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India Holidays: Golden Temple, Amritsar + Varanasi (or Rishikesh) + Ganges River + Taj Mahal + Delhi

Spiritual India: Varanasi + Taj Mahal + Amritsar

India Holidays Golden Temple Amritsar Varanasi Rishikesh Ganges Taj Mahal

10 NIGHTS FROM:

$2,029

Per person sharing

Scheduled flights quoted separately

IRH10A

• India Holidays

• Amritsar

• Golden Temple

• Palki Sahib

• Wagah Ceremony

• Varanasi (or Rishikesh)

• Aarti Ceremony

• Ganges River

• Taj Mahal

• Delhi

Our tailor made India holidays combine visits to key spiritual sights - including the magnificent Golden Temple in Amritsar, an important pilgrimage site for Sikhs, and the ancient city of Varanasi (or Rishikesh), where you can observe a daily Hindu aarti ceremony on the banks of the River Ganges. Also visit the incomparable Taj Mahal in Agra & the key sights of Old and New Delhi, including Chandni Chowk market.

Detailed itinerary ▶

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Day 1

You will be met at Delhi Airport and transferred to your hotel in this ancient capital of kingdoms and empires that is now a sprawling metropolis.

Delhi's strategic location was one of the main reasons why successive dynasties chose it as their seat of power and today it is a conglomerate of seven cities. The division between the old walled city and New Delhi marks a division in lifestyles, with the old city retaining its past traditions whilst New Delhi strives to match the pace of the 21st century.

Day 2

Today enjoy a full day private tour of modern New Delhi and the 17th century walled city of Old Delhi, which came to prominence when Shah Jahan moved his capital here from Agra.

In Old Delhi enjoy a cycle rickshaw ride through 300-year old Chandni Chowk market, a maze of lanes crowded with noisy shops selling an extraordinary variety of items and foods, and past the Jama Masjid (or Friday Mosque), the largest in India, and drive past the imposing walls & battlements of the Red Fort, once the most opulent palace in the Mughal Empire. We continue to the Raj Ghat - the simple but moving memorial on the site where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated.

In the afternoon our tour of New Delhi starts with a visit to the Qutub Minar, an ancient victory tower built of red sandstone and marble in 1199 and still the tallest minaret in India. With its imposing cylindrical towers and surrounding ruins, it is today a World Heritage Site. Our next stop is Humayun's Tomb, the beautiful mausoleum of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, that inspired the Taj Mahal.

We drive along the Rajpath - the capital's broadest avenue - where you will see the imposing arch of the India Gate war memorial, Parliament House, the Rashtrapati Bhavan presidential residence built for the Viceroy of India, and the government buildings on Raisina Hill.

Note: The Red Fort is closed on Mondays.

Day 3

Transfer to Delhi Station arriving in good time to board the express train (air conditioned chair car) departing 06.00 for the ancient city of Varanasi. Enjoy watching the scenery unfold as you travel for 6-hours across the state of Uttar Pradesh, arriving in Varanasi around 14.00

You will be met at Varanasi Station and transferred to your hotel in this holy city, situated on the sacred River Ganges. Varanasi is regarded as the spiritual capital of India and is a holy city for both Jains and Hindus, who believe dying here can bring salvation. The Benares Gharana form of Indian classical music developed here and many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers and musicians have made it their home.

In the late afternoon your guide will walk with you to the bathing ghats (steps) on the River Ganges to witness the moving daily aarti ceremony, a religious ritual performed as an offering to the gods. It includes the lighting of hundreds of candles that are released in baskets onto the river, which will leave you spellbound. The ceremony lasts about 1.5 hours.

Note: To avoid unnecessary stress, on the train you will be accompanied part of the way by a local helper. Please note he is not a guide and may have limited English. Always be alert for possible theft (eg do not wear expensive watches or jewellery & never leave your belongings unattended); do not buy any food or drink from hawkers and know the toilets are likely to be in a poor condition. Because of the very short (2-minute) stops at each station, train travel in India is not recommended for the elderly or those travelling with children.

Hotels situated on the Ganges River or next to a temple are not allowed to serve alcohol. These same hotels often only serve vegetarian food.

Day 4

Rise early today for a very special experience - a boat ride on the River Ganges as the sun rises. View the remarkable colours on its waters as you pass the bathing ghats, a series of steps leading down to the river where the faithful come to bathe and pay homage to the sun god. Also see the cremation ghats.

Afterwards enjoy a short walking tour of the temples of Bharat Mata, Durga and Vishwanath, followed by a visit to the ruins and museum at Sarnath - an important pilgrimage site where the Buddha gave his first sermon. Here you will see many stupas (shrines) including the Mulagandha Kuti Vihar, a Tibetan Buddhist shrine containing a life-sized golden image of Buddha.

Note: Sarnath Museum is closed every Friday.

Day 5

At leisure to relax independently at your hotel in Varanasi.

Day 6

Transfer to Varanasi Airport for your flight to Delhi. Here you will be met by your driver and transferred 3.5-hours to Agra, set along the banks of the Yamuna River and originally the capital of the Mughal Empire.

Agra is world renowned as the home of the Taj Mahal - that great symbol of love built by emperor Shah Jahan in the 16th century as a memorial to his beautiful wife Mumtaz Mahal.

After checking in to your hotel in this ancient city, time permitting we visit the Mehtab Bagh Gardens that are located across the river from the Taj Mahal, to enjoys your first views of this magnificent edifice at sunset.

Days 7 To 8

Rise early to visit the romantic Taj Mahal at sunrise, a truly magnificent white marble mausoleum that took 22 years to build. Apart from its stunning design and perfect symmetry, it is noted for its elegant domes, intricately carved screens and some of the best marble inlay work ever done. Sunrise and sunset are particularly good times to visit and see the dome subtly change its colour.

After returning to your hotel for breakfast we visit Agra Fort, a massive structure with walls over 70-ft high and 1.5-miles long that encompasses an astounding collection of well preserved buildings, many of them completed during the reign of Shah Jahan. After he was deposed by his son, he was imprisoned in this fort where he remained until his death - spending the rest of his life looking out along the river to the final resting place of his beloved wife.

We then drive 3.5-hours from Agra to your hotel situated in the city of Delhi.

Note: Taj Mahal is closed every Friday. You are allowed a maximum of 3-hours at the monument and cannot take in anything except your camera, water and essential medicine. From mid-January to mid-February there may be early morning fog, in which case you will visit the Taj Mahal a little later.

Day 9

This morning we visit the magnificent Golden Temple shining in the morning light, with its large dome surrounded by elegant minarets and splendidly gilded interior panelling. This temple is an important place of worship for devotees of the Sikh faith worldwide.

Near the temple we visit the Sarovar, a sacred holy water pool, and Langar - one of the largest community kitchens in the world. Here you can volunteer to help in the kitchen or serve food to the devotees.

Afterwards we visit Jallianwala Bagh where on 13 April 1919 British Indian Army troops under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer, fired into a crowd of hundreds of protesting men, women and children. This Amritsar massacre site is now a memorial garden.

In the evening we return to the Golden Temple to participate in the daily Palki Sahib ceremony where, to the accompaniment of drums and hymns, a gold and silver gilded palanquin decorated with silk brocades is used to carry the Guru Granth Sahib (holy book) from the main shrine to the gateway to the inner sanctum. Each person has the opportunity to help carry the palaquin for a few seconds. The next morning the ceremony is repeated, as the holy book is brought out again into the temple.

Day 10

This morning is at leisure to explore Amritsar.

In the afternoon we drive 2-hours to the Wagah Border, the only crossing point between India and Pakistan. Here the changing of the guards and flag-lowering ceremony is performed daily with blustering pomp and perfect drill by both side - described by Michael Palin as "carefully choreographed contempt".

A jawan (infantryman) stands at attention on each side and as the sun sets, the iron gates at the border are opened and the two flags are lowered simultaneously. The ceremony ends with a retreat that involves a brusque handshake between soldiers from either side, followed by the closing of the gates again.

Day 11

Transfer to Amritsar Airport for your flight home.

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