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Flight Inclusive Price from UK
- International Flights
- Domestic flights
- 2 nights accommodation
- 7 night River Cruise
- Most meals
- Shore Excursions
- Entrance fees
- City Tours
- ATOL Protection
- Travel Trust Protection
- Based on 2025 - 26 prices
- Agra
- Assam
- Calcutta
- Delhi
- Goa
- Himalayas - Darjeeling
- Himalayas - Leh & Ladakh
- Himalayas - Shimla
- Himalayas - Sikkim
- Himalayas - Uttarakhand
- Karnataka
- Kerala
- Madhya Pradesh
- Rajasthan - Jaipur
- Rajasthan - Jaisalmer
- Rajasthan - Jodhpur
- Rajasthan - Retreats
- Rajasthan - Udaipur
- Tamil Nadu
- Varanasi
- Wildlife - Bandhavgarh
- Wildlife - Kanha National Park
- Wildlife - Pench
- Wildlife - Ranthambore
Ganges - Assam Bengal Navigation
About the Ganges River Cruise
There can be few rivers in the world as charming as the Hooghly.
Cruise upstream along from Calcutta through beautiful scenery and wonderful ‘off the beaten track’ rural villages, visiting stunning palaces, stupas & gardens.
Cruise aboard Assam Bengal Navigation's MV Rajmahal, whose knowledgeable and friendly hosts will reveal India’s incredible and glorious history.
Inclusions
- International flights from UK
- Accommodation with breakfast
- All airport transfers by private car
- All shore excursions
- Most meals
- Entrance Fees
Accommodation
- 2 nights Calcutta
- 7 nights Ganges River Cruise
Excursions
- All shore excursions
- Day tour in Calcutta
Day 1: Depart the UK
Overnight flight UK to Calcutta.
Day 2: Calcutta
On arrival you will be met and transferred to your hotel in Calcutta, with the rest of the day to relax.
Overnight Calcutta. Breakfast included.
Day 3: Calcutta
Today enjoy a morning tour of Calcutta, including a visit to the marble-white Victoria Memorial, St Paul’s Cathedral and Mother Teresa’s House.
The rest of the day is at leisure for your own independent explorations.
Overnight Calcutta. Breakfast included.
Day 4: Calcutta – Cruise
This morning, you’ll be collected from your hotel in Kolkata to embark your ship by midday. Sail past the old Danish colony of Serampore to Barrackpore. Land and take a walk through the cantonment – past the Semaphore Tower, Government House, the Temple of Fame and Flagstaff House – to get a better understanding of India's journey to independence. Sail up to Chandernagore, a French possession until 1950.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 5: Chandernagore
Visit an 18th century church and Dupleix Palace, once the residence of the erstwhile Governor-General of French India. Sail upstream past the old Dutch settlement of Chinsura before landing to visit the imposing Imambara at Hooghly. With verses from the Koran written on its walls, the Imambara is an opportunity to step back in time and relive a slice of Islamic history in Bengal. Sail into the night to a mooring near Kalna.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 6: Matiari
After breakfast, land at the country town of Kalna and take rickshaws to see a group of some of Bengal’s most attractive terracotta temples including a unique Shiva temple with concentric rings made up of 108 shrinelets.
You’ll also visit a muslin-weaving centre before continuing on through the countryside to Mayapur to visit the vast new ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) temple which dominates the skyline. As the headquarters of ISKCON, or the Hare Krishna movement, the temple receives over a million singing and dancing devotees a year from around the world. Sail on through the night to a mooring near Matiari.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 7: Khushbagh
This morning you’ll visit the charming riverside village of Matiari, known for its brass-working. Interact with the villagers and witness the traditional process of beating out brass water pots and other vessels.
You then cruise on and visit the battlefield of Plassey where, in 1757, Robert Clive, the Commander-in-Chief of British India, defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal, to change the course of Indian history. Moor close to Khushbagh for the night.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 8: Baranagar
This morning, you’ll walk to Khushbagh, a peaceful Mughal-style garden that encloses the tombs of Siraj-ud-Daulah and his family.
Continue a little way upstream to where the great Hazarduari Palace dominates the waterfront. Built by an English architect in 1837, the palace hosts an extensive collection of pictures, china, weapons and other objects. Carry on to visit the great Katra Mosque before driving out to see the Katgola Palace.
Built in classical Georgian style by rich local merchants, Katgola Palace represents the other side of the coin of the 'White Mughal' period when English and Indian cultures came close to fusion. Moor overnight on the riverbank across from the town at Baranagar.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 9: Farakka
This morning you’ll walk through the fields of the delightfully sleepy village of Baranagar to visit its three gorgeous miniature terracotta temples. This is rural India at its most idyllic.
Continue up the lower Ganges (or the Hooghly), which transforms into a picturesque waterway, twisting and turning between banks lined with mustard fields and mango orchards. Carry on up a long canal section to a mooring close to the Farakka Barrage.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 10: Gaur
Disembark for a full-day excursion by road to Gaur, near the town of Malda or English Bazar. This quiet, deserted place was once one of India’s great cities, first under the Hindus in the 12th century, then as the Muslim capital of Eastern India from the 14th to the 16th century. There are plentiful remains of mosques, palaces and gateways and you’ll visit a number of the most interesting before rejoining the ship in the evening.
Overnight On Board. All meals included.
Day 11: Kolkata
This morning will transfer to Farakka station for a 4 hr (approx.) train journey to Kolkata. Our representatives will meet you on arrival and transfer you to the airport for your flight home.
Day 12: UK
Arrive home.
Superior Hotel Suggestions Calcutta:
Taj Bengal Kolkata
Hotel 233 Park Street
9 nights Hooghly River Cruise Holiday - Superior:
- Price from £2,490 pp
This is a guide price only, based on travel in low season.
Prices will vary according to choice of hotel and seasonal airfare and hotel surcharges. Please ask us for any current special offers.
Contact Us:
All of our India River Cruise Holidays are completely tailor made and we can put together any kind of India River Cruise Holiday itinerary to suit your interests and budget.
Call us now to speak to an India expert about your tailor made India holiday.
Call us now on 0333 7000 747
Open 09:00 - 17:30 Mon - Fri. 09:00 - 12:00 Sat. Our 0333 number is a local rate number included in most call packages.
