4 offbeat travel experiences to try this winter

There is only so much sightseeing a person can take before every monument starts looking like the last one. The photographs are lovely, the souvenirs are piling up and you've eaten at the restaurant everyone recommended. Perhaps it's time to get your hands dirty, learn something new and come home with a story worth telling. From writing in the Bhutanese mountains to making edible jewellery in rural Bengal, these five experiences offer some interesting reasons to pack a bag this winter.

December 1–6, 2026

Where: Terma Linca Resort & Spa, Bhutan

Ever wondered what might happen if you gave yourself six days, a notebook and permission to rummage through the stories tucked away in your head? Writer and screenwriter Bhavna Kher, co-writer of Netflix's Dabba Cartel, is bringing her Writing as a Healing Ritual retreat to Bhutan. Participants draw on their lived experiences to write fictional short stories, using metaphor and symbolism to revisit familiar emotions from an altogether different vantage point. No professional writing experience is required! When you aren't putting pen to paper, you could experience the ritual of lighting butter lamps, head out on an excursion to the Dochula Pass or tuck into a generous serving of cheesy ema datshi.

November 27–29, 2026

Where: Mandawa, Rajasthan

The havelis of Shekhawati have been telling stories on their walls for generations. Now, you can learn a little of the craft behind them. Salori's Mandawa in Fresco is a three-day retreat where a local artist guides participants in creating their own fresco tile, taking them through the process of selecting a motif, sketching it and applying colour to lime plaster. The finished piece goes home with you, although the centuries-old havelis are probably best left to the experts. Between painting sessions, there's time to explore Mandawa's fresco-lined lanes and get acquainted with the town over rooftop high teas and generous helpings of some delicious Rajasthani food.

December 5–7 and December 19–21, 2026

Where: Chauddhachuli, Purba Medinipur, West Bengal

Food that looks like jewellery and tastes like Bengal? Meet gohona bori, a intricate lentil preparation piped by hand into delicate patterns and left to dry in the winter sun. At the Gohona Bori Residency by Turiyo in Chauddhachuli, Purba Medinipur, you can learn the craft under the watchful eye of Shilpa Sarkar Maiti and the village women who have kept it alive. The two-night stay at a nine-generation-old family homestead comes with its own pleasures: a leisurely afternoon by the pond, a visit to the village haat or a peek into a local mill still making puffed rice the traditional way. Come hungry, too. Meals include Bengali thalis, freshly fried fritters and fish from the nearby Rasulpur river system. The winter sessions run on alternate weekends through February 2027, and every bori you make goes home with you.

December 17–20, 2026

Where: The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu

Tea estates and winding drives through the mist make for a pretty picture, and the Nilgiris have never been short of those. But there's plenty happening beyond the view from your car window. The Nilgiris Earth Festival, running from December 17–20, invites visitors to spend time with the people who know these hills through their soil, their food and the work of keeping them alive. Here you can learn more about the business of traditional farming, discover the region's indigenous produce and hear from those attempting to bring damaged landscapes back to life. There are conversations to be had about what grows here, what belongs here and what it takes to keep it that way.

Email: anoushkakundu@newindianexpress.com

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