New travel firm, Authentic India Tours, has launched to provide bespoke tours and experiences of South India.

ABTA regulated Authentic India Tours, is a venture of the UK-based Compton Group, a company which was established in 1955 and has its roots in the property development and investment sector. It was created to offer personalised tours with a goal of opening up the largely uncharted Indian tourism sector.

“Much of southern India remains something of a mystery”

Angela Coyle, head of group marketing for the Compton Group, said: “Over 10 million foreign tourists arrived in India in 2017, compared to 8.89 million in 2016, representing a growth of 15.6%, so it is a region that is clearly on the rise.

“However, for many travellers, much of southern India remains something of a mystery, one of the last few destinations on earth that is largely untapped by the mass tourism market, meaning that new visitors are privy to something really rather special.”

Authentic India Tours works with local travel experts to craft original tours and experiences that showcase southern India’s well-known treasures and hidden gems. Its itineraries include 9 to 24-day tours of the region’s highlights such as the tea plantations of Munnar, Karnataka’s markets, the temple town of Madurai, the Periyar Tiger Reserve and the Malabar coastline.

Additionally, tailored experiences have been curated for travellers with special interests, with wellbeing and Ayurveda retreats, as well as cycling, culinary and bird watching tours.

In terms of accommodations, on offer are houseboats over Kerala backwaters, private beach villas with yoga decks on the Arabian coast, eco-hotels in the Thekkady highlands and wildlife retreats in protected animal reserves in the foothills of the Nilgiris.

Coyle concluded: “By working with local travel providers we have been able to put together some truly magical tours and experiences that showcase the very best of southern India and take the worry and guesswork out of planning a trip to the region, thanks to our specialist knowledge.”