India is not a dangerous place to travel. It is, in a few specific situations, a place where travellers get quietly relieved of money. Almost all of it follows a handful of patterns.
1. The commission shop
Your driver suggests a carpet showroom or a gem emporium. The visit lasts an hour, the prices are several times the market rate, and the driver takes a cut of whatever you spend. It is the single most common complaint about Indian tours.
Ask any operator directly whether their drivers take shop commission. If the answer is vague, assume yes.
2. Fake e-Visa websites
Search for an Indian e-Visa and the first results are often lookalike sites charging three or four times the official fee for the same form. Apply only through the Government of India portal.
3. 'Your hotel is closed'
A driver or a helpful stranger tells you the hotel you booked has shut, flooded or burnt down, and offers an alternative where they earn a commission. Call the hotel yourself. It is open.
4. The unofficial guide
Men outside monuments offering guided tours are rarely licensed. A licensed guide carries a Ministry of Tourism badge with a photograph, and will show it without being asked.
5. The cheapest quotation
An unusually low tour price is not generosity. The money comes back through shop commissions, a worse hotel than the one named, or extras added later. Ask what is excluded, in writing.
6. Paying everything in advance
A deposit is normal. Paying the full cost of a two-week tour before you arrive is not. Reputable operators take a deposit and the balance at or near the start.
What a good operator looks like
A written itinerary with named hotels before any payment. A clear list of exclusions. A phone number that a person answers. And a straight answer about commissions.
