1. Dress appropriately for wherever you go. Although the temperature is quite warm most of the time, India is a conservative nation and dressing in a mini skirt or low cut shorts is guaranteed to warrant unnecessary attention. If you are going to religious sites, dressing this way would be considered especially disrespectful. To avoid this, always bring some lightweight long pants and shirts to swap into when needed!

2. Don’t just stay in the cities. Despite the vibrant appeal of street markets and city life, the true heart of India lies in its smaller villages and towns. Not only will you eat more authentic food, but you will also experience an even more vibrant culture. Getting away from the pollution and deafening traffic of the city is also immensely appealing.

3. Bargain wherever you go. Similar to China, haggling and negotiating prices is a cultural norm in India and should be taken advantage of. If you don’t try to negotiate prices and merely accept every price given to you, word will spread quickly that you are a weak target and vendors will purposefully try to charge you more. Even if you are not used to bargaining, try to negotiate prices and you will be amazed at how far you can push the price down!

4. Watch out for pickpockets! Whenever you are in a particularly busy place with a lot of crowds, be on your guard and ensure that your belongings are kept secure. A great method is to avoid carrying your wallet, passport or phone in your backpocket; instead, keep it in a ziplocked waist bag hidden under your clothes.

5. Always carry toilet paper and hand sanitizer with you. Both of which can become life savers as toilet paper can rarely be found in public bathrooms and hand sanitizer is a quick and easy way to keep your hands free of bacteria.

6. Don’t drink the tap water! Tap water in the majority of Indian towns and cities is unsafe to drink and will likely make you ill. Purchase plenty of bottled from stores if you plan on travelling to rural areas outside cities.