India: Agra/Varanasi: Which to Visit First
Jul 22nd, 2007 | 05:10 PM
#1
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India: Agra/Varanasi: Which to Visit First
I'll be flying into Delhi from the US, arriving at 9:00 pm on a Thursday night and spending the night there. I'm planning to visit both Agra and Varanasi before flying out to Nepal. I'm not sure which city to visit first/second (which itinerary will work better).
I think that the Taj is closed on Fridays, so with the Option B below, we would see Fatepur Sikhri on that Friday and then see the Taj on Saturday before catching the late train back to Delhi.
It's also possible to fly directly from Varanasi to Kathmandu (Option C), but the flights only operate on certain days of the week, and I don't believe that Monday is one of them. In that case, we could add a second night in either Agra or Varanasi. I guess that Agra would be wiser, but we would like to stay at the Oberoi and at $650 per night--February 2008--two nights would seriously impact our budget. It also seems that trying to fly from Varanasi to Kathmandu seems more risky in terms of cancelled flights as well as less flight options/fewer airlines.
Option A
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi (hotel near the airport like Radisson or Uppal's Orchid)
Night 2 Friday: Varanasi (Radisson or Taj)
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi (hotel nearer the train station)
Night 4 Sunday: Agra (Oberoi, alternates Hilton, Sheraton Mughal, Taj View)
Night 5 Monday: Delhi (Radisson or Uppal's Orchid)
Night 6+ Tuesday: Nepal (Hyatt Kathmandu and others)
Option B
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi
Night 2 Friday: Agra
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi
Night 4 Sunday: Varanasi
Night 5 Monday: Delhi
Night 6+ Tuesday: Nepal
Option C
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi
Night 2 Friday: Agra
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi
Night 4 Sunday: Varanasi
Night 5+ Monday: Nepal
I'm just not sure where to go from here in terms of planning. Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I think that the Taj is closed on Fridays, so with the Option B below, we would see Fatepur Sikhri on that Friday and then see the Taj on Saturday before catching the late train back to Delhi.
It's also possible to fly directly from Varanasi to Kathmandu (Option C), but the flights only operate on certain days of the week, and I don't believe that Monday is one of them. In that case, we could add a second night in either Agra or Varanasi. I guess that Agra would be wiser, but we would like to stay at the Oberoi and at $650 per night--February 2008--two nights would seriously impact our budget. It also seems that trying to fly from Varanasi to Kathmandu seems more risky in terms of cancelled flights as well as less flight options/fewer airlines.
Option A
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi (hotel near the airport like Radisson or Uppal's Orchid)
Night 2 Friday: Varanasi (Radisson or Taj)
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi (hotel nearer the train station)
Night 4 Sunday: Agra (Oberoi, alternates Hilton, Sheraton Mughal, Taj View)
Night 5 Monday: Delhi (Radisson or Uppal's Orchid)
Night 6+ Tuesday: Nepal (Hyatt Kathmandu and others)
Option B
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi
Night 2 Friday: Agra
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi
Night 4 Sunday: Varanasi
Night 5 Monday: Delhi
Night 6+ Tuesday: Nepal
Option C
Night 1 Thursday: Delhi
Night 2 Friday: Agra
Night 3 Saturday: Delhi
Night 4 Sunday: Varanasi
Night 5+ Monday: Nepal
I'm just not sure where to go from here in terms of planning. Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Jul 22nd, 2007 | 06:55 PM
#2
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I am not crazy about any of these options. IMO you really will want 2 nights in both places. On top of jet lag if nothing else. Neither are that easy to get to because flight times to Varanasi are somewhat in the middle of the day, and Agra has no airport. You may be trying to fit a bit too much into a trip which is essentially a trip to Nepal. Can you extend the trip to do 2 nights in each place?
What are your flight options to get to Nepal? That might help me. According to the Indian Airlines schedule I see, they have service daily between Varanasi and Katmandu, at least from October 1. While not my first choice at all in India, they may be your only choice to get Katmandu. If your only choice is Indian Airlines, and you are going in December or Jan (which appears to be the case from the Oberoi price), then IMO you are may be better off going perhaps from Varanasi. You may have LESS chance of a cancelled flight, because the airport is not nearly as busy and may have less fog issues than Delhi in those months. Hard to say, but possible. I think I would rather take Indian Airlines from a secondary airport than Indian Airlines from their hub at Delhi. Less traffic, less chance of delays. If however, you have choices of other airlines going out of Delhi (such as the very good Jet Airways) then that might sway me towards saying go back up to Delhi for the Nepal flight. If you are going in a non-fog month, like early October, then I would say go from Varanasi, I do think there are less chance of delays from the smaller airport.
IMO you would want two nights in Varanasi as I think there is a lot to do and see there and you may not feel quite so rushed trying to “do” it all in one day. Besides the river ghats, there is a major Buddhist sight at Sarnath (where the Buddha preached his first sermon) and as you are gong on to Nepal you might really appreciate having seen this as well. From the flight schedules I see to Varanasi, the Kingfisher Airlines flight only goes and returns in the afternoons to/from Varanasi, and the Jet flights are just a few hours earlier, so you would only have about 24 hours in the place if you only stayed one night there. Not enough time, IMO. The Indian Airlines flights only depart Varanasi a few hours later, in any case not giving you appreciably more time and NO reason to take Indian Airlines.
If you did Varanasi first, and arrived from Varanasi back into Delhi at 4 pm on the Kingfisher flight, there is no reason to overnight in Delhi, you could easily take a train down to Agra that same day. There are many trains a day to Agra, and while they are not the super-fast Taj Express, they are not bad in terms of time. There is the Intercity Express which departs Nizamuddin station at 6:30 pm and arrives Agra around 9:30 pm. You could easily make that train. Check the schedule for other trains. This would give you a full day next day in Agra, and most importantly a sunrise or possibly two there. If you had a full day in Agra an overnight and a full day the next day (including Fatephur Sikri which you could even do on the previous afternoon), you could then take a late afternoon or evening train back to Delhi and overnight there near the airport to get to Nepal the next day. This would be somewhat of a hectic trip to Agra, but is possible because the train schedule would allow this. The Taj Express departs Agra at 6:45 pm and arrives at Nizamuddin Station at 10 pm daily, you could get that train back, giving you a good long day in Agra the second day.
You are correct that the Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays. In Agra, for hotels other than the very excellent Oberoi, I would pick the Taj View. It also has very good views of the Taj from many rooms (get a suite if you can, good views and 2 nice rooms). I like this hotel a lot. The Sheraton is perfectly fine, just a bit older and the rooms remind more of a motel, and it is just full of US tour groups. The Hilton is to be avoided, IMO. It’s not really a Hilton like you may be used to. (The Trident Hilton Gurgaon near the Delhi airport, however, is really something and if you want to put that on your list you might consider staying there before the Nepal flight. However, for just a late night arrival and early morning departure, the Radisson is probably fine, as IMO you need to have time at the Hilton Gurgaon to appreciate how lovely the architecture is.)
There aren’t really any trains “near” the New Delhi train station in Delhi (at least none that you really would want to stay at IMO). Note that many trains depart from the Nizamuddin Station which is a bit south and east of the city centre, that station is quite close to the Oberoi hotel, and the Oberoi would be a good choice IMO. However, if you are taking a very early train like the Taj Express (which departs at 7:15 am from the Nizamuddin station) then IMO you really do not have to worry about traffic on Saturday and that early in Delhi so you could stay anywhere.
What are your flight options to get to Nepal? That might help me. According to the Indian Airlines schedule I see, they have service daily between Varanasi and Katmandu, at least from October 1. While not my first choice at all in India, they may be your only choice to get Katmandu. If your only choice is Indian Airlines, and you are going in December or Jan (which appears to be the case from the Oberoi price), then IMO you are may be better off going perhaps from Varanasi. You may have LESS chance of a cancelled flight, because the airport is not nearly as busy and may have less fog issues than Delhi in those months. Hard to say, but possible. I think I would rather take Indian Airlines from a secondary airport than Indian Airlines from their hub at Delhi. Less traffic, less chance of delays. If however, you have choices of other airlines going out of Delhi (such as the very good Jet Airways) then that might sway me towards saying go back up to Delhi for the Nepal flight. If you are going in a non-fog month, like early October, then I would say go from Varanasi, I do think there are less chance of delays from the smaller airport.
IMO you would want two nights in Varanasi as I think there is a lot to do and see there and you may not feel quite so rushed trying to “do” it all in one day. Besides the river ghats, there is a major Buddhist sight at Sarnath (where the Buddha preached his first sermon) and as you are gong on to Nepal you might really appreciate having seen this as well. From the flight schedules I see to Varanasi, the Kingfisher Airlines flight only goes and returns in the afternoons to/from Varanasi, and the Jet flights are just a few hours earlier, so you would only have about 24 hours in the place if you only stayed one night there. Not enough time, IMO. The Indian Airlines flights only depart Varanasi a few hours later, in any case not giving you appreciably more time and NO reason to take Indian Airlines.
If you did Varanasi first, and arrived from Varanasi back into Delhi at 4 pm on the Kingfisher flight, there is no reason to overnight in Delhi, you could easily take a train down to Agra that same day. There are many trains a day to Agra, and while they are not the super-fast Taj Express, they are not bad in terms of time. There is the Intercity Express which departs Nizamuddin station at 6:30 pm and arrives Agra around 9:30 pm. You could easily make that train. Check the schedule for other trains. This would give you a full day next day in Agra, and most importantly a sunrise or possibly two there. If you had a full day in Agra an overnight and a full day the next day (including Fatephur Sikri which you could even do on the previous afternoon), you could then take a late afternoon or evening train back to Delhi and overnight there near the airport to get to Nepal the next day. This would be somewhat of a hectic trip to Agra, but is possible because the train schedule would allow this. The Taj Express departs Agra at 6:45 pm and arrives at Nizamuddin Station at 10 pm daily, you could get that train back, giving you a good long day in Agra the second day.
You are correct that the Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays. In Agra, for hotels other than the very excellent Oberoi, I would pick the Taj View. It also has very good views of the Taj from many rooms (get a suite if you can, good views and 2 nice rooms). I like this hotel a lot. The Sheraton is perfectly fine, just a bit older and the rooms remind more of a motel, and it is just full of US tour groups. The Hilton is to be avoided, IMO. It’s not really a Hilton like you may be used to. (The Trident Hilton Gurgaon near the Delhi airport, however, is really something and if you want to put that on your list you might consider staying there before the Nepal flight. However, for just a late night arrival and early morning departure, the Radisson is probably fine, as IMO you need to have time at the Hilton Gurgaon to appreciate how lovely the architecture is.)
There aren’t really any trains “near” the New Delhi train station in Delhi (at least none that you really would want to stay at IMO). Note that many trains depart from the Nizamuddin Station which is a bit south and east of the city centre, that station is quite close to the Oberoi hotel, and the Oberoi would be a good choice IMO. However, if you are taking a very early train like the Taj Express (which departs at 7:15 am from the Nizamuddin station) then IMO you really do not have to worry about traffic on Saturday and that early in Delhi so you could stay anywhere.
Jul 22nd, 2007 | 10:26 PM
#3
Joined: Apr 2005
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All the options seem rushed, but I think I like the last option best. Even though the Taj Mahal is closed on Friday, if you get there early in the day, you can see other places in Agra like the fort, baby taj, and even fatehpur sikri. Saturday morning you can see the Taj Mahal at sunrise and have a full day there before taking the late train back to Delhi. I don't think you need to spend more than one night in Agra.
Spend saturday night in Delhi, head to Varanasi on sunday and spend 2 nights in Varanasi before flying straight out of Varanasi to Kathmandu on tuesday. This way you don't have to backtrack to Delhi to fly out to Kathmandu and you get 2 nights in Varanasi (which I think is a must, one night would be simply too rushed).
Also, the Taj View in Agra is a good option like Cicerone said. We stayed at this hotel in march of this year. The suite was really good and view of the taj from the room wasn't too bad.
Spend saturday night in Delhi, head to Varanasi on sunday and spend 2 nights in Varanasi before flying straight out of Varanasi to Kathmandu on tuesday. This way you don't have to backtrack to Delhi to fly out to Kathmandu and you get 2 nights in Varanasi (which I think is a must, one night would be simply too rushed).
Also, the Taj View in Agra is a good option like Cicerone said. We stayed at this hotel in march of this year. The suite was really good and view of the taj from the room wasn't too bad.
Jul 23rd, 2007 | 03:18 PM
#5
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Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions.
We should be able to do two nights in Varanasi, especially if we fly directly to Nepal from there. I would like to stay on the Ganges, but am not crazy about any of the hotel choices. The Taj has a neat day trip to see it, though, where you travel by horse-drawn carriage, take a boat ride, etc.
I will look more closely at the Taj View in Agra. It does seem to be better located than the Sheraton or Hilton. But is it worth the money to stay at the Oberoi? I've found a slightly lower rate--$560 per night, and because we have an Amex Platinum card, we'll get a free dinner at the hotel (that has to be worth $100), as well as free transportation to/from the train station, late 4 pm checkout (which will be useful if we catch a later train back to Delhi), free breakfast. All those amenities essentially bring the rate down (since we would need to eat anyway), but still nowhere near the cost of the Taj View, Sheraton, or Hilton (which are less than $200 per night, but without any of the above Amex perks). Worth the splurge? We could definitely swing one night, but two nights will be costly. But if it's worth it, we'll do it. We stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge at Machu Picchu and the Parador de San Francisco in Granada, and even though those nights were costly, it was absolutely worth it for the location alone.
The comment about Uppal's Orchid is duly noted. It just seems to be in a good location in relation to the airport, and half the price of the Radisson or any hotels in Gurgaon ($200 versus $400 per night).
Thanks again. I'll keep working on my itinerary.
We should be able to do two nights in Varanasi, especially if we fly directly to Nepal from there. I would like to stay on the Ganges, but am not crazy about any of the hotel choices. The Taj has a neat day trip to see it, though, where you travel by horse-drawn carriage, take a boat ride, etc.
I will look more closely at the Taj View in Agra. It does seem to be better located than the Sheraton or Hilton. But is it worth the money to stay at the Oberoi? I've found a slightly lower rate--$560 per night, and because we have an Amex Platinum card, we'll get a free dinner at the hotel (that has to be worth $100), as well as free transportation to/from the train station, late 4 pm checkout (which will be useful if we catch a later train back to Delhi), free breakfast. All those amenities essentially bring the rate down (since we would need to eat anyway), but still nowhere near the cost of the Taj View, Sheraton, or Hilton (which are less than $200 per night, but without any of the above Amex perks). Worth the splurge? We could definitely swing one night, but two nights will be costly. But if it's worth it, we'll do it. We stayed at the Sanctuary Lodge at Machu Picchu and the Parador de San Francisco in Granada, and even though those nights were costly, it was absolutely worth it for the location alone.
The comment about Uppal's Orchid is duly noted. It just seems to be in a good location in relation to the airport, and half the price of the Radisson or any hotels in Gurgaon ($200 versus $400 per night).
Thanks again. I'll keep working on my itinerary.
Jul 23rd, 2007 | 03:53 PM
#6
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The Amarvilas in Agra is one of the few hotels anywhere that I would pay whatever it took to stay there. I like the idea of taking the train on Friday, visiting fatepur sikri and other Agra monuments, then visiting the Taj on Saturday before taking a late train back to Delhi
I would not pay for a fancy hotel in the cantonnment area of Varanasi. You are miles from the ghats and the river. Stay two nights at Palace on the Ganges or Temple on the Ganges at less than a hundred a night. They are plain, but satisfactory for a couple nights in Varanasi. You'll be right on the river at Assi Ghat.
Spend your time walking the old town, ride the rickshaws at about 10 rupees per ride, take a boat ride for about 150 rupees, and use the money saved for your night at Amarvilas.
You really need two nights in Varanasi, especially since the flights arrive in the afternoon, and it takes at least 45 minutes to drive to Varansi from the airport. I'd only rush Varanasi if the Nepal flight left in the evening--tha way if the flight was delayed or cancelled, you could try again the next day!
It's always good to have a plan B in India!
I would not pay for a fancy hotel in the cantonnment area of Varanasi. You are miles from the ghats and the river. Stay two nights at Palace on the Ganges or Temple on the Ganges at less than a hundred a night. They are plain, but satisfactory for a couple nights in Varanasi. You'll be right on the river at Assi Ghat.
Spend your time walking the old town, ride the rickshaws at about 10 rupees per ride, take a boat ride for about 150 rupees, and use the money saved for your night at Amarvilas.
You really need two nights in Varanasi, especially since the flights arrive in the afternoon, and it takes at least 45 minutes to drive to Varansi from the airport. I'd only rush Varanasi if the Nepal flight left in the evening--tha way if the flight was delayed or cancelled, you could try again the next day!
It's always good to have a plan B in India!
Jul 23rd, 2007 | 06:02 PM
#7
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I think the Oberoi is really a wonderful hotel, far and away the best in Agra, and right up there with one of the best anywhere certainly. Their service levels are really something at Oberoi. The rooms themselves are very nice, not overly luxurious IMO but quite nice and with those great views; but it’s the service, ambience, Taj views (esp from the balconies), lawns, fountains, and overall architecture that make the place so special, none of the other hotels can match it, IMO. They have a very nice spa as well. In the evenings in the cooler months they usually have dance performances out by the pool. You can also walk to the Taj, or take one of the hotel’s chauffeured golf carts the very short distance to the entrance area. (You do still have to run the gauntlet of the touts for the last 100 yards to the entrance, the hotel provides you with a completely unnecessary guard to silently escort you, he however does not help at all with the touts, I always try to ditch him as he makes me feel completely ridiculous, as if my personal safety were somehow threatened by people trying to sell me film.) However, if it really is a stretch for you for two nights and you aren’t going to enjoy it due to that, I would not stress to much over it and would stay at the Taj View, and perfectly nice hotel.
If you work out your flight and train schedule, you may only need to spend one night in Agra and take a late train back the second evening, so perhaps you can do the one night at the Oberoi.
If you want to still consider the Taj View, then my suggestion would be that you contact the Taj View and tell them you are being offered free station transport, late check-out and breakfast at the Oberoi and ask if they can they match this. (I threw in the breakfast because I think the Taj won’t match dinner, I was assuming the Taj’s rates don’t include breakfast, if they do, then tell them you are getting a free dinner at the Oberoi.) If you want to stay at the Sheraton, try the same at the Sheraton. Transport to and from the train station is not going to be expensive in any event so I would not consider that to be a big savings. (Ask the hotels what their rates for this are so that if you decide to do this yourself you have a base to start with, also ask here for reccos for drivers as you will want one for Fatephur Sikri and you may start by having the driver pick you up at the station; my drivers are from Delhi so I don’t have local reccos.) You can always keep luggage at the hotels and come back to collect if for the train (or just keep it in the car), although be able to use the hotel room for a late shower is always nice I will say. I would be surprised if dinner at the Oberoi ran US$100 for two people, I assume they are talking about the Bellevue which is their more casual restaurant (essentially their coffee shop but perfectly fine) and not Esphahan their more formal Indian restaurant. I could not quote prices off the top of my head at either, but really don’t think that dinner for two would run that much at Bellevue.
I would say that there are not really any good hotels in Varanasi IMO, and would agree that if you can stay by the river that would be preferable; however it’s a smallish town so it’s not a long trip to the river or anything (but it may help at sunrise to be closer to the river maybe, if you are bleary eyed then). If those hotels are a big savings compared to the Taj Ganges, then the Oberoi may become more affordable from that standpoint.
If you work out your flight and train schedule, you may only need to spend one night in Agra and take a late train back the second evening, so perhaps you can do the one night at the Oberoi.
If you want to still consider the Taj View, then my suggestion would be that you contact the Taj View and tell them you are being offered free station transport, late check-out and breakfast at the Oberoi and ask if they can they match this. (I threw in the breakfast because I think the Taj won’t match dinner, I was assuming the Taj’s rates don’t include breakfast, if they do, then tell them you are getting a free dinner at the Oberoi.) If you want to stay at the Sheraton, try the same at the Sheraton. Transport to and from the train station is not going to be expensive in any event so I would not consider that to be a big savings. (Ask the hotels what their rates for this are so that if you decide to do this yourself you have a base to start with, also ask here for reccos for drivers as you will want one for Fatephur Sikri and you may start by having the driver pick you up at the station; my drivers are from Delhi so I don’t have local reccos.) You can always keep luggage at the hotels and come back to collect if for the train (or just keep it in the car), although be able to use the hotel room for a late shower is always nice I will say. I would be surprised if dinner at the Oberoi ran US$100 for two people, I assume they are talking about the Bellevue which is their more casual restaurant (essentially their coffee shop but perfectly fine) and not Esphahan their more formal Indian restaurant. I could not quote prices off the top of my head at either, but really don’t think that dinner for two would run that much at Bellevue.
I would say that there are not really any good hotels in Varanasi IMO, and would agree that if you can stay by the river that would be preferable; however it’s a smallish town so it’s not a long trip to the river or anything (but it may help at sunrise to be closer to the river maybe, if you are bleary eyed then). If those hotels are a big savings compared to the Taj Ganges, then the Oberoi may become more affordable from that standpoint.
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Jul 23rd, 2007 | 06:39 PM
#8
Joined: Jan 2003
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i have not read all the comments, but do you have no interest in delhi at all....you could easily spend two days there or 1 1/2 days then go on to agra for two nites and then on to varanasi....agra is very far for a day trip and back imo...
the sheraton (agra) is perfectly fine imo....we stayed two nites and were happy with that....it gave us one full day in agra to do the taj and the baby taj....the town is a bit of a dump...
the sheraton (agra) is perfectly fine imo....we stayed two nites and were happy with that....it gave us one full day in agra to do the taj and the baby taj....the town is a bit of a dump...
Jul 24th, 2007 | 07:54 AM
#9
Joined: Jul 2007
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Hi, we have just spent 18 months working in India; our recommendations are:-
Delhi - The Imperial, fantastic, just so the best hotel in New Delhi. A good close hotel to the airport is also the Trident Hilton - Gurgaon, the journey will take at most 20 mins. Gurgaon, is just outside Delhi.
Another option is The Grand, good 5 star hotel relativly cheep. Couple of others that are worth extending the 20 min transfer for are:-
Hyatt Regency / Oberoi
In Agra - you can really only do this in style at the Oberoi - fantastic. Appart from the Taj & Red Fort there really is nothing else. So I wouldnt waste 2 nights there. The journey to Jaipur is 5.5 hours from Agra - that would be worth a trip, its then 3.4 hours from jaipur to Delhi.....just an option
Varanassi - Taj View ganges, is the best option.
All the time we have been in India, Varanassi & Udapiur are the best...
be safe and have fun...
Delhi - The Imperial, fantastic, just so the best hotel in New Delhi. A good close hotel to the airport is also the Trident Hilton - Gurgaon, the journey will take at most 20 mins. Gurgaon, is just outside Delhi.
Another option is The Grand, good 5 star hotel relativly cheep. Couple of others that are worth extending the 20 min transfer for are:-
Hyatt Regency / Oberoi
In Agra - you can really only do this in style at the Oberoi - fantastic. Appart from the Taj & Red Fort there really is nothing else. So I wouldnt waste 2 nights there. The journey to Jaipur is 5.5 hours from Agra - that would be worth a trip, its then 3.4 hours from jaipur to Delhi.....just an option
Varanassi - Taj View ganges, is the best option.
All the time we have been in India, Varanassi & Udapiur are the best...
be safe and have fun...
Jul 24th, 2007 | 08:54 AM
#10
Joined: May 2005
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I agree with everyone else that really thinks this itinerary is phenomenally rushed and will not be a good time. But sometimes we have no choice...
I guess C is the least of the evils. If you had more time I would really recommend some overnight trains. I went from Delhi to Varanasi and Varanasi to Agra on trains and it was a great experience. I did have 2 nights in each place.
I always beg people not to day trip the Taj. Fatehpur Sikr is amazing and must be seen.
I guess C is the least of the evils. If you had more time I would really recommend some overnight trains. I went from Delhi to Varanasi and Varanasi to Agra on trains and it was a great experience. I did have 2 nights in each place.
I always beg people not to day trip the Taj. Fatehpur Sikr is amazing and must be seen.
