Planning · two days
Two days in Delhi: the plan that leaves nothing important out
Two days is Delhi done properly: the first for mughal Delhi, the second for the Sultanate south, and a third, if you have it, for lutyens and the river. Each day below is ordered by light, not by list — tick as you go.
Day 1 — Mughal Delhi
Dawn — Humayun's Tomb at opening; Isa Khan's garden first.
Morning — Sunder Nursery, then Nizamuddin's dargah.
Midday — Jama Masjid and the minaret; lunch at Karim's.
Afternoon — Chandni Chowk's lanes and Khari Baoli's spice sacks.
Evening — the Red Fort's sound-and-light, or Thursday qawwali.
Day 2 — The Sultanate south
Morning — Qutb Minar complex at opening.
Late morning — Mehrauli Archaeological Park on foot.
Midday — Hauz Khas ruins and lunch in the village.
Afternoon — Safdarjung's Tomb, then Lodi Gardens for the golden hour.
Evening — Dilli Haat for dinner from every state.
Day 3 — Lutyens and the river
Morning — Rashtrapati Bhavan's museum (book online) and Kartavya Path.
Midday — the National Museum or Agrasen ki Baoli.
Afternoon — Purana Qila, the sixth city.
Dusk — India Gate at blue hour.
Night — Gurudwara Bangla Sahib's langar.
Worth leaving town for
Agra. The Taj in a day is a real option: the 06:00 Vande Bharat (not Mondays) or 08:10 Gatimaan (not Fridays), both from Nizamuddin, reach Agra Cantt in about 100 minutes. Better, stay the night — the Taj at dawn is the point. See The Agra Guide.
Tughlaqabad and the southern cities. A half-day by car through the third, fourth and fifth Delhis — Tughlaqabad's walls, Begumpur Masjid, Feroz Shah Kotla — for anyone who wants the seven cities in order.
Jaipur. Four and a half hours on the Ajmer Shatabdi — the Golden Triangle's third corner, and the start of our Rajasthan guides.
Getting there and away
By air: Indira Gandhi International (DEL) — the Airport Express Metro runs T3 to New Delhi station in about 20 minutes (≈ ₹60–65, 05:00–23:00); police prepaid taxi booths are in arrivals, ≈ ₹500–900 to the centre.
By rail: Agra in 100 minutes on the Gatimaan Express (08:10 from Hazrat Nizamuddin, not Fridays) or the 06:00 Vande Bharat (also from Nizamuddin, not Mondays); Jaipur in about 4½ hours on the Ajmer Shatabdi (around 06:10 from New Delhi — check the timetable).
By road: The Yamuna Expressway makes Agra 3–4 hours; Jaipur 4–5 hours by the expressway. Inside the city, take the Metro — it reaches nearly every monument.
Keep going
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