View the route
Date of the journey:- November 2019
Distance travelled:- 1010 miles
It was always our intention to travel into India overland via China. However, with the weather getting colder in Almaty Kazakhstan, together with the issue of having to go deep into China. Mainly to avoid going through Tibet which would have required an additional Tibet travel permit. We decided to fly to New Delhi from Almaty.
Not already being in possession of visas for India. We had to hastily complete and submit our online visa applications with Indianvisaonline. These required approvals before we would commit to purchasing the flight tickets. Approval was granted within 48 hours. The application cost 20 USD per person plus a 1 USD transaction fee. This was for a one year e-Tourist multi-entry Visa. An Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) was sent to our email. Print out the ETA and present it at the Indian Immigration CheckPoint on arrival. The E-visa will be stamped in your passport.
Flights were booked online through Travelgenio with Air Astana. A Kazakhstan airline at a cost of 205.38 GBP per person.
We had researched taking the bus to the airport. From the Zharokov St bus stop close to our Airbnb accommodation Modern apartment in the heart of Almaty, we were to get the number 3 bus to Almaty International airport. After waiting 40 mins for the bus, which didn’t arrive. A very kind local man got us an Uber, 1800 Som for the 30-minute journey.
The flight was leaving Almaty at 2210 hrs, arriving in New Delhi at 0130 hrs.
Almaty International airport is small compared to most international airports. Check-in was simple, quick and easy. As were security checks. The departure lounge had cafes which were expensive. Loading of the plane was on time and the Air Astana flight was superb. We were fed, had proper cutlery for the meal and there were no half measures with the complimentary drinks.
In-flight entertainment consisted of current, new release films, available in English.
Arrival at New Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport was as scheduled. The Immigration process took an hour and a half to complete, with there being very long queues.
Our accommodation in New Delhi was at the Hotel Mahajan International. Booked through Booking.com. We had taken up their offer of an airport transfer to the hotel.
Leaving the airport gave Guy his first experience of the chaos of India and the terrible air pollution of the city. As Tania had already travelled around India back in 1985 she knew what to expect. The moon appeared orange and there was a shroud of haze everywhere.
The taxi transfer to the hotel took about 10 mins, we finally got into our room at 0330 hrs.