DHARAVI SLUM TOURS

On our tours, you will see why Dharavi is the heart of small scale industries in Mumbai (annual turnover is approximately US$ 665 million). We show you a wide range of these activities- from recycling, the making of clay pots, embroidery, bakery, soap factory, leather tanning, papad (poppadom) making and many others, most of which take place in very small spaces.

We also pass by the residential areas, where you really get a feel of how the people are living and you see the sense of community and spirit that exists in the area. People from all over India and from all religions live in Dharavi, and you will see this diversity- for example there are Hindu temples, mosques and churches. It is quite an adventure to pass through the narrow alleys, and you will almost certainly lose your sense of direction!

Mumbai has a lot of things to see besides Dharavi. We do more traditional sightseeing tours, which can be combined with the slum tour in one action packed day on our slum and sightseeing tour! On this full day tour, you do the Dharavi tour in the morning, have lunch (normally vegetarian, but you can choose) and then do the sightseeing in the afternoon.

The tours are not just about observing. One of our guides, who all speak very good English and have a wide knowledge of the area, will explain the industry and talk about the people including the issues that they face. You are encouraged to ask questions!

We want the tour to be as comfortable for you as possible and so we have a NO TIPS POLICY. The guides are paid a good wage and are rewarded on the basis of the questionnaires which we ask everybody to fill out after the tour.

We do not believe that we should be showing places affecting the poorer members of society and profit from it. We started a Community Centre in Dharavi in May 2007 and in July 2009, through our newly created NGO Reality Cares, we started a kindergarten. The revenues from the tours fund these activities. We offer a wide range of tours at a very reasonable price, the idea being that we want the tour to be accessible to all. If there are any schools in Mumbai interested in doing this tour, please click here. Although the office is not open on Sunday and Bank Holidays, TOURS RUN EVERY DAY