Three cities define India's classic route, and five more carry it further. We plan each one privately, with your own car and chauffeur, a licensed guide, and days timed around the light and the crowds.
The Golden Triangle is India's classic tour circuit, linking Delhi, Agra and Jaipur in a loop of about 750 km across North India. Each city is a 3–6 hour drive from the next, and together they hold nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Taj Mahal. Most travellers take 5–7 days. The route extends easily to Varanasi on the Ganges, the tiger reserve at Ranthambore, and the Rajasthan cities of Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer.
Where most journeys begin and end: Mughal forts, Humayun's garden tomb, Lutyens' avenues and the old-city bazaars of Chandni Chowk.
The Taj Mahal at first light, before the crowds, then the red walls of Agra Fort and the abandoned royal city of Fatehpur Sikri.
The hilltop Amber Fort, a palace still home to its royal family, and the craft bazaars. Jaipur is also where the route turns west into Rajasthan.
Each of these adds a night or three to the classic loop. Pick one, or combine several into a longer private journey across Rajasthan and the Ganges plain.
One of the world's oldest living cities. You see the Ganga aarti at dusk, take a boat along the ghats at dawn, and walk lanes where silk is still woven by hand.
India's best park for seeing wild tigers, with morning and afternoon jeep safaris among the ruins of a thousand-year-old fort. Core zones close in the monsoon.
Rajasthan's lake city: the City Palace reflected in Lake Pichola, a sunset boat to Jag Mandir, and the gentlest pace of the whole journey.
Mehrangarh Fort rises from the rock above a maze of blue-washed lanes. It pairs naturally with Udaipur via the Jain temples at Ranakpur.
A living sandstone fort on the edge of the Thar Desert, with carved havelis below it. Evenings are spent in the dunes at Sam, and the night sky is lit only by stars.
Most of our journeys follow one of these four shapes. Every one is private and can be adjusted to your dates, pace and hotels.
The essential circuit. Five days lets you see it without rushing.
View itinerary 8 daysAdds two nights and four jeep safaris in tiger country.
View itinerary 9 daysStarts in Varanasi, the spiritual heart of India, before the Mughal cities.
View itinerary 10–15 daysContinues west to the blue city and the lakes, with Jaisalmer and the desert as an option. The fullest version of the route.
View itineraryThe Golden Triangle is made up of three cities in North India: Delhi, the capital; Agra, home of the Taj Mahal; and Jaipur, the Pink City of Rajasthan. Plotted on a map, the three form a rough triangle, which gives the route its name. Most tours start and end in Delhi.
Delhi to Agra is about 230 km (3–3.5 hours on the Yamuna Expressway). Agra to Jaipur is about 240 km (4–4.5 hours, usually broken at Fatehpur Sikri). Jaipur back to Delhi is about 280 km (5–6 hours). The full loop is roughly 750 km, and on our private tours your chauffeur drives all of it.
Five to seven days is ideal. That gives one to two days in Delhi, a night in Agra for a sunrise visit to the Taj Mahal, and one to two days in Jaipur. The route can be done in three or four days, but it is rushed. Adding Varanasi, Ranthambore or Udaipur typically takes a journey to 8–15 days.
The most popular extensions are Varanasi on the Ganges (a short flight from Delhi), the Ranthambore tiger reserve (about three hours from Jaipur), and the Rajasthan cities of Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, the desert fort in the Thar, to the west. Each adds one to three nights and fits naturally onto the route.
October to March, when days are cool, dry and clear, is the best time to visit. April to June is very hot, and the monsoon runs from July to September. Ranthambore's core safari zones close from July to September, and Udaipur's lakes are fullest just after the monsoon.
Share your dates and the places that interest you. We'll connect them into one private, chauffeured itinerary with a clear quote, usually within a day.
