Thanjavur (Tanjore)
Come here twice: in the morning, when the honey-hued granite begins to assert its dominance over the white dawn sunshine, and in the evening, when the…
Must-see attractions in South India
Maharashtra
One of India’s greatest monuments, this astonishing temple, carved from solid rock, was built by King Krishna I in AD 760 to represent Mt Kailasa (Kailash…
Maharashtra
Ajanta’s caves line a steep face of a horseshoe-shaped gorge bordering the Waghore River. Five of the caves are chaityas (assembly or prayer halls) while…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Mumbai’s most famous landmark, this stunning hotel is a fairy-tale blend of Islamic and Renaissance styles, and India’s second-most-photographed monument…
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus
Mumbai (Bombay)
Imposing, exuberant and overflowing with people, this monumental train station is the city’s most extravagant Gothic building and an aphorism of colonial…
Mysuru (Mysore)
The second-most-visited sight in India (after the Taj Mahal), this palace is among the very grandest of India’s royal buildings and was the seat of the…
Maharashtra
One of the best places to see tigers in India, the seldom-visited Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, 150km south of Nagpur, is now much more accessible thanks…
Hampi
Hampi's most exquisite structure, the 16th-century Vittala Temple stands amid boulders 2.5km from Hampi Bazaar. Work possibly started on the temple during…
Maharashtra
The saga of the hammer and chisel comes full circle at the Unesco World Heritage-listed Ellora cave temples, located 30km from Aurangabad. The pinnacle of…
Andaman Islands
Like lovely tropical counterweights, the twin islands of Smith and Ross are connected by a slender, dazzlingly white sandbar, and are up there with the…
Havelock Island (Swaraj Dweep)
One of India’s (and indeed Asia's) most fabulous and famous stretches of sand: a beautiful bleach-blonde curve of powdery sugar fronted by perfectly…
Old Goa
Famous throughout the Roman Catholic world, the imposing Basilica de Bom Jesus contains the tomb and mortal remains of St Francis Xavier, the so-called…
Madurai
The colourful abode of the triple-breasted warrior goddess Meenakshi (‘fish-eyed’ – an epithet for perfect eyes in classical Tamil poetry) is generally…
Trichy (Tiruchirappalli)
So large it feels like a self-enclosed city, Sri Ranganathaswamy is quite possibly India's biggest temple. It has 49 separate Vishnu shrines, and reaching…
Hyderabad
Hyderabad's most impressive sight, this monumental fort lies on the western edge of town. In the 16th century the Qutb Shahs made Golconda a fortified…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Northeast of the Gateway of India in Mumbai Harbour, the rock-cut temples on Gharapuri, better known as Elephanta Island, are a Unesco World Heritage Site…
Karnataka
Badami’s highlights are its beautiful cave temples, three Hindu and one Jain, which display exquisite sculptures and intricate carvings. They're a…
Old Goa
At over 76m long and 55m wide, the cavernous Sé Cathedral is the largest church in Asia. Building commenced in 1562, on the orders of King Dom Sebastiao…
Northern Kerala
Wayanad's ethereal 345-sq-km sanctuary is accessible only by two-hour jeep safari (₹680), on which you might spot langurs, chital deer, sambar, peacocks,…
Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
Panaji
Panaji’s spiritual, as well as geographical, centre is this elevated, pearly white church, built in 1619 over an older, smaller 1540 chapel, and stacked…
Aurangabad
Built by Aurangzeb’s son Azam Khan in 1679 as a mausoleum for his mother Rabia-ud-Daurani, Bibi-qa-Maqbara is widely known as the poor man’s Taj. With its…
Hyderabad
Hyderabad’s principal landmark and city symbol was built by Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 to commemorate the founding of Hyderabad and the end of…
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya
Mumbai (Bombay)
Mumbai’s biggest and best museum displays a mix of India-wide exhibits. The domed behemoth, an intriguing hodgepodge of Islamic, Hindu and British…
Bengaluru (Bangalore)
In the heart of Bengaluru’s business district is Cubbon Park, a well-maintained 120-hectare garden where Bengaluru’s residents converge to steal a moment…
Konkan Coast
The commanding, brooding fortress of Janjira, built on an island 500m offshore, is the most magnificent of the string of forts that line the Konkan…
Periyar Tiger Reserve
Bison, sambar, wild boar, langur, around 2000 elephants and 35 to 40 tigers wander the lushly green hills of South India’s most popular wildlife reserve,…
Dr Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum
Mumbai (Bombay)
This gorgeous museum, built in Renaissance revival style in 1872 as the Victoria & Albert Museum, contains 3500-plus objects centring on Mumbai’s history …
Kochi (Cochin)
Originally built in 1568, Mattancherry's synagogue was partially destroyed by the Portuguese in 1662, and rebuilt two years later when the Dutch took…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Iskcon Juhu plays a key part in the Hare Krishna story, as founder AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada spent extended periods here (you can visit his modest…
Kochi (Cochin)
Mattancherry Palace was a generous gift presented to the Raja of Kochi, Veera Kerala Varma (1537–65), as a gesture of goodwill by the Portuguese in 1555…
Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram)
The crowning masterpiece of Mamallapuram’s stonework, this giant relief carving is one of India's greatest ancient artworks. Inscribed on two huge,…
Tamil Nadu
The temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram ('City of the Chola who Conquered the Ganges'), 35km north of Kumbakonam, is dedicated to Shiva. It was built by…
Tamil Nadu
With a forest’s worth of intricately carved rosewood ceilings and polished-teak beams, this labyrinthine palace, 35km northwest of Kanyakumari, near the…
Karnataka
The remnants of this magnificent 15th-century fort, the largest in South India – and once the administrative capital of much of the region – constitute…
Hyderabad
The subject of one of India's most ambitious heritage projects, these magnificent domed granite tombs form part of a huge archaeological park that is…
Karnataka
Set in tranquil gardens, the magnificent Golgumbaz houses the tombs of emperor Mohammed Adil Shah (r 1627–56), his two wives, his mistress (Rambha), one…
Mumbai (Bombay)
No sense is left unaffected at Mumbai's incredibly atmospheric fishing docks, dating to 1875, the oldest and largest wholesale fish market in Mumbai. A…
Shree Chhatrapati Shahu Museum
Maharashtra
‘Bizarre’ takes on a whole new meaning at this ‘new’ palace, an Indo-Saracenic behemoth designed by British architect ‘Mad’ Charles Mant for the Kolhapur…
Tiruvannamalai
This 10-hectare temple is one of India's largest. Its oldest parts date to the 9th century, but the site was a place of worship long before that. Four…
Hyderabad
This opulent 18th- and 19th-century palace compound, the main residence of several nizams, comprises several grandiose buildings and four garden…
