In general...........

Please note that I added some photos to my post of Aug 29, 2008 (other Temples etc.)

Our next yatra planning is under way now. Before I go into those details,I want to mention a few tips.
Plan ahead: Look for bargain airfare if you are from outside India. We started with British Airways in 2006. The main reason being, to fly from Boston and they have direct flights to Chennai from London. No Mumbai mess to face!!!
The airlines staff was curteous, the food was good, the baggage was not lost, it arrived on time at both ends. So, again in 2007, we booked by BA. Now it is 2008. We are doing the same. What I did not know was that they also have provision for the frequent flyer miles. You have to sign up for it under 'executive member'. With that fancy name, I did not identify it as a frequent flyer type. So, I lost mileage for my previous trips. Now that they will start flights to Hyderabad in December, it is even more convinient for us.
Shop around:
Check other airlines also for comparison. It is worth the time. Some airlines match with any other web-published lower price if you challenge within a limited time specified on their websites. (you have to search for the small print though). You should have already confirmed a ticket with them before you claim.
If you are not on a limited budget, want to go with a group, then there are many organizations that travel in groups. For us, that was more expensive. So, we preferred to book our own air travel and use the local travel agents in India for domestic arrangements. Some of my friends went with the Chinmaya mission group and had great time.
Take your medications, vitamins, special snacks and so on. Have a small first-aid kit also. Carry a small notebook to keep tag of the day's events.
In Kerala hotels, they served warm/hot water to drink. Some added herbs. I enjoyed the idea. But if you don't like, you can always buy a bottle of water. Nirmala did not want the parboiled rice. But was happy to see that they had regular white rice - just ask for it.
Now our next yatra is to see more of the Jyothir lingams. As you know, we covered Rameswaram, Srisailam, Varanasi and Kedarnath. There are 8 more to see. Also like to see the 5 vinayakas and Shiridi. If any of my readers out there have any suggestions or comments please feel free to leave them here. We need all the help we can get. We are considering Vijaya or Lakshmi travels in Chennai. If anyone had any experience (good or bad) please let us know.
Also, do you have any comments on Karunamayi ashram and their activities (near Nellore)?