Raj Ghat: The tour will begin with a visit to Raj Ghat, a simple memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. Originally it was the name of a historic ghat of Old Delhi (Shahjahanabad) on the banks of Yamuna River. It is a black marble platform that marks the spot of Mahatma Gandhi’s cremation, on 31 January 1948, a day after his assassination. It is left open to the sky while an eternal flame burns perpetually at one end. Mahatma Gandhi’s is also famously known as the “father of the nation”. A stone footpath flanked by lawns leads to the walled enclosure that houses the memorial. All guests must remove their footwear before entering the Raj Ghat walls.
Red Fort (Lal–Qila): One of the most important buildings of Old Delhi is the Red Fort. The Red Fort is named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone and is adjacent to the older Salimgarh Fort, built by Islam Shah Suri in 1546. The magnificent Red Fort was built during the years 1638 – 48 when the Moghul Empire was at its peak. In 1638 Shahjahan transferred his capital from Agra to Delhi and laid the foundations of Shahjahanabad, the seventh city of Delhi. It is enclosed by a rubble stonewall, with bastions, gates and wickets at intervals. Of its fourteen gates, the important ones are the Mori, Lahori, Ajmeri, Turkman, Kashmiri and Delhi gates, some of which have already been demolished. His famous citadel, the Lal-Qila, or the Red Fort, lying at the town’s northern end on the right bank or the Yamuna and south of Salimgarh, was begun in 1639 and completed after nine years. The Red Fort is different from the Agra fort and is better planned, because at its back lies the experience gained by Shahjahan at Agra, and because it was the work of one hand. It is an irregular octagon, with two long sides on the east and west, and with two main gates, one on the west and the other on the south, called Lahori and Delhi gates respectively. While the walls, gates and a few other structures in the fort are constructed of red sandstone, marble has been largely used in the palaces.
Jama Masjid: The Masjid-i Jahān-Numā is the largest mosque of India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan between 1644 and 1656 at a cost of 1 million rupees, and was inaugurated by an imam from Bukhara, present-day Uzbekistan. The mosque was completed in 1656 AD with three great gates, four towers and two 40 m high minarets constructed of strips of red sandstone and white marble. The courtyard can accommodate more than 25,000 persons. There are three domes on the terrace which are surrounded by the two minarets. On the floor, a total of 899 black borders are marked for worshippers. People stream in and out of the mosque continuously and the presence of a nearby bazaar means that the area is rarely quiet.
Chandni Chowk: You can take rickshaw ride in the bustling bazaar of Chandni Chowk and tour to Khari Baoli spice market to witness the business markets as well as to eat mouth-watering Indian dishes. Chandni Chowk is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, India. The Red Fort monument is located within the market. Chandni Chowk, or the Moonlight Square, was designed and established by Princess Jahanara Begum, Shah Jahan’s favorite daughter, in 1650 CE. Chandni Chowk’s specialty is its variety and authenticity: food, delicacies and sweets of more than 1,000 kinds, sarees with chikan and zari. Enjoy the rickshaw ride at Old Delhi peddling through the narrow by lanes of Chandni Chowk.
New Delhi: New Delhi reflects the legacy of the British left behind. The division between New and Old Delhi is the division between the capitals of the British and the Mughals respectively. The division in the walled city and New Delhi also marks the division in the life-styles. The walled city is all tradition where one will be able to glean a past life-style in all its facets, colors and spells. New Delhi in contrast, is a city trying to live up to the best of 21st century standards.
Qutb Minar: Qutb Minar is the tallest brick minaret in the world. It is listed in UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE. The tower is located in the Mehrauli area of Delhi, India. Qutb-Minar in red and buff stand stone is the highest tower in India. It has a diameter of 14.32 m at the base and about 2.75 m on the top with a height of 72.5 m. Qutbu’d-Din Aibak laid the foundation of Minar in AD 1199 for the use of the mu’azzin (crier) to give calls for prayer and raised the first floor, to which were added three more floors by his successor and son-in-law, Shamsu’d-Din Iltutmish (AD 1211-36). The entirestory are surrounded by a projected balcony encircling the Minar and supported by stone brackets, which are decorated with honeycomb design, more conspicuously in the first floor. Inside the tower, a circular staircase with 379 steps leads to the top.
Rastrapati Bhawan (President’s house): Rastrapati Bhawan is the official home of the President of India, located in New Delhi, India. The main palace building was formerly known as Viceroy’s House. The design of the building fell into the time period of the Edwardian Baroque, a time at which emphasis was placed on the use of heavy classical motifs in order to emphasize power and imperial authority. The design process of the mansion was long, complicated and politically charged. The dome, in the middle, reflects both Indian and British styles. The dome is exactly in the middle of the diagonals between the four corners of the building. The dome is more than twice the height of the building itself. The Mughal Gardens are situated at the back of the Rastrapati Bhawan, incorporate both Mughal and English landscaping styles and feature a great variety of flowers. The Mughal Gardens opens for general public viewing in February–March every year during Udyanotsav. In July 2014, a museum inside Rastrapati Bhawan was inaugurated by President of India Pranab Mukherjee. The museum helps visitors to get an inside view of the Rastrapati Bhawan, its art, architecture and get educated about lives of past presidents.
India Gate: The India Gate, (originally called the All India War Memorial), is a war memorial located astride the Raj path, on the eastern edge of the ‘ceremonial axis’ of New Delhi, India, formerly called Kingsway. India Gate is a memorial to 82,000 soldiers of the undivided Indian Army who died in the period 1914–21 in the First World War, in France, Flanders, Mesopotamia, Persia, East Africa, Gallipoli and elsewhere in the Near and the Far East, and the Third Anglo-Afghan War. 13,300 servicemen’s names, including some soldiers and officers from the United Kingdom, are inscribed on the gate. The India Gate, even though a war memorial, evokes the architectural style of the triumphal arch like the Arch of Constantine, outside the Coliseums in Rome, and is often compared to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, and the Gateway of India in Mumbai. It was designed by Sir Edwin.
Humayun’s Tomb: Humayun’s tomb is the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun in Delhi, India. The tomb was commissioned by Humayun’s son Akbar in 1569-70, and designed by Mirak Mirza Ghiyas, a Persian architect chosen by Bega Begum. Humayun died in 1556, and his widow Hamida Banu Begum, also known as Haji Begum, commenced the construction of his tomb in 1569, fourteen years after his death. It is the first distinct example of proper Mughal style. It is well known that Humayun picked up the principles of Persian architecture during his exile, and he himself is likely to have planned the tomb, although there is no record to that effect. It was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent, and is located in Nizamuddin East, Delhi, India, close to the Dina-panah citadel also known as Purana Qila (Old Fort) that Humayun founded in 1533. It was also the first structure to use red sandstone at such a scale. The tomb was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993 and since then has undergone extensive restoration work, which is complete.
Lotus Temple: Lotus Temple is also known as Bahai Temple which is located in south of Delhi. It is lotus shaped and has rightly been given the name. It is made of marble, cement, dolomite and sand. It is open to all faiths and is an ideal place for meditation and obtaining peace and tranquility. Its founder, Bahaullah (1817-1892), is regarded by Bahai as the most recent in the line of Messengers of God that stretches back beyond recorded time and that includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Zoroaster, Christ and Muhammad.
Please note that Lotus Temple and Red Fort will remain close on Mondays. After sightseeing return back to your hotel and relax.
