. Change money at a bank or authorised money changer and keep the receipts. Non-residents can’t take Indian rupees out of the country, so change what’s left back before you fly; the receipts make that easy.
Visa and Mastercard work at hotels, malls, larger restaurants and most tourist-area shops. Amex is hit and miss. Dhabas (roadside restaurants), street stalls and auto-rickshaws want cash or a QR code. Use ATMs attached to a bank branch, tell your bank you’re travelling, and carry two cards on different networks, because one of them will have a bad day.
At the shop of a highway fuel station outside Agra, a guest’s card is declined twice. The cashier points at the QR code by the till, which the guest can’t use. Our driver pays by UPI, the guest hands him the ₹180 in cash, and we’re back on the road in two minutes. Small, but it’s exactly why we say carry a backup.
UPI is the instant payment system behind every QR code on every fruit cart in India. The standard version needs an Indian bank account. UPI One World is the version for visitors: a prepaid wallet on the same network, which the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) opened to all inbound international travellers in 2024.
You download the issuer’s app (CheqUPI is the one NPCI named in its February 2026 announcement), verify yourself with your passport, visa and a selfie, load money from a foreign card, then scan and pay like a local. At that announcement, loads were capped at ₹25,000 at a time, twice a month, and unused balance could go back to your card. Enrolment has been easiest at Delhi airport and through some big hotels, so check the NPCI UPI One World page and the current limits before you rely on it.
Is it worth it? If you’ll spend afternoons in markets and on street food, yes. For a week on the Golden Triangle, a card and a pocket of small notes do the job.
Tipping isn’t compulsory, but it’s expected for good service, and for many of the people looking after you it’s a real part of their pay. These are the ranges I suggest to our own guests. Guidance, not law.
A practical reference for understanding suggested tipping amounts across common travel services in India.
| 👤 Role | ₹ Suggested range (₹) | ℹ Street context |
|---|---|---|
| 🚗 Private driver | 300–500 per day | Given once at the end of the trip, usually in an envelope |
| 🏛️ Licensed monument guide | 300–500 half day; 500–1,000 full day | More if they brought the place to life |
| 🍽️ Restaurant staff | 5–10% of the bill | Check the bill first; skip it if a service charge is already added |
| 🧳 Hotel porter | 50–100 | Per trip with your bags |
| 🛎️ Housekeeping | About 100 per day | Leave it at checkout |
| 👞 Temple shoe-minders, toilet attendants | 10–20 | This is what the ₹10 notes are for |
You’ll want data the minute the plane door opens: maps, ride apps, WhatsApp (which every driver, hotel and guide uses), and the one-time passwords many Indian apps send by text. The real choice is between instant data and an Indian phone number.
Compare your mobile connectivity options before travelling to India.
Good for: very short trips, or anyone who wants zero setup.
Trade-off: often the most expensive way to get data. Check your carrier’s India rate before you go.
What you need: nothing. Switch it on.
Good for: data from the moment you land, no queue, no paperwork.
Trade-off: no Indian phone number, which occasionally blocks an app sign-up or a booking that wants a local OTP.
What you need: an eSIM-capable, unlocked phone; buy and install the plan before you fly.
Good for: trips longer than a week, and anyone who needs an Indian number.
Trade-off: paperwork and waiting. Airport kiosks charge roughly ₹800–1,000 for a plan that costs about ₹300–400 in a city store, and activation can take from minutes to about a day. Travellers report that tourist SIMs can stop when the visa expires.
What you need: passport, visa, your hotel address in India, an unlocked phone, and a few minutes for the live photo. Airtel is the operator most often reported at international arrival halls, including Delhi’s.
Hotels and cafés in the cities usually have usable Wi-Fi; heritage hotels in small Rajasthan towns can be patchy. Before you leave home, download Google Maps offline for each city and the Hindi pack in Google Translate. Don’t do your banking on open public Wi-Fi.
People here are forgiving with visitors who get it wrong. Effort counts. Still, a handful of habits change how you’re received almost everywhere.
The right hand does the social work: eating, passing food, giving and taking money. The left is traditionally tied to hygiene, and using it can land badly even if nobody says a word. Feet sit at the other end of the same idea. Don’t point them at people or shrines, and don’t touch books or anything religious with them. If you bump something by accident, touch it and then your forehead or chest. That small gesture is the local apology, and people notice it.
At temples, mosques and gurdwaras, cover shoulders and knees, and expect to leave your shoes at the door. A row of sandals outside any doorway, homes included, is your cue. Marble floors are hot by early afternoon, so socks help.
Then there’s the head wobble, a soft side-to-side tilt that usually means yes, or “I hear you”. You’ll be doing it yourself by day five.
Listen for the indirect “no” as well. People often avoid a flat refusal, so “maybe”, “let’s see” or “possible, sir” can mean no. Push gently, and you’ll usually get a straight answer. And “five minutes” is a feeling, not a measurement.
Indian food is half the reason to come. You don’t need to fear it. You need one rule and a bit of patience in the first three days.
6:30 in the morning, a dhaba just off the Delhi–Jaipur highway. Truck drivers on the charpais, chai in small glasses, aloo parathas going from tawa to plate in front of you. Every table is full and nothing sits around long enough to go stale. That's the kind of place we stop at.
That’s the golden rule for street food too: eat where it’s busy, and eat what’s cooked hot in front of you. A crowded stall turns its food over fast. Pre-cut fruit, raw salads and chutneys that have been sitting out are where trouble usually starts.
Tap water is not safe to drink. Buy sealed bottled water and check the cap clicks when you open it, or drink filtered water at good hotels and restaurants. Ice in proper restaurants is generally made from filtered water; ice on a street cart isn’t worth the gamble. For the first few days, brush your teeth with bottled water too.
If your stomach rebels anyway, drink plenty and buy ORS (oral rehydration salts) from any chemist; ask for Electral, the brand every pharmacy stocks. See a doctor if it lasts more than a couple of days, comes with a high fever, or you can’t keep fluids down. The big cities have good private hospitals.
Heat is the other quiet risk. April to June in North India often goes past 40°C. Drink before you’re thirsty, wear a hat, and see monuments early, while the stone is still cool. From roughly November to January, Delhi’s air quality can be poor; check the AQI on your phone and carry N95 masks if your lungs are sensitive.
One rule I’m strict about: don’t pet street dogs and don’t feed monkeys. If an animal bites or scratches you, wash the wound with soap and running water for about 15 minutes, as WHO guidance advises, then go straight to a hospital for post-exposure rabies treatment. Don’t wait to see if symptoms appear. By then it’s too late.
Most problems first-time visitors have in India are hassle, not danger. Recognise the hassle and most of it falls away.
The oldest trick is still the best one: “Sir, the monument is closed today. Holiday. But I know a better place.” Sometimes it’s your hotel that has supposedly shut, sometimes an unofficial “guide” at the gate, sometimes a very friendly man in Jaipur with a gem-export opportunity. You don’t need to argue with any of them. Say no thank you, keep walking, and check with your hotel, your driver or the official website. The Taj Mahal, for instance, is closed on Fridays and otherwise open from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes before sunset, so a “closed today” on a Tuesday tells you everything.
Leaving the airport, use the official prepaid taxi counter, a ride app (Uber and Ola run in the big cities) or your booked pickup, and walk past anyone offering a ride inside the arrivals hall. For auto-rickshaws, agree the fare before you sit down, or book one through an app so there’s nothing to argue about at the other end.
Crossing the road looks impossible the first time. It isn’t. Cross with local people, walk at a steady pace, and don’t stop or run suddenly; drivers are reading your speed. The horn means “I’m here”, not “get out of my way”.
We don’t drive long highway stretches after dark, and I’d give the same advice to anyone. Unlit tractors and trucks, cattle on the road, oncoming high beams and tired drivers all stack up at night. We plan intercity drives, Delhi to Agra or Agra to Jaipur, to finish by evening.
Women travelling alone or together get less unwanted attention dressed modestly and seated near families or other women on public transport. Share your live location with someone, and be loud and firm if anyone bothers you. People around you will usually step in.
For any emergency, dial 112, India’s national emergency number. It reaches the police everywhere, and states are folding fire and ambulance into the same number at different speeds. The Ministry of Tourism’s 24×7 tourist helpline is 1800-11-1363, or just 1363; it’s toll-free and answers in English, Hindi and ten other languages.
English will get you through hotels, restaurants and every major sight. Eight words of Hindi get you smiles, and sometimes a better price. Pronunciation is rough but good enough.
Namaste (nuh-MUS-tay): hello and goodbye. Palms together, slight nod. It works with everyone from the hotel manager to the chai seller.
Kitna hai? (KIT-naa hai): “How much is it?” Ask before you take anything. Paani (PAA-nee): water; add “bottle” and point. Shukriya (shook-REE-yaa): thank you. It sounds warmer than the formal dhanyavaad, and stallholders love it.
Bhaiya (BHAI-yaa): “brother”, the polite way to address any male driver or seller. Use didi (DEE-dee) for a woman. Theek hai (teek hai): “okay”. Say it only once the fare is agreed; it seals the deal.
Nahi chahiye (nuh-HEE CHAA-hee-yay): “I don’t want it.” Calm, friendly, repeated as needed. Bas (bus): “enough” or “stop”. Useful when a seller keeps adding things to your bag, and when someone keeps refilling your plate.
One more thing about language: Indian English has its own words. “Prepone” is the opposite of postpone, “out of station” means away from town, and “do the needful” means please sort it out. Expect your driver and hotel to message you on WhatsApp, not email.
☐ e-Visa approved, applied at indianvisaonline.gov.in only
☐ e-Arrival Card submitted within 72 hours of landing; QR confirmation screenshotted
☐ Passport valid for 6+ months from arrival
☐ Travel clinic visit done 4–6 weeks before; malaria decision made with your doctor
☐ Travel insurance with medical cover
☐ Bank told about your trip; two cards on different networks
☐ eSIM installed, or a plan for an Airtel SIM on arrival
☐ Offline Google Maps and the Hindi Translate pack downloaded
☐ Plug adapter (Type C/D/M), shawl and slip-on shoes packed
☐ ORS sachets, wet wipes, sanitiser and prescription medicines packed
☐ Airport pickup arranged
☐ Emergency numbers saved: 112 and 1800-11-1363
Not everyone needs one. I’d rather tell you that than sell you a car you don’t need.
You probably don’t need a driver if you’re staying in one or two cities, happy with the metro, ride apps and trains, travelling solo on a tight budget, or in India for weeks with time to absorb the odd wasted afternoon. Plenty of people travel this country independently and love it.
A driver earns his keep on multi-city road trips like Delhi–Agra–Jaipur, for families with young children or older parents, and on short trips where losing half a day to a missed train or a fare argument actually hurts. He handles traffic, tolls, parking and route planning, times the drives around monument closures and daylight, waits while you explore, and finds the pharmacy, the ATM or a clean dhaba when you need one.
What a driver isn’t: a licensed monument guide, a doctor, or an immigration office. For those, use the real thing.
If a driver does suit your trip, that’s what we do at Discover India By Car: licensed drivers, fixed and transparent pricing with no surprise add-ons, and 100% private tours, never shared. Have a look at our private car tour packages, see how a Golden Triangle tour by private car runs day by day, check our car and driver options in Delhi, or weigh up private car versus group tours.
Get a free quote on WhatsApp: +91-9818434712. Send your dates and what you’d like to see, and we’ll suggest a route. No obligation.
No, they are two separate requirements. The e-Visa is your permission to enter India and must be approved before you fly. The e-Arrival Card is a free online declaration that every foreign national, including OCI cardholders, submits within the 72 hours before landing.
Yes, you still need cash every day. Cards work at hotels, malls and larger restaurants, but street food, auto-rickshaws, small shops, temple shoe-minders and tips run on cash or UPI. Carry ₹2,000–3,000 in small notes and break ₹500 notes whenever you can.
Yes, through UPI One World, a prepaid wallet for international visitors. You verify with your passport and visa, load it from a foreign card and pay by scanning QR codes. Enrolment points and load limits change, so confirm both before relying on it.
Use an international eSIM if you want data the moment you land with no paperwork. Buy a local Airtel SIM if you need an Indian number for apps, bookings and one-time passwords. Airport kiosks cost more than city shops, and activation can take up to a day.
No, tap water is not safe for visitors to drink. Use sealed bottled water with an unbroken cap, or filtered water at good hotels and restaurants. Skip ice from street carts, and brush your teeth with bottled water for the first few days.
Wash the wound immediately with soap and running water for about 15 minutes, as WHO guidance advises. Then go straight to a hospital for post-exposure rabies treatment. Do not wait for symptoms, because rabies is fatal once symptoms appear.
No, the Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays for general viewing. On every other day it opens 30 minutes before sunrise and closes 30 minutes before sunset, so plan your Agra visit for any day from Saturday to Thursday.
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