When you’re flying across the world for a bucket-list trip to one of the largest countries in the world, you certainly don’t want to have any wasted opportunities. It can be daunting trying to plan the perfect trip with the best highlights and cities in a country filled with wonder but I think our itinerary came close. Let me do the work for you and share our Epic 10-Day Itinerary for 5 Cities in India! I am also sharing the things I would add or do differently so pay attention so your trip will be even better!
Day 1 – Land in Delhi
Day 2 – Drive to Agra
Day 3 – Drive to Jaipur
Day 4 – Jaipur
Day 5 – Fly to Udaipur
Day 6 – Udaipur
Day 7 – Fly to Mumbai
Day 8 – Mumbai
Day 9 – Mumbai
Day 10 – Fly Home
I included travel days because when you are flying so far they can really take up a whole day and matter when it comes to planning a trip!
Delhi
We flew into Delhi and only spent one night here. Honestly, we originally planned to drive straight to Agra but decided to spend a night in Delhi instead to take in another city. If I was planning this again, I would skip Delhi and spend the time in a city later in the trip because it was the loudest, dirtiest, and least impressive city that we saw.
We visited the Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India, which overlooks a considerable amount of dilapidated Old Delhi. Even though I had on a jacket and floor length skirt, I still had to wear the “tourist cover up” around the mosque… We took a rickshaw, or tuk-tuk, through the craziest driving I have ever experienced and stopped for a little shopping. We ended the day at Swaminarayan Akshardham (no photos allowed inside), a massive Hindu temple and cultural complex which was really quite beautiful but essentially built for tourists. Honestly, if Delhi was the only city in India that we visited, I would never care to go back to India. Skip it.
Agra
We left Delhi early in the morning for Agra so we could see what the city had to offer before the Taj Mahal. Everything we had heard said that you don’t really need to spend much more time in the city and they were right. We saw the Red Fort, built by 4 emperors in their own unique styles, and the “mini-Taj” but the main attraction here is the majestic Taj Mahal…. as it should be.
We only spent one night in Agra, and that was so we could wake up at sunrise to see the Taj Mahal. There was so much fog first thing in the morning but it’s worth it to try and beat the crowds. Even at 7am it is pretty busy, but I can’t imagine how crazy it must be as the day goes on!
One thing we missed: In between Agra and Jaipur is Chand Baori, a massive and stunning step-well. I was bummed to find out that it was not in Jaipur like I had thought and we had essentially driven past it on our way from Agra. I would have definitely had us do a quick pit-stop along the way had I done better research and known!
Jaipur
The Pink City of Jaipur was filled with stunning beauty and we filled up every second of our 2 days here. The first thing we visited was the most recognizable photo in the city – Hawa Mahal – a stunning facade that was part of the City Palace and a place for the royal women to essentially people watch without being seen. Since women were not supposed to be viewed by men outside of their family, there were lots of different spots we saw in palaces throughout our trip that they were relegated to watch the world from.
Since you can’t go IN to the Hawa Mahal, we just stopped for a quick photo and then headed to the Amber Palace or Fort (not to be confused with the Red Fort we saw in Agra the day before). The Amber Palace, where the local rulers lived in the 17th century, is located high upon a hill, accessible by foot or elephant. We did take the elephant route and it was quite the experience. I know there is a lot of debate about animal cruelty and well being when it comes to riding animals like this but I took some comfort in the fact that they don’t let tourists ride down the hill on them and that they only work 4 hours a day and then have more room to spread out than at a zoo. I don’t know if that makes it better for everyone, but we did the ride and I would probably do it again.
The Amber Palace is filled with beautiful gardens, courtyards, and its own hall of mirrors – made by the Maharaja so that the Maharani (queen) could see the stars at night, as she was not allowed to sleep in the open. When candles are lit at night, the room is said to reflect like thousands of stars on the walls and ceiling.
After the Amber Palace we headed to Jantar Santar, the world’s largest sundial, and home to other astronomical structures to enable reading the astrological futures of whomever the Maharaja decided. It is fascinating to see the effort that went into such incredible accuracy but as none of us were particularly into astronomy or astrology, we did not linger long here. Instead we made our way to the most colorful location of the trip – the City Palace.
The City Palace of Jaipur is still a royal residence in Jaipur and filled with unique Islamic-Hindu blends of art and architecture. The pink city was painted pink in the 1800s as an honor of hospitality for the Prince of Wales (who later became King Edward VII) on his visit. This color was never changed again and has since then become a trademark of Jaipur.
We finished the evening with a movie at the Raj Mandir Cinema – regarded as the best movie theater in India. From the grand atrium, to the mad rush for seats (that people were still coming into 15 minutes into the movie), the singing and dancing from the audience, and the mid-movie intermission (it was 3 hours long), it was quite a cultural experience!
Our next morning we enjoyed a nice breakfast at the hotel before heading to Birla Mandir, a beautiful local temple. After the temple we filled our time at local shops, stocking up on bracelets, skirts, and scarves, before heading to the airport!
Udaipur
Even though we had 2 nights in Udaipur, we only had 1 full day due to the time of our flights. This city had a completely different energy than all of the other cities. Quieter, calmer, and filled with lake-front resorts among the 7 man-made lakes, Udaipur was a beautiful breath of fresh air (maybe not literally fresh, most of India has horrible air quality).
The morning began in the Nehru Island Park & Fountain, a beautiful and peaceful experience as we were there before any crowds or tours. We experienced an active Hindu temple, Eklingi Temple, which dates back to the 734 AD (and rebuilt in the 1600s). It is actually comprised of 108 total temples, each stunningly carved. We decided to immerse ourselves and even purchased some flowers as an offering to Shiva. After this we went to Nagda, a Hindu & Jain temple (not in use) dating back to the 10th century. What a wonder of carving and architecture!
After the temples we made our way to the City Palace of Udaipur, built over a period of 400 years, and certainly willing to give the City Palace of Jaipur a run for its money! Like Jaipur, the Maharanas here loved their peacocks, mirrors, and Belgium glass, although this palace, regally situated on the bank of Lake Pichola, could easily trick you into thinking it is in Europe when it is lit up at night. I would easily come back to this city for a longer, relaxing stay!
Mumbai
Mumbai is the only city where we didn’t do non-stop touristing, but that’s mostly because we were busy visiting the childhood memories of my husband’s mother, who was born there. (& a little bit because we were so darn tired of touristing!)
The minute you land in Mumbai, you can tell it is different from other cities, even the airport baggage claim felt like a little oasis. The architecture of the city is far more European than any other city we visited, clearly influenced by the British rule, but the slums were equally more obvious, as we drove past miles of what looked straight out of Slumdog Millionaire on the drive to the hotel. Our hotel, the Taj Mahal Palace, is a tourist attraction in its own right. A target of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the Taj Mahal Palace is a attraction in its own right. Opened in 1903, used as a military hospital in WW1, and host to foreign dignitaries and celebrities from around the world, the hotel is beautiful, luxurious, and filled with some of the best restaurants. It is located right on the water next to the Gateway of India, making it easy to knock out that additional tourist spot.
From the Gateway, we picked up some tickets to Elephanta Caves, located an hour ferry ride away on Elephanta Island. These UNESCO World Heritage caves date back to somewhere between 500-700AD and are unfortunately damaged from Portuguese and British settlers in the early 1900s (people suck), but it is well worth the trip. An unexpected detail on the way there and back are the seagulls that flock to the boats. In America we hate when birds get close to us but on this ride, everyone was throwing out food and feeding these birds from their hands! It was actually fun to watch (from the safety of overhead cover) but we didn’t partake beyond some photos.
What do you think? Is India what you expected?
Post questions in the comments below!
Happy Travels!
Xx
Kali