Ravi Tickoo
World traveller, professional mountaineer and passionate adventure entrepreneur, Ravi has over 25 years of experience conducting adventure, experiential and culture tours across the length and breadth of India.
What places and activities do you specialize in?
"Active India Holidays is an award-winning independent travel company offering safe, authentic and memorable India holidays for families, small groups and individual travelers. Founded by Ravi Tickoo, Active India was born out of his vision to build a dedicated, high-quality and sustainable brand for active, experiential and adventure holidays across India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Active India offers an expanding range of engaging activities and immersive experiences including soft and challenging trekking, walking tours, cycling and motor-biking adventures, experiential culture and discovery holidays, wildlife safaris and nature tours.
We conduct our trekking and walking programs in Ladakh, Zanskar and across the Himalayas, pioneering multi-activity programs (cycling, motor-biking and safaris) across the Himalayas, Rajasthan and Kerala, wildlife safaris and tiger trails in prominent national parks and tiger reserves, experiential culture and discovery tours across the length and breadth of India. In partnership with KimKim, Active India offers on-demand tailor-made India experiences designed around your needs and crafted with a clear focus on the quality of service, authenticity of experience and enriching engagement with the cultural charms, natural splendor and unparalleled diversity that defines India.
"
How did you get involved in travel?
"Being born and brought up in Kashmir valley, in the lap of great mountain ranges, tourism and in particular adventure travel has always seemed like a part of my DNA. The world-renowned natural beauty, alpine climate and the grand altitudes and outdoors have been attracting visitors to the valley for generations and shaped tourism as the dominant industry in the region. Starting out as a young, passionate tour leader back in the 80’s, I had the unique opportunity of exploring the most popular and remotest corners of the region and realizing how much I truly enjoyed my job. Very soon I joined a niche adventure company as a co-founder and spent over two decades contributing in its pioneering growth story from a local niche service provider to a multi-award winning nationwide tour operator.
Realizing the need and unmet demand for a dedicated, high quality Indian brand for active, experiential holidays, I founded Active India in 2011 to offer a wide range of safe, authentic and engaging activities with a focus on high quality, tailor-made services for truly personalized and memorable India experiences. We are proud that within a short span of our operations, Active India has seen great success and just last year was awarded the prestigious National Tourism Award for the Best Adventure Tour Operator."
Please share a unique travel experience you will never forget.
"Having had the privilege to travel across Asia, Europe and North America, I have had my fair share of adventures and experiences over the years. However, the one that is truly unique and unforgettable, comes from my first attempt to summit the peak Deo Tibba (6001m) one of the highest peaks in eastern end of Pir Panjal range of Himalayas. The entire expedition, from being one of my first “serious” climbs and accompanied by my dear friend and world-renowned mountaineer, Fred Harper, was a deeply transformative experience. The scenes of unparalleled beauty and immense power of nature combined with the thrill and vulnerability of adventure and wilderness have remained so vivid until this day. Unfortunately, Fred passed away soon after in 2000, which further made this experience a unique privilege and personal honor to have shared my rope with someone I admired and learnt so much from. "
Ravi's favorite itineraries and travel advice
Top itineraries and travel advice
With its vivid colors, glittering heritage, fascinating cities, and beautiful countryside from lush green oases to the Thar desert, North India is like nowhere else on earth....
This exciting 10-day itinerary introduces travelers to South India's serene state of Kerala. Kicking off in the historic city of Cochin, located on the Arabian Sea, you'll set...
This relaxing seven-day itinerary is the perfect way to explore Kerala at an easy pace. Spend the night on a houseboat in the backwaters, enjoy beautiful Marari beach, trek...
Family itineraries
This exotic itinerary is the ultimate introduction to South India's state of Kerala—an up-and-coming destination for savvy travelers. Kick off with an Arabian Sea sunset in...
Spend a week and a half exploring the state of Rajasthan with the family on this packed 10-day itinerary. You'll start and end your trip in lively Delhi, completing a circuit...
Spend a week discovering India's culture and history with this immersive family tour. Start in the vibrant city of Mumbai to stroll the greenery of Kamala Nehru Park, see...
Luxury itineraries
Admire some of India's most spectacular buildings, have cooking lessons with a local family, and spot wildlife on this 13-day cultural tour of Rajasthan. In Agra, you'll marvel...
Come face to face with some of India's most amazing wildlife on this 12-day tiger and temple itinerary through the heart of Central India. Start in Delhi, where you'll take a...
This South Indian adventure gets to the heart of Kerala's spectacular layered landscapes. After touring the historic city of Cochin, you and your guide will drive toward tea...
Road trip itineraries
Only an hour’s flight from Delhi, Ladakh looks like nowhere else on earth. Turquoise lakes reflect snow-dusted peaks. Monasteries tower like beehives over the stark,...
The eastern end of the Himalaya and their neighboring foothills is one of the least-visited sections of the mountain range, but other travelers' loss is your gain as you explore...
With a week to visit Ladakh, you'll have the chance to see all of the region's highlights. Start by exploring the city of Leh and touring the surrounding monasteries, then head...
Honeymoon itineraries
With its colorful culture and rich history, Rajasthan is a splendid display of a unique Indian heritage. This trip focuses on spectacular sights of India’s largest state,...
Ten days in India is enough to go beyond the highlights of one region, enjoying off-the-beaten-path sites or remote locales that wouldn't be possible with a shorter trip. Pair a...
Spend nine days in northern India, learning all about its food, culture, and history. Start in Delhi sightseeing and tasting its street food, feast on Peshawari cuisine in Agra...
Recent trip reviews for Ravi
Active India and Ravi were awesome!
India
|
Mar 25 - Apr 4, 2024
We had a seamless trip put together in a short timeframe. Besides the amazing sites and people in India, we especially were grateful for transfer agents, guides, and drivers. They were all well versed in what we were doing, easy to commicate with, and made our trip to India very enjoyable.
Kim Kim made our trip easy to plan, smooth to execute and we were well cared for the entire trip!
India
|
Mar 25 - Apr 4, 2024
Jam-packed Itinerary: Delhi, Agra, Ahmedabad, and tour of Kerala
India
|
Mar 18 - Mar 29, 2024
India is worth visiting.
India
|
Feb 29 - Mar 11, 2024
The local representative from Active India Tour met us at our hotel in Delhi to greet us and provide us with paperworks for our tour. We visited Delhi for the day and the next morning we took a flight to Jaiselmar to start our tour through several cities including Jodhpur, Udaipur, Pushkar, Jaipur, Agra and return to Delhi. Rahul was our... Read more
Amazing trip with Active India
India
|
Feb 24 - Feb 28, 2024
Dear Berat
Thank you so much for taking out time and sharing reviews of your recent trip to India! We are pleased to hear that you had a nice and enjoyable time while traveling with us. Thanks for your kind words and appreciation for the guides, driver, and all other Active India team members.
It was truly a pleasure meeting with you and knowing you in person.
I look forward to welcoming you again for another India experience,
Best Wishes,
Ravi & Team Active India
Daughter Mother trip to Northern India
India
|
Feb 18 - Feb 27, 2024
Dear Mary,
Namaste!
Thank you so much for your reviews. we are happy to hear you and your daughter had a nice and enjoyable trip to India. Pleased to hear your positive impression of the itinerary/trip plan and appreciation for our local guides, Car, and driver. Your positive feedback is very motivating for me and my team to make efforts to improve further our services.
we look forward to welcoming you again in India for another adventure,
Best Regards,
Ravi
Our trip to Kerala was wonderful.
India
|
Jan 29 - Feb 11, 2024
Dear Karen,
Thank you so much for taking out time and sharing trip reviews of your recent tour. we are happy to hear that you had a nice and enjoyable time while traveling with us in the southern part of India - Kerala.
We look forward to welcoming you for another unforgettable journey in India,
Best Regards,
Ravi
Best Regards
Ravi
ACTIVE INDIA helped us plan the trip of a lifetime
India
|
Dec 27 - Jan 3, 2024
Thank you so much for taking out time to share your detailed reviews about your recent holiday trip to India! We are delighted to hear that your experience in India was wonderful and that you both enjoyed every moment of your holiday. We are pleased to hear that you have found our guides, drivers, and operational team very knowledgeable, professional, and friendly. The hospitality of our people is something we greatly value, and it's great that you had such a positive... Read more
Room for improvement...
India
|
Dec 16 - Dec 31, 2023
- guide (who was very nice and friendly) was not knowledgeable and added no real insight or value to our destinations
- itinerary was over-crammed, included nothing but visits to most prominent tourist sites of historic monuments.
- no culture, art, connection to local life
- forced stops on selected tourist shops where we felt like we were held hostage and exploited
- several... Read more
Many thanks for sharing your thoughts about the recent group tour you were traveling with. While
I understand your point of concern particularly about hotels and itinerary, however, I hope you agree with me since the itinerary being tailored was discussed with all participants and trip leader several times. Many changes have been made specifically as per the recommendation of the group members.
The hotels used were best in class as per Indian standards, however, I do agree one... Read more
2-weeks in India with an injury
India
|
Dec 20 - Jan 2, 2024
Thank you so much for taking out time and sharing your experience while traveling with us in India! We are pleased to hear that your experience in India was wonderful and that both you & Kyle have enjoyed every moment of the India Holiday tour despite Kyel's Injury. We truly appreciate your kind words and appreciation. I must also thank you for your very positive and humble attitude which made it easy for me and my team. On behalf of the entire Active India team, I thank... Read more