Woven Tours
An off-the-beaten-track exploration of the textiles of Gujarat
An off-the-beaten-track exploration of the textiles of Gujarat
“Woven” is an off-the-beaten-track 21 day adventure in India with a focus on the state of Gujarat, the centre of textiles in India.
This is a deep delve into the traditional India where modern cityscapes are yet to grow. We will be focusing on 4 threads: Arts with painting in particular, Textile design and embellishments, Architecture as in palaces and religious buildings and Food from several states, all of which are woven to create the fabric that is India.
Our experiences there will also provide incredible opportunities for photographs to capture it all.
India is a full-on sensory experience – the sheer numbers of people and the enormity of cities, buildings, the pace of life and traffic, the temperature, colours, smells and abundance of things is a complete sensory assault for those who have not been before.
In the last 20 years India has significantly westernised its major cities as a result of huge international leaders’ conferences and the like. Now the India of old hangs on only in the outer reaches of the states where westernisation and industry have yet to completely dominate. This former India is the one we are going to be experiencing because this is where the generations of craftspeople and artisans still exist.
During this trip we will spend each day taking in the rich variety of artisans in their workshops and villages, the museums of history and textiles, markets and restaurants, and a sprinkling of unusual one-off experiences.
This is an experience rich in those things fading fast from sight in most cultures with ancient roots. You will see craftsmanship and skills inherited from generations past that now only survive in tiny enclaves and villages of artisans, barely scraping by because the young are enticed to the cities to seek their fortunes, still. We will visit places where few tourists go to see block printing, quilting, Bandhani dyeing, Patola weaving (world acclaimed specialists) Rabari and Meghwal embroidery and much more. On the way to these textile-focused highlights we will drop in on the best of the nation’s archaeological, architectural and cultural sights or regional curiosities. We will see the surrounding land transform from tropical greenery to vast desert and salt plains.
Luckily our guide knows these people personally so we will be visiting their houses and workrooms, learning about techniques and practices, doing it ourselves in workshops with both tie and dye specialists and block stamp printing, visiting with the last Gujarati bell-maker and staying within the royal family compound. We will eat the fabulous food from a full range of restaurants, peruse markets, jewellery shops, antique emporiums, see miniature painting galleries and Kalamkari painters at work.
Quite by accident in 2024 when I went to Gujarat to make my own adventure happen (with my dearest friend) armed with a list of 40 things to see and do, we met a man who proved to be the best guide/driver I have ever encountered. He, Shaikh, will be our guide and between us we will tend to all your needs and answer all your questions. His English is impeccable and he has excellent insider knowledge and people on his contacts list. He inspired me to share the experiences we had with other like-minded adventurous women who want to continue living life to the full.
So if you would like to visit something special or perhaps pause for a henna tattoo, just let me know and we will try to fit it in on the way.
This experience is magical: a chance encounter with a temple elephant for a morning blessing. It is great fun: a hair raising tuk tuk ride through busy night markets. It pulls on the heart strings as we encounter poor villagers in far flung places where the children hope to sell their hand made beaded jewellery and dolls.
It brings joy and with it a sad realisation that great skills and detailed beauty are gradually becoming things of the past.
Best to experience it now before it completely disappears.
India suffers from a lot of negative impressions and rumours about being unsafe but the reality is quite different…. Most Indians in the large cities speak English very well, they are welcoming and very polite and proud of their country and that you have come to visit and experience a portion of it. I have not encountered anything but welcome smiles and curiosity about me and my country.
Itinerary
This trip is planned for early October and we can move the start date by a few days if that better suits potential travellers, however early October is the best time in terms of temperature. The temps will be in the 30s. When we did it in July ’24 it was mid to late 40s so believe me this is as cool as it gets, as the rainy season ends. It is also best at this time so that we can see the Rabari tribes in the north at home before they take their herds on the road.
We will touch down in Mumbai and spend 4 nights there. We arrive in the afternoon of Day One and check in to the hotel.
Day Two. We will take it easy with a slow start but as we will be staying in central area of Mumbai we have only a short ride to the India Gate on the water’s edge then cross the road to the Taj Hotel and peruse the handful of jewellery shops for the morning followed by lunch in the upstairs tearooms. It’s quite delightful and ladylike.
The afternoon includes a short walk to the National Museum and Textile Museum, pop into Philips Antique emporium which we have to walk past anyway, then a rest at the hotel until dinner at a popular restaurant.
Days Three and Four. We venture further and tour the highlights of Mumbai: the colonial aspects, railway station, oldest Bombay market, colonial buildings. Stroll around Fort area and have lunch/cake and coffee at a trendy café. Visit Leopold Café ( where the novel Shantaram was centered) Complete a local walking tour, visit the Dhobi Ghat, ride a local train, some tasteful retail therapy, visit the flower market, Chowpatty Beach, the National Art Gallery then the old town market.
Days Five, Six, Seven and Eight. Fly to Ahmedabad, meet our guide and settle into the hotel. Then in no particular order we will visit the oldest regional mosque, pop into House of MG to have a coffee, see the hotel and visit the gift shop because it is all very cool. We visit the Swaminpatayan Jain temple, wander the old town, take in Ghandi’s ashram and the associated cottage industries nearby, the Folk Art Museum, night market, Calico Museum and a specialist bookshop. Many of these visits are several hours long and we will eat and drink and lounge (if needed) between them.
Days Nine and Ten. On the road with a drive to Patan to see the double-sided ikat woven silk saris being made. On the way we visit the largest stepwell, the village of Siddphur and its famous Havelis, and stay overnight in Modhera after seeing the Sun Temple. Then we head to Khuchch and Bhuj visiting villages and cooperatives on the way.
Days Eleven to Fifteen. In Bhuj we stay at the compound of the royal family, we visit Pragmahal and Ainamahal (ancient palaces), home of an exceptional antique textile collector, and make daily forays into the surrounding areas to see Rogan painting, copper works, a bell-maker, lacquer worker, Bhandhani dyeing, block printing, Indigo dyeing, intricate mud houses and much more weaving and embroidery of all sorts..
We will take art in workshops in Block printing and tie-dyeing and visit a specialist in Indigo who will show us the indigo vats and explain the process.
It is difficult to say exactly what we are doing each day because our guide will often be setting things up days or hours before we visit them around their availability. Unlike other tours we do not visit a group of women sitting chatting as they embroider together because that is not their life: it is a show for tourists. In reality they actually embroider at home whilst juggling the family and cooking, milking and running the house and multiple other things so that is how we will see them, see their homes and their work and all this depends on who will be home in which villages each day. Shaikh will be organizing all of these visits for us.
Days 16 to 20. Fly to New Delhi and thence a car to Agra to visit the Taj Mahal. There will be a real sense of relaxation here with time to swim in the pool on the rooftop at The Taj Hotel, shop a little, take in the Fort area and just relax for two days.
Then we head back to New Delhi and possibly a small helping of shopping and sight seeing: the Red Fort, Chandni Chowk, Connaught Circle before we board the plane home!
I’m Sandy Palmer
I was a secondary school English teacher in my first career for 20 years in NZ, London and Turkey. I have always been involved with textiles of all sorts, sewing for customers and for sale, knitting, embroidery, rugs – shooting a video on their making in 1985 when I lived in Turkey. Then, at 40, I decided that I should have a go at what I had always loved doing and had done for free for friends, so I started an interior design shop called Urban Mythology in Petone, importing fabric from a friend’s mill in Izmir. This immersed me in my passion for fabrics and design. 25 years later I closed two shops – Palmer Interiors in Wellington being the other – and am now semi-retired in Greytown.
I have always had a love for travelling and languages, have degrees in English and French, my last one was an MBA from Paris. I studied 6 languages and have lived in New York, London, Paris, Izmir and Auckland. I draw stimulation from seeing the world and all its variety, the colour of other cultures and their physical environment. I love to explore a city or province thoroughly rather than a whistle-stop approach.
I have visited 46 countries and this will be my fifth trip to India. I intend to travel until I can no longer do it physically.
This trip to Gujarat is definitely one of the best experiences I have ever had.
It was fantastic. Do join me.
Pricing
On the basis of twin share rooms, the cost for the 20 day trip is $12,500 including flights from Auckland.
If you would prefer a room to yourself there will be a surcharge. If you would like to travel beyond economy there is also an additional fee. We travel Emirates economy and always book seats with extra leg room so there is little difference between Economy and Premium Economy.
This price includes all hotels. In Mumbai we will be staying in the most central area, a key position to walk to those buildings we will be visiting. It is important to note that we may have to overlook the odd difference in standard between the Indian way and the Western.
In the case of the Gujarat experience we will find the most comfortable accommodation possible. We will be staying at two places here, with the royal family in their compound for 4 nights in Bhuj and in a chic modernised Haveli for the remainder in Ahmedabad. Between these main centres we will stay in the best accommodation we can find for the occasional night.
The price includes all meals as well as coffee and cake and other snacks. Largely we will be eating vegetarian food as not only is it the safest, it is definitely the largest range of tasty meals. We provide all water which will be bottled and cold because we need you to drink a lot every day.
The price includes all the guide’s costs, hire of the van, petrol and drivers.
It includes all visitors’ entrance fees.
It does not include a tip for Shaikh which is expected to be around US$100 per person. He is worth it.
It does not include alcohol, laundry or room service.
Other than that, your jewellery, textile purchases (possibly antique), antique carvings or paintings etc will have to be self funded! Most people you buy from will expect cash in Indian rupees, very few in US dollars. Most shops or dealers take credit cards, but they prefer cash.
Many more tips and information on visas, vaccinations and insurance to follow when you decide to come with us to wonderful full-on India.
Sandy Palmer Woven Tours
Please do contact me for the slightest enquiry and I am happy to meet up with you if you live near Wellington, or in Auckland, Linda from the 2025 trip is happy to meet you and chat.
Feedback
”I thought that the places we visited were all worthwhile and very carefully selected to give us the best of Gujarat. The itinerary was comprehensive and action packed,” Linda.
“Because I hadn’t been to India before every day was magic and a highlight that stimulated the senses. I have done a lot of travel and Woven Tours was very good value for money”, Sally.
“The Calico museum, the Taj Hotel Mumbai lunch, Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, shopping for jewellery, Kutchch,” Linda’s highlights.
The balance between covering what was organised and any free time we had was perfect for the length of the tour”, Sally.
“Highlights were the palaces in Bhuj, Taj Mahal lived up to expectations. Dhobi Ghat and Dahravi in Mumbai. Visiting artisans in their studios, LLDC museum, fabrics, embroidery, woodblock printing, ikat weaving, fine art painting and tie-dyeing”, Kay.
“I always felt completely safe”, Linda.
“Consistently delicious food”, Sally.
“I don’t think anyone could replace or improve on what Johnny (Shaik) offered us. He helped make the trip hassle free”, Linda.
“He demonstrated deep knowledge of the region and its cultural highlights”, Sally.
“He was personable, approachable and consistently helpful”, Kay.
“The accommodation was perfect and loved the authentic places chosen”, Sally.
Frequently
Asked Questions
How safe is India?
Totally safe is the answer. Probably more safe than Wellington or Auckland. There may be a bit of staring but that is usually because tourists are not common and women without black hair are unusual. People are welcoming, polite, want to practise their English, enthusiastic to have photos of you with their family etc. They are glad you are visiting their country and want to know where you are from. If you want to investigate things on your own in down time we can arrange company, transport.
What standard is the accommodation?
We try to find hotels that are beautiful as in restored old houses, or interesting as in circular huts in the desert, or top quality as in Agra where we also want to be right near the Taj and therefore we go modern. But in each place we try to be true to the overall Indian experience, without the mediocre business hotel being a choice. We also like the bathrooms to function properly.
Is there any down time?
We have the days completely planned with days in and around Bhuj where we travel in one direction and visit a number of people and sites. There are some slower activities like fabric workshops so we are not constantly on the go, but you are welcome to opt out, not go with the group for dinner etc. However I think you will not want to miss any of it.
Advice on what to pack and wear, money, vaccinations and visas will be sent to those who are coming, within a few months of departure.