Driver and Tour Guide for Delhi and Agra
 

Can anyone reccommend a good English speaking guide and driver for independent tours in Delhi and Agra?

I would recommend Ramesh Meena of ramindiatours.com. He is based in Jaipur. He was a wonderful driver, very safe, with superb English-speaking skills and can arrange guides for you.

I have done that last December 2010. And I would not recommend you to go there by car from Delhi. I would suggest you to re-consider of flying there instead. The distance is not too far but the traffic is quite bad. It took me about 10hrs to go and back. Although,I left hotel very early; 6:30am. (Radisson hotel, near airport & next to motorway to Agra)

When I got there is almost 1pm. I only have about 4 hrs to visit Taj Mahal and nothing else. ... I was so exhausted!!

A second vote for Ramesh Meena, mentioned by indianapearl above. We used him on two trips in India and found him to be an exceedingly safe and professional driver with good English skills. He is pleasant company as well, important if you are going to spend time with someone traveling in a car. He can also help you arrange your itinerary. He will not take you to his "cousin's shop," but will strive to accommodate as much as possible any of YOUR plans. He can also drop you at the train station/airport and meet you on the other end if roads are too teeth rattling or undesirable as Kik describes.

for sure go by car to see some of india along the way.... its a long ride but worth it....do at least one overnight

Ramesh Meena gets my vote as well. Even if Ram is not personally about to drive you, he will send someone well trained and personable. Having him on our trip made such a difference for us.

We didn't try to do Agra in one day from Delhi, we stayed the night. We were chatting with some other travelers later on in our trip and they had done the return trip in one day. It was a real disappointment for them. Our experience at the Taj was very different as we arrived early in the morning and beat the rush. They waited in a really long line-up and had a less than positive experience.

It's definitely worth the night in Agra.

We drove from ND to Agra and stayed a couple of nights. The distance though only some 250/300 kms took us 5 plus hours. Its not worth doing a day trip, driving at that. We had a car+driver but took local Agra guides. Bottom line, whether you drive or take the train, is stay at least one night in Agra.

There is an early morning non-stop train from New Delhi to Agra - The Shatabdi Express. It leaves ND around 6:30am and arrives in Agra about 2 hours later. You can get to the Taj Mahal early before the crowds.

The Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays, just FYI.

I found that the crowd a the Taj Mahal ARE the people who get off that morning Shatabti and head for Agra. To me, early means arriving before the gates open, so you are one of the very first inside. Then it IS quiet.
Deejim, the Taj is but one of the two important and wonderful sites in Agra--the other is the Agra Fort. They are part of the same story. One guide can take you to both. Our guide was fantastic, made both places "come alive" wasnt just a "fact factory"--never boring, and lots of fun. HIs name is Amat Datta--will try to find his business card .We liked the drive, there is so much of daily life to see from the road. took 5 hours with a stop for breakfast.

As rhkkmk, tongsa,and misty --stay overnight!!!!

Most guides will ask if you want to go to a nearby marble factory and see the "old style"--just say, "No thanks" (unless you really want to spend time and money doing so)

because of fog, we did not head over to the taj until mid to late morning.... there were a fair number of people but i did not find it awkward....

i think there is a 3rd good place to visit and that is the so called mini taj across the river...

Do not let your guide take you to a marble/handicrafts factory. Friends who booked a guide/car through their 3 star hotel in Delhi had a bad experience. The shop owners locked the doors of the shop. Only when my friend started faking a high blood pressure attack did they open the doors. Scary.

Early morning at the Taj Mahal is marvelous--don't miss it.

Zorba the Buddha is a nice place to eat.