Must-see attractions in India

  • Mehrangarh Fort.

    Mehrangarh

    Jodhpur

    Rising perpendicular and impregnable from a rocky hill that itself stands 120m above Jodhpur’s skyline, Mehrangarh is one of the most magnificent forts in…

  • Taj Mahal, Agra, India

    Taj Mahal

    Agra

    Poet Rabindranath Tagore described it as 'a teardrop on the cheek of eternity'; Rudyard Kipling as 'the embodiment of all things pure'; while its creator,…

  • India, Uttar Pradesh, Agra, Agra Fort, Hall of Public Audience

    Agra Fort

    Agra

    With the Taj Mahal overshadowing it, one can easily forget that Agra has one of the finest Mughal forts in India. Walking through courtyard after…

  • City Palace architecture

    City Palace

    Jaipur

    A complex of courtyards, gardens and buildings, the impressive City Palace is right in the centre of the Old City. The outer wall was built by Jai Singh…

  • India, Rajasthan, Jaipur, Amber Fort

    Amber Fort

    Eastern Rajasthan

    This magnificent fort comprises an extensive palace complex, built from pale yellow and pink sandstone, and white marble, and is divided into four main…

  • Stucco work in the Maratha Darbar Hall in Thanjavur Palace, Tanjore, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India . (Photo by: IndiaPictures/UIG via Getty Images)

    Royal Palace

    Thanjavur (Tanjore)

    Thanjavur’s royal palace is a mixed bag of ruin and renovation, superb art and random royal paraphernalia. The mazelike complex was constructed partly by…

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    Girnar Hill

    Gujarat & Diu

    This sacred mountain, rising dramatically from the plains, is covered with Jain and Hindu temples and is a major pilgrimage site. However, as with any…

  • Carved wheel of the Sun Temple at Konark.

    Sun Temple

    Odisha

    Conceived as the cosmic chariot of the sun god Surya, this massive, breathtakingly splendid temple was constructed in the mid-13th century, probably by…

  • Asura on Madurai Temple Gopuram

    Meenakshi Amman Temple

    Madurai

    The colourful abode of the triple-breasted warrior goddess Meenakshi (‘fish-eyed’ – an epithet for perfect eyes in classical Tamil poetry) is generally…

  • Thanjavur (Tanjore) - Brihadishwara Temple, Tamil Nadu, India - stock photo

    Brihadeeshwara Temple

    Thanjavur (Tanjore)

    Come here twice: in the morning, when the honey-hued granite begins to assert its dominance over the white dawn sunshine, and in the evening, when the…

  • Golden Temple

    Amritsar

    The legendary Golden Temple is actually just a small part of this huge gurdwara complex, known to Sikhs as Harmandir Sahib. Spiritually, the focus of…

  • Dilkhusha (Tomb of Muhammad Quli Khan)

    Mehrauli Archaeological Park

    Delhi

    There are extraordinary riches scattered around Mehrauli, with more than 440 monuments – from the 10th century to the British era – dotting a forest and…

  • Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India, Asia, Indian Sub-Continent

    Kanha Tiger Reserve

    Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh

    Madhya Pradesh is the king of the jungle when it comes to tiger parks, and Kanha is its most famous. The forests are vast, and while your chances of…

  • Lucknow , Bada Imambara

    Bara Imambara

    Lucknow

    This colossal imambara (Shiite tomb complex) is worth seeing in its own right, but the highly unusual labyrinth of corridors inside its upper floors make…

  • Interior of royal bath

    Golconda Fort

    Hyderabad

    Hyderabad's most impressive sight, this monumental fort lies on the western edge of town. In the 16th century the Qutb Shahs made Golconda a fortified…

  • Udaipur, Rajasthan, India

    City Palace Museum

    Udaipur

    The main part of the City Palace is open as the City Palace Museum, with rooms extravagantly decorated with mirrors, tiles and paintings, and housing a…

  • Belur Math in Calcutta, West Bengal, India. (Photo by: IndiaPictures/UIG via Getty Images)

    Belur Math

    Kolkata (Calcutta)

    Set very attractively amid palms and manicured lawns, this large religious centre is the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Mission, inspired by 19th-century…

  • Large saltwater crocodile basking on an estuarine mudbank, Bhitarkanika National Park.

    Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary

    Odisha

    Three rivers flow out to sea at Bhitarkanika, forming a tidal maze of muddy creeks and mangroves. This is India’s second-largest mangrove region, and most…

  • Women plucking tea at Makaibari tea plantation, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India, Asia

    Makaibari

    West Bengal

    If you like tea, you should visit this celebrated organic and biodynamic Darjeeling tea estate. Walk-in visits to the processing factory, with huge…

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    Shatrunjaya

    Gujarat & Diu

    One of Jainism’s holiest pilgrimage sites, Shatrunjaya is an incredible hill studded with temples, some of which are over 900 years old. It's said that…

  • Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve

    Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh

    If your only reason for visiting a tiger reserve in India is to see a tiger, look no further. A couple of days at Bandhavgarh should net you a tiger…

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    Elephanta Island

    Mumbai (Bombay)

    Northeast of the Gateway of India in Mumbai Harbour, the rock-cut temples on Gharapuri, better known as Elephanta Island, are a Unesco World Heritage Site…

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    Uparkot Fort

    Gujarat & Diu

    This ancient fort is believed to have been built in 319 BC by the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta, though it has been extended many times. In places the…

  • Kailas Temple, Ellora

    Kailasa Temple

    Maharashtra

    One of India’s greatest monuments, this astonishing temple, carved from solid rock, was built by King Krishna I in AD 760 to represent Mt Kailasa (Kailash…

  • Cave Temples

    Karnataka

    Badami’s highlights are its beautiful cave temples, three Hindu and one Jain, which display exquisite sculptures and intricate carvings. They're a…

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    Gir National Park

    Gujarat & Diu

    Early-morning sunlight filters through the leaves and shadows skittle through the undergrowth. Suddenly, the silence is broken by the high-pitched alarm…

  • Humayun's Tomb complex. New Delhi, India

    Humayun’s Tomb

    Delhi

    Humayun’s tomb is sublimely well proportioned, seeming to float above its symmetrical gardens. It's thought to have inspired the Taj Mahal, which it…

  • (GERMANY OUT) Indien, Haryana, Chandigarh - Monument "Open Hand" entworfen von dem franzoesischen Architekten Le Corbusier     (Photo by Manoli Weber/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

    Capitol Complex

    Chandigarh

    At the epicentre of Le Corbusier’s planned city are the imposing concrete High Court, Secretariat and Vidhan Sabha, shared by the states of Punjab and…

  • Boats on River Ganges

    Manikarnika Ghat

    Varanasi

    Manikarnika Ghat, the main burning ghat, is the most auspicious place for a Hindu to be cremated. Dead bodies are handled by outcasts known as doms, and…

  • Beatles Ashram (Chaurasi Kutia) in Rishikesh, Northern India. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Ashram. Meditation rooms. Iconic place where the Beatles stayed and learnt meditation; Shutterstock ID 2244431869; GL: 65050; netsuite: 65050; full: Poi; name: Lenczycki
2244431869
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    Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Ashram

    Rishikesh

    Just south of Swarg Ashram is what’s left of the original Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Ashram, where the Beatles stayed and wrote much of the White Album (and a…

  • City Palace viewed from Lake Pichola, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India

    City Palace

    Udaipur

    Surmounted by balconies, towers and cupolas towering over the lake, the imposing City Palace is Rajasthan’s largest palace, with a facade 244m long and 30…

  • Victoria Memorial, Kolkata

    Victoria Memorial

    Kolkata (Calcutta)

    The incredible Victoria Memorial is a vast, beautifully proportioned festival of white marble: think US Capitol meets Taj Mahal. Had it been built for a…

  • Government Museum exterior, Chennai. Tamil Nadu, India (2004)

    Government Museum

    Chennai (Madras)

    Housed across from the striking British-built Pantheon Complex, this excellent museum is Chennai’s best. The big highlight is building 3, the Bronze…

  • LAKSHMANA TEMPLE: Facade.Western Group, Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India
1368163449
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    Lakshmana Temple

    Khajuraho

    The large Lakshmana Temple took 20 years to build and was completed in about AD 954 during the reign of Dhanga, according to an inscription in its mandapa…

  • Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah Tomb

    Hazrat Nizam-ud-din Dargah

    Delhi

    Visiting the marble shrine of Muslim Sufi saint Nizam-ud-din Auliya is Delhi's most mystical, magical experience. The dargah is hidden away in a tangle of…

  • Akshardham temple

    Akshardham Temple

    Delhi

    Delhi's largest temple, the Gujarati Hindu Swaminarayan Group’s Akshardham Temple was built in 2005, and is breathtakingly lavish. Artisans used ancient…

  • Botanical Garden

    Botanical Gardens

    Kolkata (Calcutta)

    Despite being an awkward journey by public transport, Kolkata’s lovely 109-hectare Botanical Gardens makes for a great place to escape from the city’s…

  • (GERMANY OUT) India Uttaranchal - Haridwar: prayer at Har-ki-Pauri Ghat, Ganges - 2010 (Photo by Bhattacharya/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

    Har-ki-Pairi Ghat

    Haridwar

    Har-ki-Pairi (The Footstep of God) is where Vishnu is said to have dropped some divine nectar and left behind a footprint. Every evening, hundreds of…

  • [UNVERIFIED CONTENT] One of the highlights of Chandigarh is the Rock Garden designed by local artist Nek Chand.

    Nek Chand Rock Garden

    Chandigarh

    Chandigarh's Rock Garden is unique: it's the surreal fantasy of the much-missed Nek Chand (1924–2015), a local transport official who, starting in 1957,…

  • Hawa Mahal palace, Jaipur

    Hawa Mahal

    Jaipur

    Jaipur’s most-distinctive landmark, the Hawa Mahal is an extraordinary pink-painted, delicately honeycombed hive that rises a dizzying five storeys. It…

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