I'm off to India at the very end of May and staying till 23rd June, flying into Mumbai and out of Delhi.
I've read and been advised various things re. the heat - is it actually going to be unbearably hot (I'm fair-skinned and live in the UK) and I should simply see some of Mumbai (and another city or two on the way north) and hightail it to north of Delhi?
Any other advice? Thanks everyone v. much in advance, really appreciate any comments.
Ah...you will have a hard time, mate. I was in India during June and also in Mumbai. Its extremely sticky and hot. The humidity is always high in Mumbai but in June its even worse because of the monsoon. You will sweat all day long. I changed clothes at least twice a day. And I showered sometimes three times a day. Normally I would not advice to go to India in June. This is the worst month. You will be busy all day to find some place away from the circumstances. But at the other hand will there be a lot of places to cool-down. Sleeping in a non-AC room will be a struggle. So take a room with AC (which is more expensive). Eat in AC restaurants. On every streetcorner you will find people selling ice cold water or cola. For the rest. Hopefully you will enjoy Mumbai despite the humidity. Goodluck
[ Edit: Edited on Jan 20, 2007, at 12:47 PM by wouterrr ]
For trekking in the Valley of Flowers, Uttaranchal, the best time suggested is May/June. Also, for travelling around Spiti and crossing the Rohtang pass. So, maybe your focus could be on the Himalayas.
As you are flying in to Mumbai and have to travel around Mumbai, I suggest you fly directly/take train to Delhi from there instead of visiting places on the way, as it will be too hot. From there, you could go to Uttaranchal (Dehradun/ Mussoorie, Haridwar, Badrinath) and/or Himachal (Shimla, Spiti, Manali, Mandi, Dharamsala, Dalhousie).
Have fun! 
As mentioned earlier , try to take breaks in hill stations that
dot India.. You can chose the one that will be near the place of your visit.They are wonderful.
They are:
Mt Abu in Rajasthan
Nainital and Dehradun in Utrranchal
Kodaikanal, Ooty and Yercaud in TamilNadu
Mangalore, Mysore and ofcourse Bangalore in Karnataka
Kerala throughout esp the Northern Wynad
Lonavala ,Amboli,Matheran and Khandala in Maharashtra
Darjeeling in West Bengal
The whole of India's North east
Manali and Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh
Srinagar,Leh and Ladakh in Kashmiretc etc
You can definitely manage India's summer if you arrive sufficiently
prepared. With aircon rooms and cold water and an umbrella, you can manage everything comfortably!Delhi will be hotter than Mumbai especially in the evenings.
Best Wishes.
[ Edit: Edited on Jan 20, 2007, at 10:46 PM by Shrinagesh ]
Hey
Head towards the mountains... heat is unbearable..
Go to East India.. Darjeeling, Sikkim/ North India .. Uttaranchal, Shimla
Ac Resturants and loads o ice creams will be a good idea..
Cheers
Akhilesh
Sorry wrong thread
[ Edit: Edited on Jan 21, 2007, at 10:11 PM by piyush ]
You could look at places near the himalayas and/or even the North East India; so something like Darjeeling - Gangtok - Kalimpong would be better.
If you are interested in river rafting, you could at River Teesta in Kalimpong.
Access:
There is a overnight train from Kolkatta (Calcutta) to New Jalpaiguri. And the heritage Himalayan Railway from New Jalpaiguri to Darjeeling. Alternatively you could take the road from New Jalpaiguri to Darjeeling.
Gangtok & Kalimpong are connected by road from New Jalpaiguri.