Beautiful Rajasthan: Taj, Jaipur & Udaipur

Welcome to India. Our representative meets you at Delhi airport or railway station with a traditional garland welcome and escorts you to your hotel in a private air-conditioned car. After a long journey, the rest of the day is yours to rest and adjust to the new time zone. If you arrive early and feel like stretching your legs, take a gentle evening walk around Connaught Place, the elegant colonnaded circle at the heart of New Delhi, with its cafes, bookshops and busy street life. Your tour manager will brief you on the days ahead.

Begin in Old Delhi at Jama Masjid, one of India's largest mosques, built by Shah Jahan in the 1650s, then take a cycle-rickshaw through the crowded lanes of Chandni Chowk, a 17th-century bazaar of spices, silver and sweets. Drive past the red sandstone walls of the Red Fort and pause at Raj Ghat, the simple memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. In the afternoon, explore New Delhi: Humayun's Tomb, the Mughal garden tomb that inspired the Taj Mahal, and the 73-metre Qutub Minar, begun around 1200. End with a drive past India Gate and the grand government buildings of Lutyens' Delhi.

After breakfast, drive south to Agra, the great Mughal capital on the Yamuna. On the way, stop at Sikandra to see the tomb of Emperor Akbar, set in a walled garden where deer graze. In the afternoon, visit Agra Fort, a red sandstone citadel of palaces, mosques and audience halls, where Shah Jahan spent his last years looking out at the Taj. Then see the Taj Mahal itself in the soft late light: the white marble mausoleum he built for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, completed in 1653, with inlay of precious stones and perfect symmetry.

After breakfast, visit Itmad-ud-Daulah, a delicate marble tomb on the Yamuna, often called the Baby Taj for its fine inlay work, which came before the Taj Mahal itself. Then drive west to Fatehpur Sikri, the red sandstone capital Emperor Akbar built in the 16th century and abandoned soon afterwards. Walk through the Buland Darwaza, one of the largest gateways in the world, the five-storey Panch Mahal and the white marble shrine of the Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chishti. Continue to Jaipur, arriving in the late afternoon, and check in.

Start early at Amber Fort, the hilltop palace of the Kachwaha rulers above Maota Lake, riding up to the ramparts by jeep. Explore its courtyards and the Sheesh Mahal, a hall lined with thousands of tiny mirrors. Pause for photos at Jal Mahal, the palace in the lake. In the afternoon, visit the City Palace, still home to the former royal family, and Jantar Mantar, the 18th-century observatory of giant stone instruments and a UNESCO site. See the honeycomb facade of Hawa Mahal, then browse the bazaars for block prints, gems and blue pottery.

An early start for Ajmer and the Dargah Sharif, the shrine of the Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, where qawwali singers often perform in the courtyard. Continue to Pushkar to visit the Brahma Temple, one of very few dedicated to the creator god, and the ghats around its sacred lake. After lunch, drive south through the Aravalli hills, passing villages, fields and roadside shrines, to Udaipur, the City of Lakes. It is a long day, but you arrive in the evening to lights reflected on Lake Pichola. Check in and relax.

Visit the City Palace, a vast complex of courtyards, balconies and mirrored rooms built over four centuries and rising above Lake Pichola, then the carved Jagdish Temple nearby, dedicated to Vishnu. Stroll through Saheliyon-ki-Bari, the Garden of the Maidens, with its fountains, lotus pools and marble elephants. In the late afternoon, take a boat ride on Lake Pichola past the bathing ghats and the island palace of Jag Mandir, as the light turns gold over the white palaces. The evening is free for the old city's cafes.

Enjoy a slow final morning by the lake in Udaipur. You may like a walk along the ghats at Gangaur Ghat, a visit to Bagore-ki-Haveli, or some last shopping for miniature paintings, silver jewellery and textiles in the lanes around the Jagdish Temple. Our driver will help with your luggage and stop wherever you need. At the appropriate time, you are transferred to Udaipur's Maharana Pratap Airport, about 45 minutes from the city, for your onward flight. We hope to welcome you back to Rajasthan soon.