Travel Vaccines for India

Recommended Vaccines for India

✅ All Travellers

• Hepatitis A — High risk throughout India. Recommended for all travellers.
• Typhoid Fever — India accounts for a large proportion of global typhoid cases. Strongly recommended for all travellers.
• COVID-19, Influenza, MMR, Routine vaccines (including polio booster) — Ensure all are current.

⚠️ Most Travellers

• Hepatitis B — Recommended for most travellers, especially those receiving medical or dental care.
• Rabies — India has the highest number of rabies deaths globally. Pre-exposure vaccination strongly recommended for all travellers, especially children and those visiting rural areas.
• Dengue — Risk throughout India, especially during and after the monsoon season. No dengue vaccine is currently available in Canada — bite prevention is essential.
• Cholera — Consider for travellers visiting areas with poor sanitation during monsoon season.

🔵 Some Travellers

• Japanese Encephalitis — Recommended for travellers spending 1+ months in rural agricultural areas (Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and southern states).
• Malaria prophylaxis — Risk throughout much of India. Recommended for most itineraries outside major city centres.
• Meningococcal — Consider for crowded settings.
• Yellow Fever (Entry Requirement) — India requires proof of Yellow Fever vaccination if arriving from or transiting through an endemic country. Failure to show proof may result in quarantine.

Travellers’ Diarrhea

Risk: Very high — one of the highest-risk destinations globally. Affects up to 60–70% of travellers, even at upscale hotels. Your pharmacist will prescribe a standby antibiotic (azithromycin preferred).

Malaria

P. falciparum and P. vivax. Higher risk in eastern and northeastern states and forested areas. Lower risk in major cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata) but not zero. No risk above 2,000 m altitude.

Other Health Risks

Air Quality

Significant concern in Delhi and northern cities, especially October–February. Consider an N95/KN95 mask for travellers with respiratory conditions.

Altitude Illness

Relevant for travellers to Ladakh, hill stations above 2,500 m, or Himalayan trekking. Acetazolamide (Diamox) may be recommended.

Medical Care

Excellent private hospitals in major cities (Apollo, Fortis, Max). Care in rural areas is extremely limited. Travel health insurance with emergency evacuation is essential. Emergency: 112.