Delhi: 6-Day Golden Triangle Tour with Spiritual Varanasi

The Golden Triangle, and then somewhere older than all of it

Delhi, Agra and Jaipur are Mughal and Rajput — four centuries of forts and tombs. Varanasi predates the lot by a very long way, and the change on day four is what this itinerary is for.

Day 1: Delhi

India Gate, Qutub Minar — 73 metres of 12th-century brick with the iron pillar that has stood 1,600 years without rusting — and Humayun's Tomb, the 1560s Mughal garden tomb the Taj was modelled on.

The drive past the President's House and Parliament, then Jama Masjid and a rickshaw ride through Chandni Chowk.

Days 2–3: Agra and Jaipur

The Taj Mahal, ideally at sunrise, and Agra Fort with the tower where Aurangzeb imprisoned his father for eight years with the Taj in view.

Fatehpur Sikri on the road west, then Amber Fort, the City Palace, Jantar Mantar and the Hawa Mahal.

Days 4–6: Varanasi

The train east, included in every option.

A dawn boat along the ghats is the centre of it: the entire waterfront turns to face the sunrise while thousands of people bathe, wash, pray and practise yoga on the steps at the same time.

At dusk, the Ganga Aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat — tiered lamps, bells, conch shells and incense, performed by priests moving in exact unison in front of thousands on the steps and in boats.

At Manikarnika, the cremation fires have burned without interruption for centuries, because Hindus hold that dying here ends the cycle of rebirth. Photography there is forbidden — that is absolute.

Sarnath, eleven kilometres out, is where the Buddha gave his first sermon; the Ashokan lion capital in its museum is the original of India's national emblem.

Three options

Car, driver, guide and train tickets; or the same with three-star or four-star hotels.

The Taj is closed on Fridays.