Day 5. Delhi - Agra
Overnight – The Oberoi Amarvilas
You are assisted with your check-out from your hotel in the morning after your Tour Director has collected your breakfasts and you will be driven to the nearby Nizammudin Railway Station. An Indian railway station is an experience an itself, always abuzz with activity as India’s vast masses travel on the world’s largest rail network. Although the stations premises are not particularly sanitary, your train and your compartment are very clean and the best that India has to offer on its passenger trains, with comfortable and wide reclining seats and a clean and pleasant environment.
You will be on India’s fastest train, the Gattiman Express, which reaches speeds just under 100 miles an hour on parts of this journey. You will be assisted in boarding your compartment, the best available on the train, and your baggage will be ported to the racks above your seats. After an hour and 40 minutes during which you will enjoy your breakfast and watch the countryside zip by, you will be assisted with your disembarkation at Agra Cantt Railway Station, as porters unload your bags.
You are driven to your gorgeous luxury resort where you will drop your bags off and use the facilities to freshen up after your first views of the magnificent Taj Mahal from the spectacular lobby. There is a very small chance that your room might be available for a very early check-in, but you will most likely be assisted with your check-in after lunch. Please note that the Oberoi Amarvilas has a great spa, an amazing pool straight out of the Arabian Nights, and many other facilities. They offer multiple hotel experiences, which can be reserved by us in advance upon request. There are nightly cultural performances at the resort, just as there will be at your resorts in Jaipur, Narlai, and Udaipur.
You will be driven to the first red sandstone fort of North India, the Agra Fort, another UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is an amazing example of a blend of Persian, Indian and European architecture and was built in 1565 by India’s greatest Mughal ruler, Emperor Akbar.
Its royal audience halls, immense stone courtyards, marble mosque and the private royal chambers give us a glimpse of the grandeur of the Mughal Empire.
There are unique views of the Taj Mahal from a section of the fort, including the room where the Taj Mahal’s creator, Emperor Shah Jahan, was imprisoned during the later years of his life by his infamous son and successor, Aurangzeb.
After this you will return to your spectacular resort and its Taj Mahal views. You may want to avoid lunch this afternoon – if you feel hungry, we recommend a light snack so that you are ready for what is in store for dinner. Your resort has a very good multi-cuisine restaurant, as well as an excellent Indian Fine Dining restaurant with tasting menus available. You are assisted with your check-in around 2 pm, if an earlier check-in is not available.
After relaxing and enjoying your memorable view for a little while, you will proceed for a late afternoon visit to the Taj Mahal. Experience the amazing Taj and its surroundings in bright sunlight, culminating with an opportunity to admire the sun’s rays setting on the façade of the world’s finest monument. When you experience the Taj Mahal with a Trehan Journeys Tour Director who shares unique insights into its innumerable facets, some of their passion for this masterpiece may rub off on you. The world’s greatest monument dedicated to love is obviously a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Taj Mahal was completed by Emperor Shah Jahan in 1653 A.D. as a memorial to his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal. This spectacular white marble mausoleum was created by about 22,000 skilled craftsmen, many of whom were brought here from far away nations, and it took twenty two years to complete. When the Taj Mahal closes right after sunset you have the option to ride a golf cart or enjoy the short walk to your resort which is just a few hundred yards away.
Dinner is a delight for your taste-buds this evening. The Peshawri Restaurant at the ITC Mughal Hotel is the smaller sibling of the world’s most famous Indian Restaurant, the Bukhara in the ITC Hotel at Delhi. The food is the same and the cuisine originates from colonial India’s North West Frontier Province, now located in the Afghanistan and Pakistan regions. Everything is slow cooked and both the nonvegetarian and vegetarian offerings are among the very best traditional North Indian food you will eat in your lifetime. You will order ala carte from their menu and watch as the chefs do their magic in the open kitchen. Utensils are not offered and you are supposed to eat with your hands – they do provide a very large bib as this will be a messy meal. For dishes such as Daal Bukhara (slow simmered for 24 hours), the world’s largest naan, the amazingly delicious four-foot Naan Bukhara can serve as a way to scoop the daal. We caution you about overeating this evening as you will have an early start on the next day for the sunrise at the Taj Mahal.
You are assisted with your check-out from your hotel in the morning after your Tour Director has collected your breakfasts and you will be driven to the nearby Nizammudin Railway Station. An Indian railway station is an experience an itself, always abuzz with activity as India’s vast masses travel on the world’s largest rail network. Although the stations premises are not particularly sanitary, your train and your compartment are very clean and the best that India has to offer on its passenger trains, with comfortable and wide reclining seats and a clean and pleasant environment.
You will be on India’s fastest train, the Gattiman Express, which reaches speeds just under 100 miles an hour on parts of this journey. You will be assisted in boarding your compartment, the best available on the train, and your baggage will be ported to the racks above your seats. After an hour and 40 minutes during which you will enjoy your breakfast and watch the countryside zip by, you will be assisted with your disembarkation at Agra Cantt Railway Station, as porters unload your bags.
You are driven to your gorgeous luxury resort where you will drop your bags off and use the facilities to freshen up after your first views of the magnificent Taj Mahal from the spectacular lobby. There is a very small chance that your room might be available for a very early check-in, but you will most likely be assisted with your check-in after lunch. Please note that the Oberoi Amarvilas has a great spa, an amazing pool straight out of the Arabian Nights, and many other facilities. They offer multiple hotel experiences, which can be reserved by us in advance upon request. There are nightly cultural performances at the resort, just as there will be at your resorts in Jaipur, Narlai, and Udaipur.
You will be driven to the first red sandstone fort of North India, the Agra Fort, another UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is an amazing example of a blend of Persian, Indian and European architecture and was built in 1565 by India’s greatest Mughal ruler, Emperor Akbar.
Its royal audience halls, immense stone courtyards, marble mosque and the private royal chambers give us a glimpse of the grandeur of the Mughal Empire.
There are unique views of the Taj Mahal from a section of the fort, including the room where the Taj Mahal’s creator, Emperor Shah Jahan, was imprisoned during the later years of his life by his infamous son and successor, Aurangzeb.
After this you will return to your spectacular resort and its Taj Mahal views. You may want to avoid lunch this afternoon – if you feel hungry, we recommend a light snack so that you are ready for what is in store for dinner. Your resort has a very good multi-cuisine restaurant, as well as an excellent Indian Fine Dining restaurant with tasting menus available. You are assisted with your check-in around 2 pm, if an earlier check-in is not available.
After relaxing and enjoying your memorable view for a little while, you will proceed for a late afternoon visit to the Taj Mahal. Experience the amazing Taj and its surroundings in bright sunlight, culminating with an opportunity to admire the sun’s rays setting on the façade of the world’s finest monument. When you experience the Taj Mahal with a Trehan Journeys Tour Director who shares unique insights into its innumerable facets, some of their passion for this masterpiece may rub off on you. The world’s greatest monument dedicated to love is obviously a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Taj Mahal was completed by Emperor Shah Jahan in 1653 A.D. as a memorial to his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal. This spectacular white marble mausoleum was created by about 22,000 skilled craftsmen, many of whom were brought here from far away nations, and it took twenty two years to complete. When the Taj Mahal closes right after sunset you have the option to ride a golf cart or enjoy the short walk to your resort which is just a few hundred yards away.
Dinner is a delight for your taste-buds this evening. The Peshawri Restaurant at the ITC Mughal Hotel is the smaller sibling of the world’s most famous Indian Restaurant, the Bukhara in the ITC Hotel at Delhi. The food is the same and the cuisine originates from colonial India’s North West Frontier Province, now located in the Afghanistan and Pakistan regions. Everything is slow cooked and both the nonvegetarian and vegetarian offerings are among the very best traditional North Indian food you will eat in your lifetime. You will order ala carte from their menu and watch as the chefs do their magic in the open kitchen. Utensils are not offered and you are supposed to eat with your hands – they do provide a very large bib as this will be a messy meal. For dishes such as Daal Bukhara (slow simmered for 24 hours), the world’s largest naan, the amazingly delicious four-foot Naan Bukhara can serve as a way to scoop the daal. We caution you about overeating this evening as you will have an early start on the next day for the sunrise at the Taj Mahal.