Start your North India tour at Delhi, one of the most historic capitals in the world. For the visitor, it serves as a perfect introduction to the cultural wealth, the complexities and the dynamism of India. Jawaharlal Nehru (India’s first Prime Minister after Independence) likened it to “an ancient palimpsest on which layer upon layer of thought and reverie has been inscribed and yet no succeeding layer has completely hidden."
Accommodation
Immerse yourself in the local culture, exploring the sites and staying in our hand picked luxury hotels. At each hotel, you’ll be greeted with smiles and luxurious amenities to make you feel at home.
The hotels you will be staying at are:
Your Journey
The airport representative will introduce you to our Peirce & Leslie colleague who will be carrying a paging board with your name on it. He will escort you to your hotel.
The morning will be at leisure and you may wake up at your own pace for a relaxed breakfast at your hotel. In the afternoon, your escort will meet you in the hotel lobby and you will begin your sightseeing with a visit to one of the architectural triumphs of the Mughal Empire – Humayun’s Tomb. You will next explore Qutb Minar complex, which has many historic monuments. You will then return to your hotel.
This morning, you will meet your escort in the lobby of the hotel. Together, you will start you day with an interesting inner city walk conducted in partnership with the Salaam Baalak Trust. After your visit, lunch will be served at the “Chor Bizarre” restaurant. After lunch, you will drive to the walled city of Old Delhi. Your cycle-rickshaw will pull up at the Jama Masjid, believed to be the largest mosque in India as well as Shah Jahan’s last architectural venture. You will return to your hotel driving through Rajpath or ‘King’s Way’ and the wide tree-lined avenues of New Delhi.
After an early breakfast at your hotel, you will be escorted to the airport to board your flight to Varanasi. On arrival in Varanasi, you will be met by our Peirce & Leslie colleague and escorted to your waiting vehicle. One of India’s seven holy cities, Varanasi is the holiest of them all, and devout Hindus visit Varanasi at least once in their lifetime. In the evening, you will head to the banks of the Holy Ganges to board your boat for a sail on the river.
A visit to Varanasi is incomplete without a tour of the ghats at sunrise. This is the most auspicious moment in Hinduism and people flock to the river to greet the rising sun. After breakfast, you will visit the Silk Cooperative Society. In the afternoon, you will drive to Sarnath, which lies a short distance from the main city. This is the place where The Buddha came in 500 BC to give his first sermon after gaining enlightenment. After your visit to Sarnath, you will return to your hotel.
After a quick cup of tea/coffee, you will be escorted to the airport in time to board your flight to Delhi. In the arrival hall, you will be met by our Peirce & Leslie colleague and together you will drive to Agra. On arrival in Agra, you will check-in to your hotel. At 1600 hours, you will leave the hotel to visit the Taj Mahal. You will stay at the Taj through sunset before returning to your hotel.
This morning, you will have the option of visiting the Taj Mahal at sunrise – early in the morning the Taj is less crowded and the light dancing off the marble façade is magical. Alternatively, you could choose to lie-in. After breakfast you will check out of your hotel and visit the Agra Fort. You will then leave for Ranthambore. En route, about an hour outside Agra, you will stop to see one of the Mughal Empire’s most inspired creations, Fatehpur Sikri. You will then proceed a further hour to Bharatpur, where you will be served lunch at a heritage hotel, “Laxmi Vilas Palace”. After lunch, you will be escorted to Bharatpur railway station in time to board your train to Sawai Madhopur.
Early this morning, tea/coffee will be served at the lodge before you leave for your safari. After your safari, you will return to your hotel to freshen up and have breakfast. You will have enough time to relax before you venture out for your afternoon safari. In between drives, you may like to visit Ranthambore Fort or perhaps the local villages.
After breakfast at your hotel, you will drive to Jaipur. In the afternoon, you will take a walk through the narrow lanes and by-lanes of the old city. You will also spend time strolling through the city’s bazaars. In the evening you will meet Thakur Durga Singh of Mandawa at your hotel. A scion of the erstwhile aristocratic family of Mandawa.
After breakfast, you will visit the City Palace built near the temple of his personal deity Govinda Deva. From the City Palace, you will enter the extraordinary “Jantar Mantar”, the astronomical observatory built by Raja Sawai Jai Singh II in 1827. Lunch will be served at a popular local restaurant. After lunch, you will visit the Fort-Palace at Amber followed by the Anokhi Museum. After your visit you will drive to Dera Amer, a private farm house abutting the forest. Here, you will get to interact with farm’s resident elephants. Dinner will be served at a private venue and will feature fresh homemade food with some of the vegetables grown organically at the farm.
After breakfast, you will be escorted to your flight to Udaipur. In the arrival hall, you will be escorted to your waiting vehicle and driven directly to the old city. Sharing space with cows, elephants, people and bicycles, the walk through the winding lanes gives you a flavour of the lives of people in “small town India”. This will be followed by lunch at Fateh Prakash Hotel’s terrace restaurant. In the evening, you will take a cruise on Lake Pichola, sailing past its picturesque ghats and palaces. The sunset during the cruise will be a memorable end to the day.
This morning you will visit the City Palace and walk through the Crystal Gallery. Next, you will visit Bagore Ki Haveli, a splendid Museum exhibiting Udaipur’s traditional arts and crafts, costumes, musical instruments and marble work. In the afternoon, you will visit The Vintage and Classic Car Collection of the Palace of Udaipur. Tonight, you will participate in a unique culinary experience conducted by a family that was once amongst the premier nobility of Mewar.
The morning will be at leisure and you may wake up at your own pace for a relaxed breakfast. Later, you will be escorted to the airport to board your flight to Delhi. On arrival, you will be met end escorted to your hotel. In the night, you will be escorted to Delhi’s international airport to board your flight back home.
