Your north India trip would be incomplete without visiting these 2 iconic cities. History, food, culture and shopping!
🗓️ High level plan
One could choose to do a separate weekend trip from Delhi to each of these cities – Jaipur (2-3 days) & Agra (1-2 days). Since we were on a long vacation, we covered both the cities in one stretch.
- Jaipur – Hawa Mahal, Amber Fort, City Palace, Jantar Mantar
- Agra – Taj Mahal, Mehtab Bagh, Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri
🚊Transport
Jaipur: Took a direct flight from Bangalore to Jaipur. For sightseeing in Jaipur we booked Ola/ Uber rental for the required number of hours
Agra: We booked a cab through a local agency from Jaipur – it costed us around INR 6,000 (including tolls) for a sedan. In Agra, we again used Ola/ Uber rental for sightseeing. Took a direct Indigo flight back to Bangalore from Agra
🏠 Stay
Since this was a family trip, we decided to stay in Marriott hotels using my Bonvoy Points. You can find a lot of Airbnbs, hostels and budget hotels as well in these two cities
Jaipur – We stayed in Jaipur Marriott hotel, located very close to Patrika Gate. Well maintained property with great hospitality. They also have a great breakfast spread
Agra – We stayed in a suite in ITC Mughal – a 20+ acre property which houses 3 gardens, a train engine, a lake and a fountain. It is a 40 year old property and hence some facilities in the room are outdated. One other major issue is this property doesn’t have lifts to rooms, so it becomes a challenge for old people if the rooms are on the higher floors
📝 Detailed itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Jaipur
We landed in Jaipur late afternoon. Checked in to the hotel and rested for a while. Since our hotel was quite close to Patrika Gate, we decided to visit it. Every corner of the gate has variety of intricate paintings – it serves as a picturesque backdrop for some insta-worthy pics. The ideal time to be visit would be just before sunset, so that one can see the gate both in natural light and artificial light in the night. One can also spend some time in the beautiful park behind the gate
Day 2: Hawa Mahal, City Palace, Jantar Mantar, Birla Mandir
- Headed to City Palace the first thing in the morning and spent some time going around the Palace. The architecture, detailing and grandeur of the royal residence is breathtaking. It houses several buildings, courtyards, galleries and offices. One can easily spend 2-3 hours strolling around. Then spent some time in Jantar Mantar understanding different astronomical instruments which were used to measure various aspects such as time, altitude, latitude and longitude of celestial bodies
- Had lunch at LMB restaurant – their Rajasthani Thaali which had 15+ items but the taste was very average. From one of the locals, we got to know that it is actually famous for sweet dishes – so we purchased some Ghewar which was pretty good
- Then headed to Hawa Mahal and explored the ornate windows and various halls. Went to the opposite side of the entrance to get a roadside view of Hawa Mahal (this is the picture you would have probably come across whenever you’ve searched Hawa Mahal). The footpath is narrow and is generally very crowded so you won’t be able to click a good photo. Would suggest one to visit one of the cafes located across the road to get a better picture (they charge INR 250 entry fees)
- On the way back to hotel, we made a quick stop at Birla Mandir. There are few steps to be climbed to reach the beautiful marble temple. You get a good view of the city as well from the top
Day 3: Amber Fort, Jaigarh Fort, Nahargarh Fort, Jal Mahal, Albert Hall museum
- Headed straight to Amber fort (entry fee is INR 100). We took our taxi all the way up to the fort. One can choose to go on an elephant by parking the car at the base of the fort too (available only in the mornings till 11am and costs INR 1100 per ride). Amber fort is huge – the most famous parts include Sheesha Mahal (Palace of mirrors), Diwan-e-Aam, Diwan-e-Khas, and Ganesh Pol. From the top of the fort, you can view Maota lake which is the main source of water for the Amber Palace. We had lunch at 1135 AD – it is located within the Amber fort and is a must visit if you want to witness royal dining experience
- Headed to Jaigarh fort next (entry fee – INR 150 per person). The Royal families still own this fort. It houses Jaivana Canon – one of the world’s largest cannon on the wheel. It also offers panoramic views of Aravalli hills and Amber fort. There are also a few outlets selling stone jewellery and Jaipur sarees within the fort area
- Then headed to Nahargarh fort (entry fee – INR 50 per person). This fort offers breathtaking views of the Jaipur city – which gets even prettier during sunrise or sunset. Then headed to the Jal Mahal view point to get a view of the palace which is right in the middle of a lake. On the way back to hotel, made a stop at the Albert Hall museum which gets lit up in colorful lights post sunset
Day 4: Fatehpur Sikri, Agra – Mehtab Bagh
- Headed to Fatehpur Sikri right after breakfast. It is at a slight deviation from the Jaipur-Agra highway. You need to park your vehicle and take shuttle to reach the fort area. You can take a guide at the parking area if you are interested in knowing more details. One can easily spend 2-3 hours exploring this fort which was once the residence of Akbar and his three queens. Must visit monuments include Panch Mahal, Buland Darwaza and Salim Chishti’s darga
- Then headed to Agra. We checked in and explored the ITC Mughal resort a bit. In the evening we went to Mehtab Bagh (entry ticket is INR 30) around 5PM. We get an amazing view of Taj and Yamuna river from this beautiful garden. We watched the sunset and headed back to the resort. Grabbed dinner at Salt Cafe – a greek style restaurant with music
Day 5: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort
- Got ready early and reached Taj Mahal gate early in the morning. We hired a govt. approved guide for INR 500. Guide explained the history and the importance of each area in detail. They even volunteer to click your pictures – they know the right spots and angles. After exploring various points in the garden area, we then headed to the main mausoleum area. There is a separate entry fee for mausoleum area but it is definitely worth it – seeing the architectural marvel that the Taj Mahal is from up so close was a truly amazing experience. We spent around 3 hours in total and then headed back to the resort
- One could also visit Agra fort, we chose to skip it since we had our return flight that afternoon. We checked out of the resort and headed to airport to catch our return flight to Bangalore (Indigo operates direct flights)
🧳 AK’s Travel Tidbits 🧳
Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays
Plan to reach Taj Mahal at 6AM (opening time). This way you can enjoy the place in peace since there will be no crowd at all
Purchase tickets online so that you can avoid long queue at the counter
Roamantic Affair 