Multi-generation India trips

Multi-generation trips succeed or fail on the same factors as toddler trips, but for the opposite reason: it is usually the oldest traveller's mobility and stamina, not the youngest's, that sets the real pace. Plan the trip around whoever in the group has the most limited walking capacity, and build genuine rest into the schedule rather than treating it as downtime lost from sightseeing.

• Hotel access — ask specifically about lift access and ground-floor or accessible rooms; heritage properties in particular can have steps and no lift.
• Walking at sights — forts and palaces often involve uneven stone, steps and no shade; check what alternative viewing or seating options exist.
• Pace — a private car and driver, rather than a fixed-schedule group tour, lets you shorten a day on the fly if someone is tired.
• Medical basics — carry any regular medication in hand luggage, and know the location of good hospitals near your route, particularly if anyone in the group has a known condition.
• Shared activities — a houseboat cruise or a folk evening gives everyone something to enjoy together at their own pace, rather than splitting the group by activity level.

Kerala's backwaters circuit is the gentlest multi-generation option — a houseboat cruise needs no walking at all, and the pace throughout is naturally slow. A Golden Triangle at a deliberately slower pace than usual, with jeep rather than climbing access at forts where available, also works well and gives grandparents and grandchildren plenty of shared moments.

We would generally steer a genuinely mixed-mobility group away from a heavy Rajasthan desert-and-fort circuit or any itinerary with long daily drives, unless the older travellers are confidently mobile.