Australian backpacker offers practical tips for foreign tourists in India

Foreigners arriving in Indian cities are often greeted by chaotic traffic, blaring noise and overwhelming crowds. But once the initial shock fades, many travellers gradually adapt to the country's rhythms and end up embracing the experience. According to Australian traveller Santi Grant Frankish, there are few countries as rewarding as India, provided travellers keep a few things in mind while exploring it. In an Instagram video, Santi offers practical tips for foreign tourists travelling across India.

Understanding 'Indian time'
She jokes that the biggest lesson she learnt during her travels was understanding `Indian time.' One of her key suggestions is never to wait until you are starving before ordering food in India. Instead, she advises travellers to place their order the moment they feel hunger approaching. The reason, she says, is that food often takes much longer than expected to arrive at the table and by then, one would already be extremely hungry.

Santi says that delays in India are not limited to food service alone and that many things often take far longer than expected, sometimes requiring people to wait for over an hour. It is this relaxed approach towards punctuality that she describes as ‘Indian time.’

Embrace these situations
Another piece of advice she offers foreign travellers is to accept that travel disruptions and delays are a natural part of exploring India. Her fellow traveller in the video, meanwhile, says visitors would enjoy the experience far more if they learned to embrace these situations instead of getting frustrated by them.

Santi and her friends also caution travellers against mistaking the busy and noisy roads of India for aggression or hostility. “Even amidst all this chaos, there is an underlying sense of calm here. People may be loud, but there is no anger between them. Everyone cooperates and moves along together. It is actually a beautiful sight,” her friend points out.

Don't rely completely on this
Santi also advises travellers to carry some Indian currency while travelling across the country, as relying entirely on digital payments can occasionally create unexpected difficulties. According to her, this is a lesson many foreign tourists learn only after arriving in India.

The video has drawn widespread attention online, with many viewers praising the openness and positive attitude of the foreign travellers. At the same time, some commenters noted that rather than criticising ideas such as 'Indian time,' greater attention should be paid to highlighting the country’s many positive aspects.