Eighteen days and four states, from the Coromandel coast through temple towns, the Western Ghats and the ruins of Hampi to the beaches of Goa — a fully supported Royal Enfield expedition across South India.
18 Days / 17 Nights
Tamil Nadu · Kerala · Karnataka · Goa
Heritage & character hotels
On Request per person
Royal Enfield Himalayan with full support crew
Optional add-ons: chauffeured fleet · private charterWhy This Journey, With This House
No groups, no strangers — this route, recomposed around you alone.
Our own fleet and drivers — two decades on these exact roads.
Curators who are known by name at every palace, lodge and atelier en route.
Road, air, stays and moments — one desk answers for all of it.
Private journeys depart when you do; we advise on the finest windows.
Arrive in Chennai and transfer down the coast to Mahabalipuram, a beachfront resort and an evening briefing over dinner.
"Mahabalipuram's Shore Temple and Pallava rock carvings are a UNESCO site — worth an hour before the ride, right on the sand."
The first ride down the iconic East Coast Road, past the Shore Temple and fishing villages, to the French quarter of Pondicherry (100km).
"Pondicherry's White Town is all mustard walls, bougainvillea and boulangeries — an easy first ride ending in a café that thinks it's in Provence."
Leave the coast and ride 180km into the Tamil heartland to Tanjore, home of the great Brihadeeswarar temple.
The curator's advisory, daily highlights and optional experiences for this day are shared privately — tap Hidden Gems above.
A 190km ride through fertile plains to Madurai, one of India's oldest living cities, and its riotously carved Meenakshi temple.
"Madurai's temple has fourteen towers dense with thousands of painted figures — the evening ceremony, carrying the god to the goddess's chamber, is unmissable."
A 140km ride west into the Western GhatsGhatA flight of steps leading down to a river or tank, used for bathing, worship and cremation.Read in the glossary and across into Kerala, to the spice country of Kumily and Thekkady.
"The state line is also a world change — Tamil temple plains give way to Kerala's cardamom hills in a single day's ride."
A day in the Periyar country — a spice-plantation walk and the forest reserve, at rest from the road.
The curator's advisory, daily highlights and optional experiences for this day are shared privately — tap Hidden Gems above.
Descend 140km from the hills through spice plantations to Alleppey and the backwaters.
"The descent from Kumily to the coast is one of the ride's best — misty forest that unwinds into the palm-lined canals of the backwaters."
A short coastal ride to Kochi and the old harbour of Fort Kochi — Chinese fishing nets, colonial warehouses and the spice trade's memory.
"Fort Kochi packs Portuguese, Dutch and British history into a few walkable lanes — the oldest European church in India is here."
Ride back up into the Nilgiris, the blue mountains, to the old colonial hill station of Ooty.
"Ooty was the summer capital of the Madras Presidency; the ride up its famous hairpins is a rider's rite of passage."
Ride down from the hills into Karnataka to Mysore, city of the great Wodeyar palace.
"Mysore Palace lit up at dusk — nearly a hundred thousand bulbs on Sunday evenings — is one of India's great sights."
A day in Mysore — the palace, the Devaraja market heaped with kumkum and flowers, and Chamundi Hill.
"Mysore is India's sandalwood and silk city — the market's colour pyramids and the palace's Indo-Saracenic excess make a fine rest day."
Ride to Hassan, gateway to the Hoysala temples of Belur and Halebidu — some of the most intricately carved stone in India.
"The Hoysala temples at Belur and Halebidu are carved from soapstone so fine the detail rivals ivory — a UNESCO listing and far quieter than the big names."
A long ride north into the boulder-strewn landscape of Hampi, capital of the vanished Vijayanagara empire.
"Hampi sits in a surreal sea of giant granite boulders — a ruined imperial city scattered across ten square miles of the strangest landscape in India."
A full day exploring Hampi — the Virupaksha temple, the stone chariot, the royal enclosure and the riverside bazaars.
The curator's advisory, daily highlights and optional experiences for this day are shared privately — tap Hidden Gems above.
Ride to Badami, once a Chalukya capital, famed for its rock-cut cave temples carved into a red sandstone gorge above a green tank.
"Badami's four cave temples, cut into the cliff in the 6th century, look out over a tank and the old town — one of the least-visited great sites in the south."
The final riding day, dropping out of the Deccan and down through the Ghats to the beaches and old Portuguese quarters of Goa.
"The Western Ghats descent into Goa is a triumphant last ride — forested switchbacks that open onto the Arabian Sea."
A day at leisure in Goa — the beaches, and the pastel Latin quarter of Fontainhas in old Panaji.
"Fontainhas, Panaji's old Latin quarter, is a pocket of Portugal — narrow lanes, azulejo tiles and bakeries — a lovely last morning before you fly."
After breakfast, a transfer to Goa airport for your onward flight — four states and 1,700 kilometres behind you.
"From the Coromandel to the Arabian Sea — few rides cross India so completely, coast to coast through four states in eighteen days."
The Journal
Soaring, riotously colourful gateway towers and living rituals unchanged for a thousand years. A journey through the great temple cities of the south.
Kerala rewards the traveller who moves slowly through its three worlds — still backwaters, misty tea hills, and a palm-lined coast. How to combine them in luxury.
Beyond the crowds and the party reputation lies another Goa — private, elegant, and steeped in Portuguese history. How to find the coast at its most refined.
Every itinerary is individually tailored around your preferred pace, travel dates, and chosen level of accommodation exclusivity. Connect with a curator to begin your journey.
Dates & Private Departures
Every departure is private — your dates, your pace. The finest windows fill first: palace suites ask 4–6 months’ notice in the golden season, and festival weeks a year.
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A Travellers' Choice award and a five-star average on TripAdvisor — earned on the ground by India Personal Tours (IPT Travel), the ground-operations arm that runs every Elevated India journey.
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Member of the Indian Association of Tour Operators and a Recognised Agency of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India — operated in-house by IPT Travel Private Limited, New Delhi (CIN U63040DL2012PTC237342). Nothing is subcontracted.
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Every enquiry is answered personally by the curator who knows your route best — usually within hours.
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