Private Custom Delhi City Tour with Guide and Transport

Jama Masjid and the Lanes of Old Delhi

Many private Delhi tours start in Old Delhi at Jama Masjid, one of the largest mosques in India, completed in the 1650s by the Mughal court in red sandstone and white marble. Its vast courtyard can hold some twenty-five thousand worshippers, and from its steps you look over the rooftops and markets of the old walled city. Plan about 45 minutes here; shoes are removed and modest dress covering shoulders and legs is required.

From the mosque, the all-inclusive option includes a rickshaw ride through the narrow lanes of Chandni Chowk to Khari Baoli, Asia's largest wholesale spice market. Sacks of chillies, turmeric, cardamom and dried fruit fill the shops, porters push heavy carts and the air is thick with aromas. Your guide leads you through safely and explains how this trading district has worked for centuries.

Red Fort

Close to Jama Masjid stands the Red Fort, the great walled palace of the Mughal emperors, built between 1639 and 1648 and named for its massive red sandstone walls, which run for more than two kilometres. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the place where India's Prime Minister raises the national flag every Independence Day.

Inside, you walk through the Lahori Gate and the covered bazaar to the Hall of Public Audience, the marble Hall of Private Audience and the elegant pavilions and gardens where court life once unfolded. Allow about one and a half hours with your guide. Note that the Red Fort is closed on Mondays; on that day your guide simply replaces it with another monument of your choice, one of the advantages of a custom private tour of Delhi.

Humayun's Tomb

In New Delhi, Humayun's Tomb is often called the most beautiful monument in the city. Completed in the early 1570s for the second Mughal emperor, it was the first great garden tomb in India, combining Persian design with red sandstone and white marble, and it inspired the later Taj Mahal. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993.

The mausoleum rises in the centre of a formal charbagh garden divided by water channels into four parts, with smaller tombs, gateways and pavilions in the grounds. Plan about one and a half hours to walk the gardens, climb onto the high platform and admire the double dome. Many visitors ask whether Humayun's Tomb is worth visiting if they are also going to Agra; the answer is yes, as it is quieter and beautifully restored.

Qutub Minar

In the south of the city, the Qutub Minar is a soaring tower of red and buff sandstone about 73 metres tall, begun in 1199 by the first sultans of Delhi to mark their victory and completed by their successors. Its five storeys are wrapped in carved bands of Arabic calligraphy and floral patterns, and it remains the tallest brick minaret in the world.

Around it lies a complex of ruins including the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, one of the earliest in India, and the famous Iron Pillar, which has stood for some sixteen centuries without rusting. The site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and needs about one and a half hours. It combines easily with the nearby Lotus Temple or with Gurugram if you are staying south of the city or heading to the airport.

India Gate and the Ceremonial Heart of New Delhi

India Gate is a 42-metre stone arch completed in 1931 as a memorial to the Indian soldiers who died in the First World War, whose names are carved on its walls. It stands at the end of Kartavya Path, the grand ceremonial avenue lined with lawns and fountains, where families gather in the evening and street vendors sell snacks.

At the other end of the avenue rise the domed Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India, and the government buildings around it, with the new Parliament building close by. These are photo stops of about 10 to 30 minutes each, seen from outside. Driving along this avenue with your private guide is the best way to understand how New Delhi was planned as a capital in the early twentieth century.

Lotus Temple, Akshardham and Gurudwara Bangla Sahib

Delhi's places of worship show the many faiths of India. The Lotus Temple, opened in 1986, is a white marble house of worship shaped like a lotus flower with 27 petals, open to people of all faiths for silent prayer. Akshardham, opened in 2005, is a vast Hindu temple complex of pink sandstone and marble covered in intricate carvings; phones and cameras are not allowed inside. Both are closed on Mondays.

In the city centre, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib is the most important Sikh temple in Delhi, with a golden dome and a large holy pool. Its community kitchen serves free meals to thousands of visitors every day, and you can see volunteers at work. Heads are covered and shoes removed, and scarves are provided. Your guide also suggests smaller gems such as the ancient Agrasen ki Baoli stepwell.