5-Day Golden Triangle Tour with Ranthambore Safari in Delhi

Five days, and a tiger reserve between the two cities

Ranthambore sits almost exactly on the line between Agra and Jaipur, which is what makes this itinerary efficient rather than a detour — the safari costs you a night, not a day of driving.

Delhi

Qutub Minar with its unrusted iron pillar, Humayun's Tomb — the 1560s Mughal garden tomb the Taj descends from — India Gate, and Old Delhi's Jama Masjid and Chandni Chowk.

Agra

The Taj Mahal at sunrise, which is the version worth getting up for: the gates open half an hour before the sun, the marble moves from grey through pink to white, and there are a fifth as many people as there will be by ten.

Agra Fort, and the Musamman Burj where Aurangzeb imprisoned his father for the last eight years of his life, with the Taj visible along the river.

Fatehpur Sikri on the road south.

Ranthambore

1,300 square kilometres of dry deciduous forest around a tenth-century hill fort that still stands inside the reserve. Around seventy tigers, unusually habituated to vehicles, which is why this park gives the best odds in north India.

Safaris run early morning and mid-afternoon in an open gypsy or canter, on a zone the forest department allocates — nobody chooses their zone.

Certain regardless: sambar standing chest-deep in the lakes, chital, nilgai, langur, and marsh crocodiles at Padam Talao.

Jaipur

Amber Fort above Maota Lake with the Sheesh Mahal, the City Palace, Jantar Mantar and the Hawa Mahal.

Practical

Ranthambore closes 1 July to 30 September for the monsoon. October to April is the season, and March to April gives the best sightings as the water dries up.

Permits are limited and released in advance — book early. Winter mornings in an open vehicle are cold.

The Taj is closed on Fridays.