......................................................... BEST
OF WILDLIFE & PINCH OF CULTURE (10 Days)
DELHI-SARISKA-RANTHAMBORE-JAIPUR-BHARATPUR-AGRA
Day 01:Abroad / Delhi
Arrive late night at New Delhi International airport.
On arrival
the guest will be met by our representative and transferred to hotel. Upon
arrival at hotel the guests will be provided with the traditional Indian
welcome consisting of aarti-tikka and garlands.
Overnight at
hotel.
Day 02: New Delhi
Morning sightseeing tour of Old Delhi.
This morning you will be
taken to visit Old Delhi - Former centre of Moghul Power, Old Delhi offers
ancient monuments, narrow streets and bustling bazaars. Visit the vast
Red Fort, built in 1648, the
Jama Masjid, the greatest
mosque in India and completed in 1658 by Shah Jahan who also built the Taj
Mahal, and the Raj Ghat, the
simple memorial to Mahatma Gandhi.
Afternoon sightseeing tour of
New Delhi - drive past the stately government buildings of the British Era
designed by Lutyens, including the India
Gate & the Presidential
Palace. Continue onto the beautiful Humayuns
tomb of the Mughal era & predecessor of the world famous
Taj Mahal. End the tour at the towering minaret of Qutab
Minar.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 03: Delhi - Sariska After
breakfast drive to Sariska (180 kms)
On arrival in Sariska -
check into the hotel.
Sariska
Palace - built by Maharaja Jai Singh of Alwar, at the turn
of the century, the Sariska Palace was a royal hunting lodge or Palace de
Nature. Silhouetted against the nurturing arms of the Aravali range, this
legacy of Maharaja, now a heritage hotel, is located right inside the Tiger
Reserve. Hard tennis courts with a viewing pavilion and a swimming pool give
that zestful touch to a quiet holiday. Lunch at the hotel
Afternoon, an exciting jeep drive to the
Sariska sanctuary to view wildlife. Set among valleys, hills
and deep forests that change colour with the seasons. It is the home to an
exotic variety of wild animals and beautiful birds. Here, herds of golden
deer dart and pirouette gracefully, playing hide and seek with their shadow,
and the big wild cat, the tiger, roams free. Overnight at hotel.
Day
04: Sariska - Ranthambore After breakfast drive to Ranthambore
(240 kms) On arrival in Ranthambore - check into the hotel.
Ranthambore Wildlife Sanctuary -
Rajasthan's most renowned wildlife sanctuary, it is 400 sq kms of dry
deciduous forest, perfect natural habitat for tigers, and is set in the
Aravalli and Vindhya hills, dotted with pavillions and dominated by a
hilltop fort. Ranthambore was one of the hunting preserves of the former
rulers of Jaipur and because of this the Maharajas ensured the environment
was preserved and the forest and their inhabitants well protected. It has a
good population of tiger and their prey species, and has been declared a "Project
Tiger" reserve. Wildlife includes blue bull, black buck, spotted deer
or cheetal, wild boar, a large variety of bird species and, if very lucky,
the rarely seen leopard.
This afternoon you will be escorted on
a game viewing inside the sanctuary by jeeps. Overnight at hotel.
Day 05: Ranthambore Early morning and late afternoon,
game viewing in the sanctuary by jeeps. Overnight at hotel.
Day
06: Ranthambore - Jaipur After breakfast drive to Jaipur (156 kms)
On arrival in Jaipur - check into the hotel Lunch at the hotel
Afternoon, tour of the "Pink City" is spectacularly set within
surrounding rugged hills, dotted with ancient ruined fortresses. Your tour
will include the imposing City Palace,
still home to the Maharaja although several of the rooms are now open to the
public. Many antiques and artefacts belonging to the ruling family are
housed here, including a collection of weaponry. You will also visit the
Hawa Mahal "Palace of
the Winds", and the open-air Jantar
Mantar Observatory to see the vast astronomical instruments.
Enjoy a stroll through the colourful bazaar before returning to your hotel.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 07: Jaipur - Bharatpur
Morning visit Amber Fort
Afternoon drive to Bharatpur
The famous Keoladeo Ghana Bird Sanctuary
which is a wonder of the natural world and no less worth seeing than the
marble mausoleum of the Taj. Here over 350 species of birds find refuge in
the 29sq kms of shallow lakes & wood lands of the park. A third of them
are migrants many of whom spend winter in Bharatpur before returning to
their breeding grounds as far away as Siberia and Central Asia.
This sanctuary is the creation of the Maharaja of Bharatpur in the
late 19th century, who recognized the area's potential and augmented the
water supply by diverting water from a nearby irrigation canal. He also
constructed small dams, dykes and shooting butts & in a few years the
new ecosystem so flourished that it was able to support thousands of water
birds. The maharaja celebrated his success in style, with extravagant
shooting parties for the dignitaries of princely India. Their exploits are
recorded to this day on a sandstone inscription in the park. There are many
good paths & trails through the dense park, but a ride with your expert
rickshaw driver will be a rewarding experience as he has been trained to
recognise the different species of birds.
Afternoon,
cycle-rickshaw ride
Day 08: Bharatpur - Fatehpur Sikri - Agra
After breakfast drive to Agra (56 kms) enroute visit Fatehpur
Sikri
Fatehpur Sikri - drive to the impressive sandstone fortress
of Fatehpur Sikri. The fort was built in the 16th century and only occupied
for a few years before being abandoned, leaving the buildings in virtually
perfect conditions.
On arrival in Agra - check into the hotel
Lunch
at the hotel
Afternoon, visit the Taj Mahal is the mausoleum of
Empress Mumtaz Mahal, the beloved spouse of Shah Jahan, who died in 1630.
The Taj complex comprises a forecourt, a lofty entrance, a charming formal
Mughal garden with canals and a central tank with a series of fountains, the
tomb proper, and an attached mosque on the west and its symmetrical
counterpart on the east. The Taj is remarkable for its perfect proportion
and rich pietra dura, with minute details executed with great skill. The
building, often styled "a dream in marble" is said to have taken
at least 22 years (1631-1653) to build.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 09: Agra - Delhi Breakfast at the hotel.
Visit the Red Fort built by
three generations of Mughal Emperors starting from Akbar the Great in 1565
AD, which is a masterpiece of design and construction. It housed both the
residential Palaces of the Royal family, and the military quarters
Lunch at the hotel.
Afternoon drive to Delhi (203 kms/ 5 hrs)
Upon arrival transfer to the international airport for onward
flight