Tigers & the Taj Mahal

Your Indian holiday begins with an overnight flight from the UK to Delhi.

Arrive in Delhi, this morning, to be greeted by your Tour Manager, and transferred to your hotel. Later, after some time to freshen up, join your tour manager on a guided tour to the sixteenth century red sandstone and marble Humuyan's tomb, an impressive example of Mughal architecture with lush Persian style gardens.

Today's guided tour will introduce Delhi's vibrant Old City. Drive by the historic Red Fort, Jama Masjid Mosque and Raj Ghat – Gandhi’s cremation site close to the Yamuna River – and enjoy an exhilarating rickshaw ride through the narrow lanes of Chandni Chowk.

You’ll also experience the grandeur of New Delhi, built by the British Raj to reflect the glories of the Empire. Highlights will include the historic India Gate war memorial and the vast boulevard of the Rajpath.

Later, after an included lunch in Delhi, travel to Agra, India's City of Love and site of the exquisite Taj Mahal. After a visit to the royal pavilions, palaces and courtyards of majestic Agra Fort, you’ll make your first visit to the Taj, a monument to undying love, to see it in all its glory at sunset and enjoy a guided tour.

Start your day with the unforgettable view of the Taj Mahal at dawn, seen from across the Yamuna River. After breakfast, you'll journey to Abhaneri, a small town famed for its amazing baoris (stepwells). Discover the intricate beauty of Chand Baori, one of the deepest and largest stepwells in India, and its carved panels.

Leaving Abhaneri, you'll travel to Ranthambhore National Park, stopping en route for lunch at the sumptuous Umaid Lake Palace, a lovely heritage hotel and organic retreat that grows produce for its fine restaurant. Once the hunting ground of Indian princes, Ranthambhore is landscape of thorn trees, scrub and grasslands dotted with beautiful ponds, streams and lakes is a perfect habitat for the famous, elusive (and still endangered) Tigers of Ranthambhore, and other species.

Relax for the afternoon, then enjoy an evening tiger talk with a local naturalist: the perfect preparation for tomorrow's adventures.

Today’s two canter (open-air vehicle) safaris in Ranthambhore Park are sure to be among the highlights of your entire holiday. In the company of a knowledgeable naturalist guide, you'll go in search of the park's most animal inhabitants: striped hyenas, sambar deer, sloth bears and, of course, tigers (and perhaps even a leopard).

Rest and relax this morning, or join our optional excursion to climb the gradual, 273 steps to ancient Ranthambhore Fort, which sits atop a 600-metre-high hill range, and offers stupendous views of the park below.

This afternoon, after lunch at the hotel, you’ll bid farewell to Ranthambhore and journey to the Pink City of Jaipur, where you'll stay for the next two nights.

After breakfast, visit Amber, the ancient capital of the Rajput Empire. Climb by jeep to the city's vast sixth-century hill-top fort to wander its Royal Halls and take in the magnificent views from the ramparts. After an included lunch, you'll tour Jaipur to see the City Palace complex, with its museums and ancient astronomical observatory, and drive past the innumerable windows and screened balconies of the 18th-century Palace of the Winds.

This evening, enjoy dinner a special dinner at the Nokha House, hosted in traditional Rajasthani style by the Rathore family.

Bid farewell to Jaipur and journey across the desert plain into the Aravali Hills to the jungle-resort of Vanaashyra. En route you'll stop for a tea or coffee at Bhangarh, a ruined fort dating from the 17th Century.

This afternoon, take a camel cart to visit the local village and enjoy a pre-dinner cookery demonstration. You'll spend the night in a private cottage designed to give you a sense of the India of the past with the little luxuries of the present (like air conditioning).

Enjoy today at leisure in Vanaashrya - swim in the pool or reflect on your journey through India.

After an included lunch at Vanaashrya, depart for Delhi and the return overnight flight home.

You will land back into the UK in the morning today.