Travelling in Delhi-Agra Region
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Unlike the west, the road conditions in India changes a lot in a short period. What is mentioned here is true as of November 2012. Traffic in Agra is quite bad (just like any other city in India). Auto-rickshaws are the best way to get around. They never go by the meter. Most of them know all the tourist locations. You will be paying much more than the locals. Travel between cities is easy assuming you don't mind hiring a car and a driver. That will help you beat the traffic.
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Taj Mahal: The ticket centre is quite far from the complex. Hardly anything is allowed inside the monument. So ensure you check in everything at the ticket counter. Just take your camera and money. Avoid mobile phones, if possible. Foreigner tickets come with a free transport to and from the site to the ticket centre. Taj Mahal is open for 5 nights around full moon. You can buy the tickets at ASI office in Mall Road (all auto-rickshaw know the way to here). You have to buy the ticket one day in advance. If the day is foggy, dont bother buying the tickets. Unless the sky is clear, you won't be able to see a thing.
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Taj Monuments: Itimad-ud-Daula, Chini-ka-Rauza and Mehtab Bagh are all close to each other. Try covering them in one trip. You will need at least 30 min to an hour at each site. It takes about 10 to 15 to get from one to the other. It takes about 30 to 45 min to get here from Taj. Akbar's Mausoleum is far from Taj Mahal. Expect to take about an hour by auto to get here from Taj. Mariam's Tomb is a stone throw away from Akbar's Mausoleum.
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Bharatpur: The only way to enjoy the park is on foot, bicycle or on a cycle-rickshaw safari. You can hire an independent guide, but the rickshaw pullers can double up as guides as well. All rickshaw pullers are as knowledgeable as the guides; the only difference is that their English is poor. If you can speak Hindi, there is no real reason to spend extra for the guide. I have the contact number for our rickshaw guy. He was very good and I would highly reccommend him. Please contact me for details.
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Food is quite insipid in this region. You would get the standard Nan-Dal-Paneer stuff in most of the places. Try Dal Makhani here. Agra's Peta is quite famous.
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Hotel Alwar (Alwar): This is an excellent hotel. The rooms are very spacious. The staff is very courteous and they cook decent meals for you. The owner is very helpful and is great host. You cannot book this hotel via any standard sites. Also, it is located in a residential area. So it is a bit hard to find autos from here. But the front desk can call one for you.
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Hotel Brijwasi Royal (Mathura): This is a standard mid-range hotel. The rooms are a tad small, but confortable. Room service is very quick and the menu is quite extensive and tasty. It is centrally located and easy to find transport to/from this place.
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Hotel Taj Resort (Agra): This is very close to the Shilpagram Parking (East Gate Ticket office). It is a short walk to Taj from here. This is the only mid-range option in this region. The rooms are quite good. The food is not great and there aren't too many eating options in this area.
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Hotel Ashoka ITDC (Bharatpur): This is the only option to stay inside the park. You can get the rickshaw safari right outside the hotel gate. This is a standard ITDC hotel with no surprises. Given its location, I would highly reccommend staying here.
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Delhi to Alwar: 170 kms, 3 hrs. The roads are in a decent shape. But it takes a while to get out of Delhi traffic. Long distance cars are easy to hire at the railway stations. But expect to get fleeced.
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Alwar to Deeg: 75kms, 3 hrs. The roads are in an apalling condition.
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Deeg to Mathura: 40kms, 45mins to an hour. Roads are ok. So if you want to see Deeg, try to get here from Mathura instead of Alwar.
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Mathura to Agra: 55kms, 1hr. The highway is quite good. It would take about an hour to reach Agra. Note that Taj is on the other end of Agra. So budget 30 to 45 mins more if you are going all the way to Taj.
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Agra to Bharatpur: 65 kms, 1.5 to 2 hrs. The roads are bad till you leave Agra and after that they improve dramatically. It would take about an hour to hour and a half to get to Fatehpur Sikri. It takes about 20 mins from Fatehpur Sikri to Bharatpur. Expect a 15 to 30 min stop when you cross UP/Rajasthan border to pay tourist tax.
Time Required at the Sights
- Alwar: One hour to tour the ruins and an hour for the museum.
- Deeg Palace: About 1 to 2 hrs.
- Agra monuments: About an hour each (Taj will take twice that long).
- Fatehpur Sikri: About an hour for palace ruins and 30 mins for the dargah.
- Mathura Museum: 1 to 2 hrs.
- Bharatpur Safari: At least 4 hrs to give yourself a chance to see most of the park birds. You can take a longer safari to cover the core areas. 4hr safari will spend most of the time in the buffer zone. Safaris start at 6:30 in the morning and they end at 6 pm.