India and Tigers Tour

Wild tigers and Mughal architecture do not usually appear in the same itinerary, and the reason is geography rather than taste: Ranthambore sits almost exactly between Agra and Jaipur, so the detour that most Golden Triangle routes skip costs a single driving day. This nine-day journey takes it, giving three game drives inside the park alongside the monuments that brought you to North India in the first place.

It opens conventionally and deliberately so. Delhi gets a full guided day across the old and the new city, from the rickshaw lanes of Chandni Chowk and the courtyard of Jama Masjid to the twelfth-century minaret at Qutub Minar and the garden tomb that became the model for the Taj. The road then runs south to Agra for the fort, an evening view across the river from Mehtab Bagh, and the Taj Mahal itself at first light, which is the only hour it is worth queuing for.

From Agra the route turns toward the Aravalli foothills, stopping at the abandoned imperial city of Fatehpur Sikri on the way, and reaches Ranthambore in the late afternoon. Two full days follow with three drives in open canters or gypsies through the park's ten tourist zones, past the lakes, the crumbling hunting pavilions and the tenth-century fort that gives the reserve its name. Tigers are wild animals and no operator can promise them, but Ranthambore's are habituated to vehicles and the terrain is open enough that sightings are common rather than rare.

The journey closes in Jaipur, where the Amber Fort, the City Palace, the observatory at Jantar Mantar and the latticed screen of the Hawa Mahal fill a day comfortably, before the drive back to Delhi for a final night. Travel throughout is by private air-conditioned vehicle with the same driver, and licensed local guides join in each city. It suits travellers who want the classic heritage route without giving up the chance of watching a tiger walk out of the scrub at seven in the morning.