India with Varanasi - Itinerary

Day 1: Departure

Departure from Sweden. We will meet and get to know each other and our tour guide before boarding the plane that will take us to Delhi.

Day 2

We will be picked up and driven to our hotel for check-in.

Overnight at the hotel in Delhi. Breakfast included.

Day 3: Delhi

First, we will visit the old city in Delhi and its ancient walls surrounding the town. The city was built during the Mughal period and possesses a countless number of narrow alleys. We will drive past the Red Fort, which was the main palace during the Mogul Empire and almost an exact replica of the Red Fort in Agra. We will then visit the Raj Ghat, which is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi, the father of modern India. We will also see Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India and the old city's fiery and colorful market, Chandni Chowk . Our tour of New Delhi includes visits to such attractions as the great Mogul Humayun's Tomb, Safdarjung’s burial place as well as Qutabminareten’s with its iron pillar. At 72 meters high, it is one of the most perfect towers in the Persian world and has managed to withstand the elements for over 1500 years. We continue onto the embassy area and its administrative buildings.

Overnight at the hotel in Delhi. Breakfast included.

Day 4: Delhi, Jaipur

After breakfast, we will drive to Jaipur where we will check into our hotel. Jaipur is also known as the Pink City as it was constructed of the local pink sandstone. When the Prince of Wales visited the city in 1876, the maharajah decided that all the buildings would be painted pink which, according to tradition, is the color that symbolizes that you are welcome.

Overnight at the hotel in Jaipur. Breakfast included.

Day 5: Jaipur

We will visit the Amber Fort in the city that was formerly the capital when the Rajput class was in rule. You are easily impressed by the grandeur of this palace, situated on a cliff 11 km north of Jaipur. We will ride up to the mountain palace on beautifully painted elephants passing through the old main gate, just as the old maharajas and kings did. The architectural masterpiece that is the Amber Fort with its mirror-ornamented alcoves and splendid mosaics captivates today's visitors just as it once attracted the past royal inhabitants.

In the afternoon, it's time for Jaipur and the Palace of Winds, Hawa Mahal, which is a five-story building made of pink sandstone and is, today, considered Jaipur's most beautiful structure. It was built in 1799 made with niches and windows by the hundreds so that veiled royal women could gaze at the life outside, away from the eyes of public. We will continue with a tour of the City Palace in the heart of the city. In the center of the palace is a seven-story building, called Chandra Palace, which offers a lovely view over the gardens as well as the city. Next stop is the astronomical observatory with its original instruments that still work today.

Overnight at the hotel in Jaipur. Breakfast included.

Day 6: Jaipur, Agra

We will head for Agra and, en route, visit the ghost town of Fatehpur Sikri. It was built as the capital in 1569 and was abandoned only 14 years later, but no one really knows why. One theory is that it was due to water shortages. Everything is very well preserved and we will see one of the most impressive and perfectly preserved buildings listed on the World Heritage List. The city is divided into religious and secular elements where there are a large number of unique sculptures, like the white marble mosque in the secular district. The mosque is a very sacred place for pilgrims that travel from near and far. After our visit we will continue on to Agra where we will check into our hotel.

Overnight at the hotel in Agra. Breakfast included.

Day 7: Agra

After breakfast, it will be time to visit the mausoleum that is the Taj Mahal. Considered one of the world's most beautiful and perfect buildings, this white masterpiece was built by mogul Shah Jehan in memory of his beloved and favorite wife Mumtaz. He was one of the greatest kings of the Mogul Empire. Agra is the medieval city near Taj Mahal that is known for his impressive red fort, Agra Fort. There sat the Shah Jehan, imprisoned the last few years of his life as he looked out over his wife's grave monument, quite the ironic fate.

Overnight at the hotel in Agra. Breakfast included.

Day 8: Varanasi

It is now time to leave the Golden Triangle. We will travel to Delhi to fly on to Varanasi, the Hindu holy city and religious center. It is one of the world's oldest cities and one of the most important pilgrimage sites in India. This is also a place of great significance to the Buddhists.

Overnight at the hotel in Varanasi. Breakfast included.

Day 9: Varanasi

We will start with an early morning boat ride on the sacred river Ganges. It is worthwhile to be up at sunrise, as this is the most important time in the day. At dawn, the Hindu pilgrims come to bathe in the sacred Ganges where they turn their faces to the sun. We will also see the cremation site and have direct contact with life on the banks of the Ganges River. At dusk, we will see the priests perform blessing ceremonies at the river bank where leaf boats with lit lanterns drift downriver. We will continue with the Varanasi city, once Benares, and visit several temples in the city center, starting with the monkey temple, Durga. It received this name due to all the monkeys that inhabit the temple. Along with the Vishwanath Temple (or Vesheshwar, the master of the universe), both these temples belong to the most sacred place in the city. We will also visit the temple of mother India, Bharat Mata, and the Benares Hindu University. In the afternoon, we will make an excursion to the small town of Sarnath, which stands as a symbol of Buddhism's birth. It was here that Buddha gave his first sermon and founded his society. The museum at Sarnath contains sculptures from different eras and styles, dating as far back as 400 BC to 1300s AD.

Overnight at the hotel in Varanasi. Breakfast included

Day 10: Varanasi, Delhi

We will fly back to Delhi and check into our hotel in the afternoon. For those who are interested, there will be night set aside to wander the streets of this intense city.

Overnight at the hotel in Delhi. Breakfast included.

Day 11: Delhi, Darjeeling

We will fly to Bagdogra for where we will travel to Darjeeling in the north-east region of the country, in West Bengal. The city is very beautiful surrounded by green tea plantations with snowy Himalayan Mountains in the background. This town produces 25 percent of all the tea in India and there are many domestic tourists that visit as well.

Overnight at the hotel in Darjeeling. Breakfast included.

Day 12: Darjeeling

Early in the morning, we will head out to Tiger Hill, which lies at an altitude of about 2,500 meters. At sunrise, you can see the astonishing Mount Everest peak as it stretches towards the heavens. After breakfast, we will take the train to the Ghoom Monastery. Subject to availability, we will travel with the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. It is nicknamed Toy Train because of the narrow rail road tracks. Built in 1850 by Sherab Gyatso, a Mongolian monk, Ghoom is the oldest monastery in the area. The monastery belongs to the Buddhist Gyalukpa sect and is famous for the 2.5 meter high Maitreya Buddha.

There is also a city tour of Darjeeling in the afternoon where we will visit the Himalayan mountain climbing institute. It displays the equipment from the legendary Everest climber Tenzin, Norgey and Sir Edmund Hillary as well as an extensive collection of Himalayan flora and fauna. We will visit the interesting zoological park with its Siberian tigers, black bears, deer, pandas, snow leopards, and various colorful birds that are typical for this region. We will then visit a center for Tibetans that are in exile where many of the refugees work on their crafts. In the evening, we will take a walk to the Bhutia Busty monastery.

Overnight at the hotel in Darjeeling. Breakfast included.

Day 13: Darjeeling, Gangtok

We will drive to Gangtok, the capital of the Sikkim state, where we will begin with the must see Namgyal Institute. It was built in 1958 to advance the research about Tibetan customs and languages. The Institute is built in the traditional style and houses the world's largest collection of books and rare manuscripts on the Mahaya Buddhists, as well various forms of artwork such as icons, relics of the monks, extracts from the Lepcha scripts, masks and sacred objects. Among other things, the collection includes a kapali, which is a bowl made from a human skull, and a carku, which is a flute made from a femur. In the Tsuk la Khang, another must see in Sikkim, there is a large body of scriptures. The building is strikingly beautiful with generously decorated altars, fine woodcarvings, murals covering the inside walls and images of Buddha, bodhisattvas and tantric deities. This site is of great importance as it is where the local Buddhists gather.

Overnight at the hotel in Gangtok. Breakfast and lunch are included.

Day 14: Gangtok

Another interesting day awaits us as we begin at the Sikkim Research Institute. This is the most prominent Tibetan research center of its kind in India. The Institute has a grand collection of manuscripts in the languages Lepcha, Tibetan and Sanskrit. There are also several hundred Buddhist icons and other valuable artifacts. The Institute has today grown to be a world-renowned center for the study of Buddhist philosophy and religion. Rumtek Monastery, which lies near Gangtok, was originally named Dharma Chakra Centre and it encapsulates a beautiful sanctuary and monastery for monks. The site ended up on the pilgrimage map after the Chinese occupation of Tibet. As a result, it still has number of religious gurus from Tibet who sought refuge during that era.

Overnight at the hotel in Gangtok. Breakfast and lunch are included.

Day 15: Departure

We will fly back to Delhi via Bagdogra. We will then take overnight flight home to Sweden.

Day 16

Arrival in Sweden.

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