Shaheed Minar Tickets and Tours

Kolkata tour in private car with guide & lunch for immersive cultural experience

Great tour of Kolkata and Bengal

This visit was part of our third private tour with 5 Senses (first tour, So. India for a month; second No. India for 5.5 weeks; third East and South India, one month). You might have guessed that we are very happy with the company. All three tours were fantastic, this one no exception. Kolkata is a vibrant city and worth a visit. In addition to the normal tourist sites, local guide Dev also helped us find ayurvedic massage studios. Like all major Indian cities, air pollution is a real problem--consider wearing a good mask when outdoors. Bishnupur is an interesting site with terra cotta temples, and is often paired with a visit to Kolkata. It took 3.5 hours to drive there, but 5.5 hours to return because we got back to the outskirts of Kolkata after 19:30, when they let the trucks in and traffic becomes miserable Try to get home before that happens. The Sundarbans--the largest mangrove forest in the world--are a couple of hours outside the city. We spent two nights there. It was a nice break from the urban environment. There is wildlife, but don't count on seeing tigers. The primary strength of 5 Senses is its people. The owner, Mr. Narayanan, is a great travel planning partner (he’ll work with you to craft exactly the trip you want) and he is super-responsive during trips if any problems arise. I am confident that Narayanan will fix it if it needs fixing—he has helped us several times in that way, and he has done it quickly. The state-based “cultural ambassadors” he has recruited (the guides who accompany you for days, across multiple sites) are excellent and soon become friends. For this month-long tour, I’d particularly like to call out Kannan (Tamil Nadu) and Mohan, and Chandra Shekar (Karnataka). If you are touring other parts of the country, we highly recommend Balwinder (Punjab and Rajasthan) and Vivek and Ram Sewak (Varanasi, Khajuraho and environs). It is basically a fool’s errand to try to price shop local tour operators—there are too many variables, including the type of accommodation, the quality of guides and the quality of transport (both of which can’t be assessed ahead of time). That said, over the course of the three tours, we feel that 5 Senses has been very good value for money. And I can say for certain that you would pay three times as much for the same Smithsonian or Nat Geo or other corporate tour, plus you’d be on a bus with many other folks and stuck with the group schedule. With 5 Senses you’re in your own car deciding where and when you want to go, where you want to eat, and when you want to take it easy. My advice to friends looking for a private tour in India is “don’t bother contacting other companies, just talk to 5 Senses. You won’t regret it.”

Kolkata Colonial Walk (2 Hours Guided Walking Tour)

A fun, informative and interesting tour

Our guide Aishi was very friendly and knowledgeable and showed us some wonderful areas including a stop for chai at a local cafe

Discover Kolkata in 2 Days: Private Customised Sightseeing Tour

Kolcata Trips -- the highlight of our trip to India!

Tithankar Mukherhjee and Kolkata trips were the best guides imaginable for an incredible city. After visiting the golden triangle my friend and I decided to visit Kolcata and it was the highlight of an already amazing trip. Tithankar thought of everything and showed us so much more than the city highlights. To help us dive deeper into the city we were joined by a local city guide and historian Krish who explained the history and cultural significance of what we were seeing. This added so much to an already fulfilling experience. And we saw everything! From the colorful flower market to the sombre Mother's House and so much more. Kolkata trips took care of everything and we simply sat back and soaked it all in. My trip to India was life changing and Kolkata stands out as it's pinnacle. I cannot recommend Kolcata trips more. Five stars +++!