WHAT IS GOMOWGLI?
goMowgli is India’s first flexible bus network for travellers. We offer many single day City Tours across South India and a longer duration Hop-on Hop-off Tours across Kerala for travellers. On goMowgli, we travel more and do less of sightseeing. All our tours are guided tours to offbeat locations and offer authentic Indian experiences. Read more on why goMowgli.
A City Tour is a single day tour starting and ending at the same city. Single day tours take you to the essential must sees, while also showcasing some of the little known and offbeat trails within the city. You will be accompanied by a local guide on all our our city tours. Kindly note that our City Tours are not hop on hop off and you will have to adhere to a fixed bus schedule.
A Pass is your ticket to join the wolf pack on goMowgli. Currently we offer a pass of 9 day duration across Kerala. A Pass will allow you to travel to all the destinations that lie in the route of your Pass. The Pass is valid for a period of 60 days from the date of first travel – this means you have 60 days to complete all the travel legs of your Pass. You can hop off the bus anywhere, whenever you feel like it. To hop back onto another scheduled bus, you have to book a seat on it by calling our customer care number, and show up at the pickup point. The schedule of the goMowgli Buses from each destination is detailed in the timetable section.
A Bespoke Tour is a customized tour. We offer customized tours for small groups from 2 – 20 people in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Bespoke Tours are private tours and will be conducted exclusively for your group. Look up some of our Bespoke Tour itineraries and then get in touch with us if you want to customize them some more.
WHAT TO EXPECT?
Every day on the Bus, you will have a choice of many free and paid activities catering to varied interests. You also get to visit many locations off the regular tourist track. You will also meet a lot of interesting people on the Bus. You have the freedom to choose your activity and accommodation and we do our best to accommodate within our schedule. Also, on our longer duration hop off tours, you can hop on and hop off anywhere along the pass of the route and hop back on another Bus along the same route.
We believe the best way of exploring a city is to walk, talk and mingle with the locals. You will do just fine if you are hale and healthy. We promise we will not make you walk a marathon. However, your guide will inform you about the required level of fitness for each activity. If you are not keen on any physical activity, your guide will do his/her best to find you something else to do.
We in goMowgli, believe in independent travel and encourage you to travel independently. We partner with only quality activity providers and accommodations to ensure your safety. Also, we think the world is really not as bad a place as it is made out to be.
The average group size on the Bus can vary from 2 – 20 people depending upon the booking for that day. However, as everybody has freedom towards choosing the activities, each activity typically has a smaller number of people.
goMowgli offers an adventure filled service and is not recommended for kids below 5 years. Children between the ages 5 – 12 years may travel free of cost if accompanied with an adult. Children aged between 12 - 18 years of age may travel if accompanied with an adult and the full fare will be levied on them. Travellers aged 16-18 can travel unaccompanied if they have a signed parent/guardian consent form.
Our guides are regular individuals with a crazy bent of mind. They are knowledgeable about most things in this world and hold a firm opinion about how this world should be. They love meeting new people and engaging in conversations with them. If you don’t talk much, they will always whip up their own story. Experience has taught us not to believe most of their stories. But they sound fantastic over a campfire up in the mountains, anyway.
We promise, they are not the typical run of the mill guides you will find hovering around most monuments in India. These guys, instead, are incredibly knowledgeable and seriously crazy – and that is exactly why we hired them.
Your guide is your contact for all bookings and travel information. Your guide will coordinate all activities, arrivals, departures, stops and pretty much everything on the Bus. Your guide will also constantly provide you authentic local information at each of the stops. And most guides come with oodles of attitude. They do their best to make sure you have a fun time with goMowgli.
We do offer food stops at some authentic eateries when we travel. You can trust us with the quality of the food. Also, you can choose to cook on your own at some of our overnight stops.
goMowgli is not a party bus and instead focuses on slow and experiential travel. However, we do love to have a good time and we sure love an occasional big night out at some of our overnight stays.
If you are travelling on one of our Hop on Hop off Passes, you hop off the bus anywhere you feel like. You will be asked absolutely no questions. We really like those who travel slow.
Just inform your guide and call the customer care whenever you want to book your seat on another Bus. Kindly note that you cannot hop on and hop off in between a single day City Tour.
The schedule of the Buses is detailed in the Passes page. You may plan your itinerary using the Bus schedule. After you have decided your travel dates, get in touch with us on the customer care number on +91 90-08-730-975 or send us an email on contact@gomowgli.in and we will be happy to fit you onto a seat in the next available bus.
Our customer care team is available on all days from 8:00 AM(IST) to 10:00 PM(IST) on +91-9008730975 and contact@gomowgli.in
WHAT'S INCLUDED?
When you choose a Pass on goMowgli, you get:
- A clean and comfortable air conditioned transport - You can travel along the route of the Pass for one time only.
- Free authentic activities every day – We have free activities everyday – You do not have to pay for them!
- Wide range of optional paid activities/ accommodation - usually offered at a discount to goMowgli customers – There are always enough of activities on culture, nature and adventure.
- Spunky guides and authentic local information - Provided by the guide on board – We know where the locals eat their dosas.
- Freedom – You can choose to book your own accommodation and activities and we will be happy to drop you off to the closest point.
- Multiple hop on and hop off along the route – If you are travelling on one of our Hop on Hop off Passes, you can choose to hop off at any location along the route and get back onto another scheduled bus along the route (subject to seat availability). Please note you cannot hop on and hop off between a single day City Tour.
- Help with accommodation – Accommodation is not included in the Pass. You are free to choose your own accommodation. However, if you have not booked any place for the night, we will help you find a place to stay through one of our local partners (first night only).
- goMowgli Special Prices - You are entitled to a goMowgli Special Price for many activities and accommodation.
Your goMowgli Pass does NOT include the following:
- Accommodation – The Pass does not include your room stay for the night. However, we have partnered with hotels, where we can book a room for you on your behalf. We promise to help you find accommodation (budget, no frills stay) for the first night only at each location through one of our partners. You can choose where you want to stay and we will drop you off at the nearest point.
- Paid activities - We are a bus offering many activities along the route of the pass. Some of these activities are paid and are optional. You do not have to take them up if they do not interest you.
- Food – You can choose to pay for your own food or you can cook on your own. Either ways make sure you share it with others on the bus. We promise you will make some new friends.
- Entry fee/ Camera fee – Entry fee to national parks and monuments need to be borne by you. Your guide will tell you which places are worth the fee.
- Everything else not mentioned in the list of inclusions above.
WHAT TO CARRY?
You will need the following:
- A backpack to carry all your stuff. We recommend a backpack as against a suitcase.
- Your clothes with at least one pair of warm wear. Winters can get quite chilly up in the mountains. You will get laundry options at most places.
- A rain jacket – it can rain without warning in Southern India.
- Swimsuit to jump into the ocean and a towel to cleanup afterwards.
- A pair of sandals or flipflops – You will have to take off your footwear before entering many places in India.
- Bug repellents – the mosquitoes can be quite irksome in the night.
- A pair of trainers or hiking boots (even better) – We are nature buffs and love a good hike. You can always skip them if you are not game.
- A hat or a sun cap to keep the sun out.
- A bottle of water – you will be able to get a refill at most places.
- A flash light/ torch – Very useful at nights up in the mountains.
- A small day pack – perfect for city tours and short hikes.
- Travel insurance – Never break the golden rule of travel in a foreign country.
- Any sort of an ID card apart from your passport – There are a million places you will be needing an ID card in India.
- Always carry some cash – Not all places in India accept cards and it is recommended you carry some cash with you always. There will be many ATM stops on goMowgli.
- Dupatta/ Sarong: For the ladies, we hate moral policing, but in India deep cut tops and short shorts do attract unwanted attention at times, especially in the rural areas. Avoid them if you can. Also, carry a dupatta along - it is multipurpose. If in doubt, your guide will be glad to help you with any questions.
- Sleeping bags and tents – Unless you plan on doing some independent hikes
- No narcotics absolutely on the bus. It is a strictly illegal in India and we absolutely do not encourage it. You will be thrown out of the bus without refund if you are caught with any banned substance.
ACCOMODATION & ACTIVITIES
Not all activities are included in the price of the Pass. We, however, offer some complimentary activities at each of our locations. Apart from that, we offer a wide range of optional paid accommodation and activities and you will have the option of choosing from them or booking them on your own. We will try our best to accommodate them within our bus schedule. If we cannot, you can always hop off the Bus and get back onto another Bus.
Absolutely! You can make your own bookings and yet travel on goMowgli. If possible, we will try to drop you off and pickup from the nearest location.
Each place we visit will have a set of unique activities authentic to that place. We try to offer a variety of activities on nature, culture and adventure which appeal to most travellers.
The cost of the activity will vary according to the type of the activity. Your guide will help you with the same. You will pay directly to the activity provider/ guide on board the bus. However, be rest assured that you will be offered the most competitive prices at the best of the activity providers in the market.
Some activity providers will accept card. However, we recommend you travel with some cash as you may need to pay in cash at times. Also, there will be a daily ATM stop, so that you do not end up carrying a lot of cash with you.
Please visit the webpage of the pass you intend to choose to view the list of free and optional activities you can choose to do, during your time on goMowgli.
We only help you find an accommodation at each new location, for the first night only. You will have to pay extra for the accommodation – the price of the Pass does not include accommodation. Typically, we help you find a standard overnight accommodation each night, catering usually to the budget traveller. However, if you are looking for something else, we offer a variety of accommodations across a wide range.
Depending on the activity and accommodation, a special discount price may be offered to goMowgli customers.