Thar Desert Expedition , Jodhpur
India, Rajasthan

Discover the challenging landscape inhabited by the desert people and visit villages and local schools along the way. You'll be welcomed into local houses to see food cooked on open fires, children playing and women chatting. You will be amazed at how these extraordinary people have adapted to life in the desert, with ingenious forms of water and food storage, and natural air-conditioning. Along the way you'll drive past herds of Blue Bull deer, Blackbuck antelope and camels.

Despite the harshness of the region, the area is home to a wide range of people: from the pious and vegetarian Bishnoi community – hailed as pioneering ecologists, to tribal communities and traditional Hindu villages, it is a fascinating place.

Excursions out into the Thar Desert from Jodpur are badly managed by some of the hotels in Jodpur and become little more than people safaris and shopping expeditions. ETG have teamed up with a fantastic local operator to explore the undoubtedly fascinating region by jeep.

You’ll go deep into the desert, exploring villages and wildlife, trying your hand at bread making the traditional way and learning about the way of life in this harsh region: genuinely largely unchanged for many 100’s of years. You’ll stop for lunch and sample genuinely local specialities, often overlooked by the hotels and dismissed as peasant food and even get a chance to take the wheel of your jeep if you so choose.

The day finishes with participation in a local ceremony, held daily by the local Brahmins. The close connection the operators have with the people of the region, means that there relationship is positive and interactive, rather than purely observational.