Javed took great care to custom tailor our three week itinerary through Rajasthan and other areas in India in October 2007, consulting us all the way as to our budgets and preferences for hotels (we’d asked for 3 star accommodation) and advising us gently (no high pressure stuff) if he thought another hotel would suit us better than one we’d suggested as a result of our own research on Lonely Planet and Trip Advisor. Thanks to the very roomy air-conditioned vehicle with a really good driver (a rarity in India) that Javed laid on, we travelled between cities in comfort and style.
And that wasn’t all. In order to make sure that everything was up to our expectations in terms of price and quality (rooms, guides etc.) Javed personally accompanied us around Rajasthan—and kept in regular touch via his cell-phone while we were touring other areas around the country on our own, to make sure our hotel rooms, transport arrangements etc. were up to spec.

Javed Ali takes a fierce pride in catering to his clients’ individual requirements, so this is part of his usual modus operandi. If he isn’t available as an escort, one or another of his brothers will usually accompany solo travellers (including women) as well as groups of 20+ to ensure that they are satisfied with their tour arrangements. Granted that in India things don’t run in quite the same way as they do in the west, there were one or two unpredictable twists and few amusing incidents—none of which came as unpleasant surprises.