Trip to India

[Icepick]

It's finally been confirmed that I'm going to India in a couple of weeks. I already booked my flight and have business class tickets. The trip will consist of two hops primarily - 1 from the U.S. east coast to Europe and the second hop from Europe to India. Each flight will be around 8 hours.

Has anyone here ever flown business class? What's it like. The only other time I flew to Europe it was in coach. Is business class really any better than coach? If so, how?

 

[alien42]

take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

I thought that was Turkey.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

LOL

Thanks for the tip. I'm also planning to bring some baby wipes or some kind of moist wipes for adults.

 

[Connoisseur]

Originally posted by: Icepick

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

LOL

Thanks for the tip. I'm also planning to bring some baby wipes or some kind of moist wipes for adults.

Which part of Indian are you heading to? If it's a large city you could probably buy TP. Also, most upscale hotels (read: designed for tourists/non-Indians/business travelers) include TP in the bathrooms or at least bidets. Otherwise, pack accordingly to location. Weather can vary wildly depending on whether you're going north/south/east/west. Couple of other tips:
1) I'd suggest only eating in good hotels/established chains with hot food to avoid potential for food poisoning
2) Take some anti-histamines just in case. The cities can be very dusty and people have varying reactions to the conditions. Some people are fine and others get into serious coughing fits.

::Edit:: and DO NOT, under ANY circumstances pay attention to/give money to beggars and panhandlers... no matter how pathetic they look or how sad their story is. I know it sounds terrible but if they see you giving money away or talking to them, the rest of the crowd will descend on you like locusts.

::Edit2:: And if you're in the market for good suits, you can get GOOD custom made ones for $150-$200 USD.

Otherwise, India isn't bad at all, especially if you've got good coin to spend. Then the place is your oyster.

 

[Vonkhan]

Business class rocks I loved the extra leg room and the food was great!

 

[George P Burdell]

Business class: better food, wider seats, more leg room (easier to sleep), better wine (drink it, it'll be easier to sleep if you're tipsy on a few glasses of wine).

Originally posted by: Connoisseur
2) Take some anti-histamines just in case. The cities can be very dusty and people have varying reactions to the conditions. Some people are fine and others get into serious coughing fits.

I took a sackful of Zyrtec to survive my last trip to India. It is non-drowsy (for me) unlike many other allergy meds. But you need a prescription for it.

Tell your doctor you plan on going to India and ask what, if any, precautions/medications you need to take. Make sure you don't miss out on the typhoid vaccine and the malaria medication. The CDC has a list of vaccinations and medications that you can print and take to your doctor:
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationIndia.aspx

Make sure you always drink bottled water under a known brand (I remember seeing Aquafina by Pepsi and Dasani by Coca Cola). Even at a restaurant, ask for bottled water or carry your own. If you are thirsty and there is no bottled water available, go for the Coca Cola instead of regular water.

If you can, pack a small bug spray to help keep the mosquitoes away at night.

 

[DeeKnow]

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

dude what kind of business class have you been traveling in ..?

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: Connoisseur

Originally posted by: Icepick

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

LOL

Thanks for the tip. I'm also planning to bring some baby wipes or some kind of moist wipes for adults.

Which part of Indian are you heading to? If it's a large city you could probably buy TP. Also, most upscale hotels (read: designed for tourists/non-Indians/business travelers) include TP in the bathrooms or at least bidets. Otherwise, pack accordingly to location. Weather can vary wildly depending on whether you're going north/south/east/west. Couple of other tips:
1) I'd suggest only eating in good hotels/established chains with hot food to avoid potential for food poisoning
2) Take some anti-histamines just in case. The cities can be very dusty and people have varying reactions to the conditions. Some people are fine and others get into serious coughing fits.

::Edit:: and DO NOT, under ANY circumstances pay attention to/give money to beggars and panhandlers... no matter how pathetic they look or how sad their story is. I know it sounds terrible but if they see you giving money away or talking to them, the rest of the crowd will descend on you like locusts.

::Edit2:: And if you're in the market for good suits, you can get GOOD custom made ones for $150-$200 USD.

Otherwise, India isn't bad at all, especially if you've got good coin to spend. Then the place is your oyster.

Thanks for the tips! I'm really concerned about getting Delhi belly or traveller's diareah. Hopefully I'll be able to get out to some other good restaurants other than the hotel one.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: George P Burdell
Business class: better food, wider seats, more leg room (easier to sleep), better wine (drink it, it'll be easier to sleep if you're tipsy on a few glasses of wine).

Originally posted by: Connoisseur
2) Take some anti-histamines just in case. The cities can be very dusty and people have varying reactions to the conditions. Some people are fine and others get into serious coughing fits.

I took a sackful of Zyrtec to survive my last trip to India. It is non-drowsy (for me) unlike many other allergy meds. But you need a prescription for it.

Tell your doctor you plan on going to India and ask what, if any, precautions/medications you need to take. Make sure you don't miss out on the typhoid vaccine and the malaria medication. The CDC has a list of vaccinations and medications that you can print and take to your doctor:
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationIndia.aspx

Make sure you always drink bottled water under a known brand (I remember seeing Aquafina by Pepsi and Dasani by Coca Cola). Even at a restaurant, ask for bottled water or carry your own. If you are thirsty and there is no bottled water available, go for the Coca Cola instead of regular water.

If you can, pack a small bug spray to help keep the mosquitoes away at night.

Thanks! It's good to know there really is a difference between that and coach. Yeah, some wine on a long flight might be good.

 

[Epic Fail]

Leg room? Lucky you.

 

[mrkun]

Virgin serves free wine in coach.

 

[SagaLore]

The business class looks pretty sweet on the 777 - only 2 chairs to a row, wider seats, leg rest, farther recline of the chair, etc. I opt for the 20 hour direct flights which puts me on a 777. I dunno what you're riding. I always go coach and I still thinks its relatively comfortable.

Those guys are silly. Its a business trip - they're spending a lot of money for business class tickets. Which means you're getting put into a decent hotel. OF COURSE you're going to have a normal toilet and regular supply of tp.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: SagaLore
The business class looks pretty sweet on the 777 - only 2 chairs to a row, wider seats, leg rest, farther recline of the chair, etc. I opt for the 20 hour direct flights which puts me on a 777. I dunno what you're riding. I always go coach and I still thinks its relatively comfortable.

Those guys are silly. Its a business trip - they're spending a lot of money for business class tickets. Which means you're getting put into a decent hotel. OF COURSE you're going to have a normal toilet and regular supply of tp.

haha. Yeah, I'm going to be in a 5 start hotel :thumbsup: I think those guys are talking about if I venture out into some parts of the city. I hear that in the slums they don't have electricity or running water.

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: Icepick
It's finally been confirmed that I'm going to India in a couple of weeks. I already booked my flight and have business class tickets. The trip will consist of two hops primarily - 1 from the U.S. east coast to Europe and the second hop from Europe to India. Each flight will be around 8 hours.

Has anyone here ever flown business class? What's it like. The only other time I flew to Europe it was in coach. Is business class really any better than coach? If so, how?

flews from dc to germany in business class.

:thumbsup: for you for getting at least business class for flights greater than 10hrs long. cramped seats in coach SUCK.

best thing is that you get to use the airline's lounges while waiting for your flight./connection. free food + beverage (including alcohol) + free internet (computer provided)

business class- better + bigger seats. better food + drink. better service.

is it worth $2000+ to upgrade from coach to business class. NO. is it worth 40k miles to upgrade an international trip from coach to business class? YES!!!

 

[ghart999]

International business class is 10X better than any domestic first class. Try and sit in the upper deck assuming you take a 747.

 

[kevman]

If you wear glasses or contacts you can get really sick deals on them there, I think our whole family got our eyes checked + new frames ( 4 of us ) for about $150 USD, albeit it was in 1995.

 

[Casawi]

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

At least it is healthier.

 

[alien42]

Originally posted by: Casawi

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

At least it is healthier.

i know that was just a knee jerk defense but come on. getting shit on your hands is not cleaner and the rest of the world agrees its not.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Originally posted by: Casawi

Originally posted by: alien42
take toilet paper unless you like to clean your ass with your hand and some water.

At least it is healthier.

I can't imagine using my hand after some curry shits. How is that a good idea.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: JEDI

Originally posted by: Icepick
It's finally been confirmed that I'm going to India in a couple of weeks. I already booked my flight and have business class tickets. The trip will consist of two hops primarily - 1 from the U.S. east coast to Europe and the second hop from Europe to India. Each flight will be around 8 hours.

Has anyone here ever flown business class? What's it like. The only other time I flew to Europe it was in coach. Is business class really any better than coach? If so, how?

flews from dc to germany in business class.

:thumbsup: for you for getting at least business class for flights greater than 10hrs long. cramped seats in coach SUCK.

best thing is that you get to use the airline's lounges while waiting for your flight./connection. free food + beverage (including alcohol) + free internet (computer provided)

business class- better + bigger seats. better food + drink. better service.

is it worth $2000+ to upgrade from coach to business class. NO. is it worth 40k miles to upgrade an international trip from coach to business class? YES!!!

Free food and alcohol!!! Now I feel much better about my five hour layover in DC and again in Frankfurt.

Is it worth $2000 to upgrade? YES. Especially when my company is paying.

 

[Descartes]

Originally posted by: kevman
If you wear glasses or contacts you can get really sick deals on them there, I think our whole family got our eyes checked + new frames ( 4 of us ) for about $150 USD, albeit it was in 1995.

I got three pairs of glasses for ~$80 from Hyderabad. That didn't include a check-up though. Still a great deal.