A pilgrimage is not a sightseeing tour with temples in it, and planning one as though it were is the most common mistake we see. The observances come first; the itinerary is built around them.
Start by choosing the circuit. The four principal Buddhist sites, Lumbini, Bodh Gaya, Sarnath and Kushinagar, form the core, and a week covers them comfortably. Adding Rajgir, Nalanda and Sravasti turns it into ten days.
Pace matters more than distance. We build in early mornings for puja at Bodh Gaya and Sarnath, then keep the afternoons light. Road transfers in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are slower than the map suggests, so we allow generous margins rather than promising times we cannot keep.
If elderly relatives are travelling, say so at booking. It changes the hotels we choose, whether we arrange wheelchair assistance at the airports, and how we split the longer drives.
Food is rarely a problem: vegetarian catering is the default on all our pilgrimage departures, and the food at the Sri Lankan monastery guesthouses will taste like home.
