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The goal of the following information is to help you stay safe and healthy during your stay as a tourist in India.  Nothing can ruin your trip quicker than a debilitating sickness or the loss of personal belongings.

What to drink:

• Mineral Water (bottled water):  This is the safest water to drink.  Bottled water will be available at any restaurant or road-side stand.  The cost is usually between 10 and 20 rupees (25-50 cents) for a one litter bottle)
• Filtered (Regular) Water:  In a nice restaurant or home it is most likely safe to drink the water that is offered to you.  This water has usually been processed through an ultra-violet filter.
• Bottled beverages:  Any beverage served to you in a sealed bottle should be safe to drink.  Do take care to note that the bottle (water or other) is sealed.  Refilling of water bottles is not unheard of.

 

What to avoid drinking:

• Tap Water – water from the tap can be very dangerous in India.
• Fresh squeezed fruit juices:  Unless you purchase this from a very reputable establishment there is a chance that it could have some suspicious water mixed in.

 

      Note:  When visiting shops or homes you will most likely be offered water – most people drink filtered or bottled water.  So the water you get offered at someone’s home or shop should be safe.  If in doubt, ask if the water has been filtered.  Also, your tour driver can be a help to you in this area.

 

 

What to eat:

• The restaurants that your driver recommends would be safest.  However, we can make no guarantees... Sorry :-)
• Prepackaged food and snacks are safe.

 

What not to eat:

• Stay away from road side restaurants.   While the food is cheap it is not worth the risk of sickness.   It is safe to drink a cup of chai (tea) and enjoy the atmosphere but we strongly recommend not eating your meals at these locations.
• Carefully inspect your meat to make sure it has been thoroughly cooked.  We have seen far to many tourists knocked out due to lazy food preparation.

 

 

Hospitals and Pharmacies:

Hopefully you won’t need a hospital, but if you do, make sure to visit a private hospital.  Government hospitals provide extremely cheap healthcare but the condition of these hospitals can be below par (to say the least.)  Again, talk to your driver.  He will get you to the best available hospital.  Also, Indian pharmacies are called chemists.  The chemist will most likely have any medication you might require.  However, you will need to know the medical name, as opposed to the brand name, in order to communicate what you need.  (ex: paracetamol, instead of Tylenol)

 

 

Night Hours

We do not consider India to be a dangerous place.  However, anywhere in the world it is wise to be careful during the night time hours.  Here are some suggestions.

• In the late night hours (after 10pm), it’s advised that ladies are accompanied by a man.
• We suggest anyone avoid going out alone after 10pm.  It is easy to get lost and possibly to get taken advantage of.
• Avoid isolated locations and dark alleys. (I bet you knew that without us telling you though!)

 

 

Pocket-Pickers and Gropers

• Don’t think that just because that beggar girl is cute that she won’t pick your pocket.  We recommend keeping your money and valuables in a buttoned pocket or a zipped shoulder bag.  Carry your bag with the strap across your chest, as opposed to over the shoulder, so purse snatchers don’t have a chance.
• Also, ladies should be cautious against getting groped in crowded public places.  As much as we hate to admit it, it is not  uncommon for men to grab a woman’s rear end (or worse).  If you are travelling with a man it is wise to have him walk behind the women in the group to minimize the chances of this occurrence.  If you do get groped don’t be afraid to slap and call attention to the perpetrator.

 

 

Crossing the Road

     Crossing the road can be a challenge.  Wait for the traffic to die down a little, stick your hand out as a motion to traffic to slow down, and be careful!  It’s a little like playing FROGGER.  The key is confidence and forward movement.  Getting intimidated and backing up can get you hit.

 

 

Beggars:

It is ok to give to beggars if you want to.  However we caution you against giving to one beggar when there are many around.  It will undoubtedly result in you getting mobbed by all the other beggars.  This can be dangerous.  In tourist locations beggars work hard to appear more destitute than they really are in order to more effectively beg from foreigners.  You might take this into consideration to avoid getting deceived.

• The Eunuch Beggars:  One group to be particularly careful about are the eunuch beggars. These transvestite beggars, can be a little forceful.  They usually get as violent as you get.  So play it cool, unless there’s a rare case where you need to defend yourself.  They expect you to give them a decent sum of money.  The locals believe the have the power to curse those who don’t give.  We recommend ignoring them and moving past them quickly.

Staying Safe...