Architecture Tour of India

Arrive Mumbai
Arrive in Mumbai, the Commercial capital of India. After completing formalities with customs and immigration, you will be received by our representative with Traditional Indian Welcome (with garlands).

Mumbai is the capital of Maharastra State and the gateway to this beguiling subcontinent. Of the four great cities in India, Mumbai is the most cosmopolitan, spear heading India's move in to the 21st Century.
Afterwards transfer to your hotel for the overnight stay.

Arrive Mumbai
Breakfast in the hotel.

Morning excursion to Elephanta caves by motor launch. It contains a fine cluster of 6th-8th century rock-cut caves. The sculptures are beautifully executed and the most outstanding of these is the Maheshmurthy or Trimurthy, a five metre high three- headed bust hewn from a single rock, representing the three aspects of Shiva, viz the creator, the Preserver and the Destroyer.

Afternoon city tour visiting the Gateway of India-built during the period 1924-1927 to commemorate the visit to India of King George V, of England in 1911. The Gateway is a popular promenade along with sea. Visit the prince of Wales Museum - the Victorian domed structure contains a fine collection of miniature paintings. Its three sections are on Art, Archaeology and Natural history. The museum’s style of architecture is Indo-Saracenic. Visit the 8- meter Rajabai Clock tower - the gothic style Mumbai University clock tower built in the last century.

The Victoria terminus is considered the most beautiful edifice in the city. This sprawling structure blends both Gothic and Indian architectural styles. Drive past Nariman point to Malabar Hill which is a winding stretch of road along the sea with tall buildings on one side. Overnight at hotel.

Mumbai – Hyderabad (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel. In time transfer to airport to board flight for Hyderabad.

On arrival met at the airport and are assisted in the transfer to the hotel.
Afternoon embark on the city tour visiting Char Minar-built in 1591, a charming rectangular building with four slender minarets, housing a small mosque. Visit Osmania university founded in 1918 - the main building is blend of Hindu and Muslim styles of architecture, the Salar Jung Museum displays the private collections of Nawab Salar Jung III, an instance of a unique one man enterprise in the sphere of art collection. the Birla Temple, is a beautiful white temple dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara. Overnight at hotel.

Hyderabad – Chennai (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel. In time transfer to airport to board flight for Chennai.

On arrival met at the airport and are assisted in the transfer to the hotel.
Afternoon embark on the city tour visiting the fort of St. George, built by the East India Company in 1640 A.D., St. Mary’s church within the fort is believed to be the oldest Anglican church in the East. Visit the High court buildings put up in 1861 are of interest for their Indo-Sarcenic architecture. The Kepaleeshwara Temple is at Mylapare, 4.8 kms from the city centre. This is an ancient Shiva temple built in the Dravidian style. visit the San Thome Cathedral and Marina Beach.

Overnight at hotel.

In Chennai
Breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards embark on the Full day excursion to Mahabalipuram and Kanchipuram

Mahabalipuram - famous for the seven pagodas. Here on the seashore is an interesting group of ancient rock hewn temples which are the examples of Dravidian style of Architecture.
The sculptures are more than 1200 year sold. There are five chariots cut tour of rock in individual pieces and carved out intricately. See the world’s largest and finest stone Bas-relief 27 metres long and 09 meters wide depicting Arjuna’s penance.

Kanchipuram known as the golden city of a thousand temples speaks of the gorgeous dravidian heritage. These temples provide an opportunity to study the temple architecture in South India.

Return to Chennai.

Overnight at hotel.

Chennai - Bangalore (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel.

In time transfer to airport to board flight for Bangalore.
On arrival met at the airport and are assisted in the transfer to the hotel.

Afternoon embark on the sightseeing trip which would include your visit Cuban Park, which is a huge tree-studded lawn spread over 300 acres with a number of public buildings gracing its boundaries. Located at one end of the park is the magnificent Vidhana Soudha built after independence, stands out by its imposing architecture in the Neo-Dravidian style. visit Lal Bagh, laid some 200 years back, the gardens are spread over 240 acres and have 1000 varieties of trees and plants. A Glass House built on the lines of the Crystal Palace of London, is the venue of flower shows. It has a huge Nandi Bull carved out of a single grey granite.

Overnight at the hotel.

Bangalore – Mysore By Road (Approx 112 Kms - 02 Hours)
Breakfast in the hotel. After breakfast drive to Mysore. On arrival check in to the hotel.
Afterwards start the full day excursion to Belure and Halebid temples.
In Belure visit the Chennakesawa temple built 900 years ago, is an exquisite specimen of Hoysala art. In Halebid visit the 12th century Hoysaleswar and Kedareswara temples which rank among the masterpieces of Hindu Art. Also visit on your way back to Mysore ‘Saravanbelagola’ - a 17 metre high statue of Lord Gomateshwara. Hewn out of single rock, this gentle colossus a top a hill can be seen from distance.

Overnight will be in Mysore.

Mysore – Bangalore By Road (Approx 112 Kms – 02 Hours)
Bangalore – Ahmedabad (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards drive back to Bangalore. On arrival assisted in the transfer to airport to board flight for Ahmedabad. On arrival received at the airport and are assisted in the transfer to the hotel.

Rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight at the hotel.

Ahmedabad – Delhi (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards embark on your full day city tour in which you would visit
Morning city tour visiting Teen Darwaza, a triple gateway 37 feet high built by Sultan Ahmed, the Jumma Masjid, the Hathi Singh temple, a richly marble temple surrounded by 52 smaller temples, Rani Sipri Mosque, Sahking Minarets and the Step wells of Dada Hari, an example of remarkable style of monument that is a specialty of Gujrat.

Afternoon visit the modern buildings of interest. Visit the institute of Indology and Rabindranath Tagore theatre (both by architect B.V. Doshi), the Mill Owner’s Club by Le Corbusier, the Gandhi Memorial Museum on the Sabarmati river (by C.M. Correa) and the institute of Management - a large new residential business college by the American architecture, Louis Kahn.

Evening transfer to the airport to board flight for Delhi. On arrival received at the airport and assisted in the transfer to the hotel.

Overnight at hotel.

In Delhi
Breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards embark on your sightseeing trip of Old Delhi to see the Jama Masjid and Red Fort built by Shahjehan between 1639-1648 symbolizing the Mughal Glory. Visit the Raj Ghat and Shanti Vana - the cremation sites of Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Drive past Chandni Chowk- the busy shopping centre of the walled city.

Rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight at hotel.

In Delhi
Breakfast in the hotel. Afterwards embark on your sightseeing trip of New Delhi to see Qutub Minar , built in 12th century, Humayun’s tomb, built in mid 16th century by Haji Begum-this edifice was a trend setter of the time in its layouts as all later Mughal monuments including the Taj Mahal followed its design. drive past President’s House, Parliament House and other Secretariat Buildings laid out by Lutyens in 1911. The Diplomatic Enclave where all the embassies are situated including those of special architectural interest such as American and the Swiss.
Rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight at hotel.

Delhi – Chandigarh (Train)
Breakfast at Hotel. Free till departure. This morning assisted in transfer to the New Delhi Railway Station to board the Shatabdi Express train for Chandigarh. Depart Delhi at 1020 hrs Arrive Chandigarh at 1310 hrs.

On arrival received at the station and assisted in the transfer to the hotel.

Afternoon city tour of Chandigarh, Designed and built by the famous French architect Le Corbusier. Visit the Secretariat - an imposing building with a large tank, roof and garden. High Court - designed and constructed by the principles of the modern architecture - economy of space and beautiful presentation. Assemble chambers, a wonder of architectural innovation.
Rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight at hotel.

Chandigarh - Delhi (Train)
Breakfast in the hotel. Free till departure. In time transfer to railway station to board the Shatabdi Express train Delhi.

Depart Chandigarh at 1235 hrs Arrive Delhi at 1535 hrs.

On arrival at New Delhi Station received and assisted in the transfer to the hotel.

Rest of the day free at leisure. Overnight at hotel.

Delhi- Jaipur By Road (Approx 260 Kms / 06 Hours)
Breakfast in the hotel. This morning drive to Jaipur.

Jaipur, capital of Rajasthan, also known as 'Pink City' is surrounded by an ancient 20ft high wall and eight gates. Situated at a distance of 280 km away from Delhi, today, Jaipur is the personification of the old order influence the new. An inherent interest for colour and design penetrated over stratum of society, and jewelry, crafts and architecture became objects of fascination equally between prince and peasant. Jaipur is also the main tourist hub of Rajasthan tourist circuit. From here you can reach out to places like Jodhpur, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Udaipur, Pushkar, and many more such destinations from Jaipur. Jaipur is also the third corner of the famed Golden Triangle tourist circuit of India along with Delhi and Agra.

Upon arrival check in to the hotel. Rest of the day free for own activities /leisure.

Overnight at hotel.

In Jaipur
After breakfast you embark on your sightseeing tour of Amer Fort and Jaipur City.

Amer Fort : 11 Kms from Jaipur- A marvelous example of Rajput architecture with its terraces and reflected in Matao lake below. The magnificent old Citadel, a labyrinth of massive walls and towers, shrouds an exquisite marble palace, pillared and carved glimmering with a million tiny mirrors, which creates tanatalising reflection effect. The ascent to the fort is on a gaily caparisoned elephants.

Afternoon sightseeing of Jaipur City visit the

City Palace Museum : An imposing blend of traditional Rajasthani and Mughal Art. The museum is resplendent with its collection of robes of royal princess, carpets an armoury of old weapons , miniature paintings portraying court scenes , battle scenes and processions.

Jantar Mantar : (Observartory): Jantar Mantar, built between 1728 and 1734, literally means the ‘instruments for measuring the harmony of the heavens’. Jai Singh, the brain behind the grand project, chose stone with marble facing. This was the biggest of all his observatories and the only one built of stone. He used it daily, often with his astronomy gurus Pandit Jagannath and Kewal Ram. In all there are 17 instruments in the Jantar Mantar complex. The function of each instrument is rather complex but serves a particular function where time plays the main theme.

Hawa Mahal : (Palace of Winds) : A five storeyed wonder with a spectacular pyra midal façade and overhanging windows with latticed screens, domes and spires.

After completing the sightseeing return back to the hotel for overnight.

Jaipur – Agra By Road (Approx 255 Kms – 06 Hours)
After breakfast drive to Agra enroute visit Fathepur Sikri

Fatehpur Sikri: A fascinating ghost town lies little beyond Agra the deserted Red sandstone city that was built by Emperor Akbar as his capital. It was a veritable fairy tale city and its ruins are still in a pristine condition. It is not hard to imagine what the court life would have been like in the days of its grandeur. Set like a jewel in a court yard of pink sandstone is the marble tomb of Saint Salim Chisti, enclosed by delicately carved marble screens.

Afterwards you continue your drive to Agra. On arrival in Agra you check in to your hotel

Agra is the one of the prominent destinations of the World Tourism map with three heritage monuments - The Taj Mahal, Agra Fort & Fatehpur Sikri. It is more just a dacadent city of graveyards and stones, but it is a vibrant centre of Culture, Art and Religious philosphies that have enriched mankind and shaped humen thought over centuries.

Rest of the evening free at leisure. Overnight at hotel.

Agra – Delhi By Road (Approx 210 Kms – 04 Hours)
After Breakfast you embark on your sightseeing tour of the Agra city including Taj Mahal and Agra Fort

Taj Mahal : The 17th Century master piece named Taj Mahal ,which of course is the most splendid of all the buildings – perhaps the most perfect architectural monument of the world. It was built in the memory of the beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal by one of greatest king of Mughal Empire Shah Jehan.

Agra Fort: Built primarily as a military establishment by Emperor Akbar in 1565,the redstone Agra Fort, was partially converted in to a palace during the tenure of Emperor Shah Jehan. Though the principal structure was built by Akbar, many more additions were made by his grandsons. This massive fort is 2.5 Kms long and is considered the predecessor of the Red Fort of New Delhi.

Later you drive back to Delhi, on arrival check in to the hotel.

Overnight at hotel.

Delhi – Overseas (Flight)
Breakfast in the hotel. Free till departure. In the evening assisted in transfer to the International airport to connect the flight back home.