Ravi, we found, knew every blade of grass in Tamil Nadu. He took us along minor roads, through tiny settlements we rarely saw by train. He pointed out crops drying on roads, hidden palaces, the wages earned by the road builders in Karnataka, explained the lifestyle of tea-planters in the hill station of Coonoor. He stopped at roadsides for us to buy cashews, salty banana chips and masala chai. And it was a valuable lesson in humility for our sons to see that while we headed off for air-con rooms, Ravi slept on the bus.

In Coonoor, a quieter cousin to Ooty, we stayed at the Taj Garden Retreat, a building from British rule. I had forgotten how much I dislike hill stations, or rather the Westerners who visit them, seemingly to play out their Jewel in the Crown fantasies in musty replicas of Surrey golf clubs. And hill station food is ghastly. But it was worth it to travel the narrow-gauge Nilgiri mountain railway, through the tea plantations that terrace the landscape.

After a night in Bruton Boat House, a beautiful colonial-style hotel overlooking the harbour, we left for a backwater cruise. Our boat was regal, with a veranda that allowed us to observe the Keralan scenery. We sat like Mogul emperors stuffed full of delicious food, waited on by our three staff and soon very bored. One day felt enough.

Given the rigours of travelling, we had factored in to our itinerary plenty of rest days. Mahari Beach Resort between Cochin and Alleppey is quite the earthly paradise, with its exquisite food, hammocks in coconut palms, tropical gardens that lead to the pristine beach. Yet after three days of plopping into the swimming pool - and even after the amazing “chakara” happening - our sons were itching to get back on the bus.

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We had thought the temples of Madurai might tax their patience, but Hinduism, with its fantastic stories, tolerance of non-believers and audience participation is the least dry of religions. And so we queued for blessings, lit candles, crushed coconuts, and had bindis applied to foreheads.

It was my birthday in our last stop, Tanjore, a small temple town, and my presents included a blessing from an elephant and flowers delivered by a man with an extra thumb. Hotel Parisutham was the most modest we stayed in, but pleasingly eccentric. The swimming pool was grandiose, with an elaborate waterfall, but was also home to frogs, crickets and dive-bombing bats.

That night I asked my husband how this trip differed from our six months of backpacking. “We didn't have constant diarrhoea,” he said. That was undeniable. But what we paid for, more than comfort, was convenience; not wasting a whole morning, as we often did, queueing for a railway ticket.

Travelling in style hadn't locked us away from India, from its conversations and people. Our children had drawn us to new experiences. And India, for all its economic boom and supposed globalisation, still showed little sign of wanting to be anything but its own unique self.

Need to know

Cox & Kings (020-7873 5000, www.coxandkings.co.uk) offers a 15-night tailormade Grand Tour of India taking in Mysore, Ooty, Cochin, the backwaters, Madurai, Tanjore and Covelong. From £2,445pp including BA flights, B&B, transfers and excursions. Extensions can be arranged to Northern India, including Agra and the Taj Mahal.

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