10-Day Heritage Tour of Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and Varanasi

• Meet your tour guide at a pre-decided location.
• Be picked up from the airport and transferred to your hotel.
• Take some rest in the afternoon.
• Enjoy a welcome dinner of authentic Indian cuisine, introducing you to the country's food culture.

Stay overnight in Delhi at The Lalit, New Delhi.

• Enjoy a sumptuous breakfast before starting your Delhi tour with sightseeing at the Laxminarayan Temple, the first large-scale Hindu temple built in Delhi.
• Visit Delhi's most loved public space, India Gate, modelled on Paris' Arc de Triomphe.
• Continue to the captivating Red Fort and the highest brick minaret in the world.
• See Qutab Minar and Humayun's Tomb, the first garden tomb in the Indian subcontinent.

• After breakfast, drive to Jaipur, the capital city of Rajasthan, also known as the 'Pink City' because it was coloured in terracotta pink in 1876 to welcome Prince Albert and Queen Victoria.
• Start in front of the iconic Hawa Mahal and begin a guided 2.5-hour walk through vibrant bazaars, chatting and mingling with vendors and locals, and observing local artisan workshops where you will get hands-on experience of local crafts and arts.
• You may enjoy a rickshaw ride into some of the small chowkris (blocks) of the city, walk around, and meet people from different artisan communities.

Stay overnight in Jaipur.

• Begin the day exploring Jaipur's iconic monuments, starting with a visit to the magnificent Amber Fort, also known as Amer Fort.
• Take a guided walking tour through narrow lanes, havelis, and temples on the way to the City Palace, an 18th-century royal residence.
• Continue to the adjacent astronomical observatory of Jaipur, known as Jantar Mantar. This UNESCO World Heritage Site features the world's largest stone sundial.
• Discover the magnificent Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds), with its honeycombed sandstone windows from which the ladies of the royal household would watch everyday life pass by.

Stay overnight in Jaipur.

• Enjoy a leisurely morning.
• Drive to the deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri, built by the great Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 16th century. This short-lived capital of the Mughal Empire is a fine example of a Mughal walled city.
• Continue to Agra, home to one of the world's most famous buildings, the majestic Taj Mahal, and appreciate the location of your luxury hotel, only within walking distance of the Taj Mahal.

Stay overnight in Agra.

• Enjoy your breakfast.
• Visit the Taj Mahal, with its shimmering marble dome and towers reflected in landscaped pools. This architectural marvel, built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan for his favourite wife Mumtaz, takes on different colours throughout the day and is inlaid with black marble and semi-precious stones.
• Discover the World Heritage-listed Agra Fort and the Tomb of I'timad-ud-Daulah, known as the Baby Taj, during a tour of some of Agra's other architectural wonders.

Stay overnight in Agra.

• Drive 4 hours to Delhi in a private vehicle.
• Fly to India's holiest Hindu city, Varanasi, thought to be over 3,000 years old and situated along the sacred River Ganges. Make your way to the scenic Ganges riverfront.
• Witness the Aarti Ceremony - a Hindu devotional ritual performed on the banks of the Ganges, using fire as an offering to Maa Ganga, goddess of India's holiest river. The ritual lasts a little less than an hour near Dashashwamedh Ghat.
• Let your guide take you to your boat for a cruise at dusk along the Ganges while listening to the sounds of traditional Indian music and experiencing Varanasi's night views from the river.

Stay overnight in Varanasi.

• Drift slowly down the Ganges as you watch the ghats come to life and hundreds of devotees gather to wash in the holy water.
• Observe the hundreds of devotees who gather to bathe in the sacred river. Hindus believe that taking a dip in the holy Ganges washes away their sins, and that to die and be cremated on its banks liberates them from the endless cycle of death and rebirth.
• Continue sightseeing of the temples, and let your guide introduce the history associated with Manikarnika Ghat, which is famous for its daily cremations.
• Visit the ghat to observe the passage of death rituals that Hindus perform. Hindus believe that humans are reborn according to their karma and perform these rituals so that the departed soul can rest in peace.
• Observe Dashashwamedh Ghat to the end, where one can see life and death together.

Stay overnight in Varanasi.

• Enjoy your breakfast and prepare for an early start to your private tour just before dawn.
• Visit the Ganges to meet your boat and boatman.
• Cruise eastward at sunrise for magical orange and honey-hued views.
• Observe an amazing variety of activities near the stone steps known as ghats. There are almost a hundred of them.
• Take a direct flight from Varanasi to Delhi in the afternoon.

Stay overnight in Delhi.

• Transfer to Delhi Airport to board your onward flight.