Been in Goa 4 months, hired a truch/jeep and drove well no crashes but I burned the clutch plate out, new scam. They hire to a tourist and if a westener they take out the good plate and put in a worn one then spray it with a quick fix glue so after 50-60kn it slips and they charge R8000-10,000 depending. I know trucks from the Army and have been to India over 35 times so I got a new plate on line and replaced the fake one myself, cost R2,500 for whol clutch compartment not just plate. When you hire a bike or truck be confident you can handle the madness. Take a video of the vehicle on the phone including the engine check, get under the hood. Check tyres and tread and finally check jack and brace , most dont have them and if a tyre blows when in say Tibet you are screwed. Then take it for a spin, slow then fast and bang through the gears up and down the box and youy will feel if the clutch is duff. Same with scooters and bikes. If you plan to do a big trip as I did from Goa,to Mumbai to New Dheli up to Darjeeling and down Nepal and back (6500 KM) great fun alone best to get one at the bi annual Army Auction real cheap and sell it after often for more than you paid. So real Indian adventure people do it, it a great continent just be strong and confident. Oh I am quite disabled from Active service (61years young) and I shattered my arm on Tiger Hill but managed, so do not fret. enjoy all it throws at you and that will be a lot. Also learn some of the language and shake hands with all including cops.

Yes that type of thing does happen in India, too. And in regards to the internet, I also traveled in India the first time for months without it so of course it’s possible, but having it makes things 10x easier esp with Google maps, Uber, and being able to book last minute accom on the road.

Thank you for your advices though, I would like to add one that happened to me in Sri Lanka – maybe you can tell if you’ve heard of it in India? We had a long bus ride with one connection. When we got off the first bus, two men came to us pretending to help us finding our next ride. Without we asked for anything they walked with us to the information desk, pretended to check the time of the next bus then finally said “your next bus is at 12.30pm (3hours later). If you want, I can drive you there for 6000 Rs.” (Instead of the 50Rs bus ticket). We asked someone else and our bus was there 10 min later. We didn’t bite but we understood you always need to ask at least 3 different people when you’re looking for something.

Best advice for travelling, in my opinion, is to trust the local people on your way who are just minding their own business.

Arun, I have actually lived in Kochi temporarily and traveled a lot of Kerala as well as spent a month in Karnataka – even in chilled out Goa these scams can surely happen in the South

Yes, i was targettted by this agency called Perfect Holiday Travel. A runner on the street told me that my sleeper class is dangerous, and offered to refund if i wish to upgrade by going to this place.

Then the “government tourism board” on the upper floor tried to sell me an inrail pass. Thankfully I took out my hp and checked, and saw bad reviews. Anyway it was way out of my budget. On my way down as I was leaving, another guy on the ground floor called me over to persuade me again. I finally agreed on a usd500 (or rs30000) package for 14 days, which only included hotel stay and overnight 3rd AC trains.

I wanted to pay by credit card as i didnt bring that much cash with me. He told me I had to pay the credit card charges (can’t rem how many %). I thought ok, that seemed fair). Then another guy came and asked for gst tax. I insisted no, otherwise I shall cancel the whole package. The guy then said ok, he will absorb 50% of the tax, and i softened and said ok. He asked for cash for the gst, which was about 1500. Only after I started my 1st train ride did I realise he didn’t provide me any receipt! Sure, my travel package were reflected on my credit card statement, but not the GST which I paid in cash! Which means they could easily pocketed that gst amount! I will ask for the receipt when i return to Dehli next week, else I will lodge a police report.

A friendly local told me they shouldn’t ask for GST, as the rs30k is MRP and should be all inclusive. Is it so? Do I stand any chance of getting my gst back? What if I report to my embassy or police?

Hi Kawahar, yes foreigners have to fill a C form to stay at hotels and to rent. Sometimes they just copy the passport and visa and then the hotel will fill it out for the guest.