Puducherry

Puducherry, still affectionately called Pondy, is a small coastal town with a split personality that makes it utterly charming. In White Town, the old French quarter, mustard-yellow villas with blue shutters line quiet streets such as Rue Romain Rolland and Rue Suffren, bougainvillea spills over the walls and the Promenade runs along the Bay of Bengal. A few streets inland, the Tamil quarter is alive with temples, markets and traditional homes with carved verandahs.

Our Puducherry weekends are designed for slow travel. You stay in a heritage boutique hotel in White Town and begin with a guided heritage walk through the French and Tamil quarters, visiting the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and the seafront Notre Dame des Anges church. Day two goes to Auroville, the experimental international township, for the Matrimandir viewing point and its gardens, followed by a boat ride through the backwaters to the sandbar at Paradise Beach. Mornings begin with sunrise on the Promenade; evenings end with wood-fired pizza or Creole curry in a courtyard café. On the way in from Chennai, we stop at Mahabalipuram's UNESCO-listed Shore Temple and Arjuna's Penance.

Pondy is perfect for couples, friends on a short break and families who prefer a relaxed pace over packed itineraries. It is also a good add-on to a Chennai or Tamil Nadu temple trip. The best months are October to March, when the sea breeze takes the edge off the heat, although the northeast monsoon can bring heavy rain in November. Hire a bicycle or scooter, keep your days unhurried, and leave room for long breakfasts and bookshop browsing.