Getting There

By Plane

Most major airline carriers have flights to India. It's a good idea to shop around for fares on the Internet, through online travel agencies like Travelocity.com, Expedia.com, and Orbitz.com, or through airline websites. Or make use of a consolidator, which hunts for the cheapest available seats on your travel dates.

From North America -- Count on spending between 18 and 22 hours traveling and most flights require you to touch down at least once in Europe, the Gulf, or an Asian destination. More recently Delta Airlines and Continental Airlines have introduced 16-hour nonstop flights from New York/Newark to Mumbai/Delhi. With flights from the U.S. or Canada, the following airlines all offer service to India:

British Airways (tel. 800/247-9297; www.british-airways.com); Virgin Atlantic (tel. 800/821-5438; www.virgin-atlantic.com) via London; Air India (tel. 800-223-7776; www.airindia.com); KLM/Northwest (tel. 800/447-4747; www.nwa.com); Lufthansa (tel. 800/645-3880 in the U.S., 800/563-5954 in Canada; www.lufthansa.com); and Air France (tel. 800/237-2747 in the U.S., 800/667-2747 in Canada; www.airfrance.com). Additionally, Jet Airways has begun flights from Newark to Mumbai via Brussels (tel. 877-835-9538 in the U.S.). Etihad Airways (tel. 888/8-ETIHAD) flies to Mumbai via Abu Dhabi, and Swiss International Airlines flies to Delhi/Mumbai via Zurich (U.K.: tel. 845/601-0956; U.S.: tel. 877/359-7947).

Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific Malaysian Airlines, and other Asian carriers all fly to India via the Pacific route.

From the U.K. -- Many reasonably priced direct flights are available, or you can take a connecting flight in continental Europe or the Middle East; a number of European airlines (such as KLM and Alitalia) will get you there affordably if you don't mind a change of planes.

British Airways (tel. 0870/850-9-850; www.ba.com) has two daily direct flights to both Delhi and Mumbai, daily flights to Bangalore, and occasional direct flights to Kolkata and Chennai. Air India (tel. 800/223-7776; www.airindia.com) is the national carrier operating regular nonstop flights to Delhi and Mumbai. Virgin Atlantic (tel. 0870/574-7747) operates nonstop flights to Mumbai and Delhi. Jet Airways (tel. 0870/9101-000; www.jetairways.com) has two daily nonstop flights between London and Mumbai and one a day to Delhi.

Emirates (tel. 0870/243-2222; www.emirates.com) flies to Mumbai, Delhi, and Cochin, via Dubai. KLM UK (tel. 0870/243-0541; www.klmuk.com) operates flights from all over Britain to Amsterdam, where you pick up your connection to Delhi.

Lufthansa (www.lufthansa.co.uk) has daily flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad through Frankfurt.

From Australia & New Zealand -- You can fly directly to India from Australia. From New Zealand you will more than likely be offered a flight package that incorporates more than one airline. The majority of touchdowns and changeovers are in Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

The following airlines offer service to India: Singapore Airlines (tel. 13-1011 in Australia; www.singaporeair.com); Qantas (tel. 13-1313 or 29/691-3636) has a direct flight from Sydney to Mumbai, (tel. 0800/80-8767 or 09/375-8900 in New Zealand; www.qantas.com); Malaysia Airlines (www.malaysiaairlines.com) via Kuala Lumpur; and Cathay Pacific (www.cathaypacific.com) via Hong Kong.

From South Africa -- South African Airways (tel. 0861/359-722; www.flysaa.com) flies nonstop to Mumbai several times a week from Johannesburg. Or you can fly via Dubai to Delhi/Mumbai/Cochin on Emirates (tel. 0861/EMIRATES or 0861/364-728).

Arriving at the Airport

India's list of international airports is constantly expanding: Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Goa, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai, Trivandrum, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Amritsar, and Cochin all receive traffic from abroad, and a number of hitherto tiny airports -- particularly in Rajasthan -- are undergoing expansion to accommodate international arrivals in the very near future. Modernization at all these facilities, particularly in Delhi and Mumbai, is a priority, but there are many problems -- not least of which is that the rate of expansion simply cannot keep up with the exponential increase in traffic. Consequently, the first-time traveler to India may easily be unnerved by the sheer apparent chaos and disorganization of it all. Mumbai (Bombay) receives the greatest amount of international traffic and is the best point of arrival for onward travel to Goa and South India. Be warned, however, that in spite of a recent overhaul Mumbai airport facilities are poor, and there are plans to shift terminals while new ones are under construction. Most flights arrive in India late at night, in order to leave their Western destinations during daylight hours, so booking an "immediate" onward domestic flight invariably requires some wait at the airport. Delhi's international airport -- the principal starting point for journeys throughout North India, including the Himalayan regions and Rajasthan as well as east India -- is substantially better. Only fly in to Kolkata (Calcutta) if you plan to explore east India exclusively. If you want to avoid spending too much time at the airport, note that Jet Airways, British Airways, Virgin, and Air-India all now have flights with daytime arrival into India.

Note: Before you leave home, know what you can carry on and what you can't. For the latest updates on items you are prohibited to bring in carry-on luggage, go to www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel.