Agra, part of India’s Golden Triangle, is a popular destination amongst locals and foreigners alike. And for good reason – it’s home to one of the most majestic New Wonders of the World, the Taj Mahal! While everyone visits Agra for the Taj Mahal, there are many other exciting places you can (and should) visit. And the good part is, they’re all close to the Taj Mahal, and can be seen in one day. We’ve put together the perfect day trip to Agra, based on our own experience. Let’s dive in!
Sunrise at Taj Mahal
Admiring the majestic Taj Mahal at sunrise is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that everyone should experience at least once. When we first saw it, we got goosebumps – it’s that impressive! 🥹 If you get tickets that include a visit to the mausoleum (which we totally recommend), you can enter the Taj Mahal, and see where Queen Mumtaz Mahal and King Shah Jahan, who built this memorial in the 17th century for his wife, are laid to rest. Just remember, no taking pictures or videos in this part, and you’ll need to wear shoe protectors. It’s so cool to see it from the inside as well, the attention to detail (both inside and outside) is just incredible!
For the best experience, get there around half an hour before sunrise. This not only lets you enjoy the Taj Mahal in its peaceful morning vibe, but also helps you avoid the crowds that come later in the day. Trust us, having the Taj Mahal almost to yourself in the quiet morning is really something special.
We spent a good 2 hours wandering around – it’s massive! Surprisingly, it wasn’t as crowded as we thought, maybe because we visited in January? We have no idea but we loved it! The only downside is that January can be quite foggy, which means you can’t always admire the Taj Mahal in its full glory. Fortunately, the day we visited was the only day it cleared up, we were so lucky! Just check the weather forecast the day before, or ask around to see if the locals know what the weather will be like on your visit. Forewarned is forearmed!
Good to know
The Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays.
Breakfast at Joney’s Place
After your visit to the Taj Mahal, it’s time for a tasty breakfast. You’ve been up for quite some time now, so you deserve a delicious meal. Joney’s Place, only a 5-minute walk from the Taj Mahal, is our top pick! They make everything fresh to order, and on top of that it’s super affordable. The hot lemon with ginger and honey is delicious, they really helped Kelvin get through a difficult day where he had a sore throat. We both agree that the vegetable jaffles are a must-try and definitely our favorite meal. It still baffles us how they made something so basic, soooo yummy! We paid less than € 4 for 4 teas, pancakes, and vegetable jaffles. Talk about a great deal!
Bear in mind that Joney’s Place doesn’t have a lot of seating available. We’re talking 5 tables/20 seats tops. For breakfast we don’t think this will be an issue, at least it wasn’t for us. However, if you decide to come back another day for lunch or dinner you might be met with a full house!
Explore Agra Fort
Just a quick 10-minute drive from Joney’s Place you’ll find Agra Fort, a UNESCO world heritage site. It’s another historical gem worth exploring if you’re in Agra. The cool thing is that you can either wander around the fort on your own, or get a guide at the entrance. We suggest spending at least 2 hours here, even more if you want to see everything.
First of all, it’s really impressive to see how well the fort is preserved! We absolutely loved the red sandstone and architectural details, they give this place a super cool vibe like something out of a movie. Another thing we really liked about Agra Fort is that it’s not just a regular fort used for military and war. No no, it’s got temples, viewpoints, parks, and it even used to be a prison during one time! The versatility here is awesome, and you won’t be bored for a second. And in case you do feel bored, or think that you’ve seen it all, just take place on one of the benches in the parks and do some squirrel-spotting. Nothing funnier than watching those little guys eat, fight, or climb trees.
We absolutely loved Nagina Masjid, also known as the Gem Mosque or Jewel Mosque. It’s a stunning mosque made entirely of pure white marble. The domes and arches were so beautiful! If you’re lucky, you might have the whole place to yourself. In our case, we shared the spot with two friendly locals who wanted to take pictures with us for like 5 minutes straight. When in India, right? This wasn’t the first, nor the last time this happened to us!
Visit the Tomb of Itimad ud-Daulah
Next up: the Tomb of Itimad ud-Daulah, just a quick 7-minute drive from Agra Fort. It’s a lesser-known gem in Agra, but still really spectacular! People often call it the “Baby Taj”, and we totally see why – it shares a lot of similarities with the big one. The marble design is just stunning! We find it so crazy that this masterpiece was built 400 years ago. During our visit, there were only a few other tourists, making it a really enjoyable experience. So much fun if you feel like you’ve got the whole place to yourself.
Make sure to walk all the way to the back of the venue as well. Here you will find a gate that offers amazing views of the river, as well as of the Baby Taj itself of course. We really liked this “forgotten” spot, tucked away between the river and the monument. The Baby Taj has loads of beautiful photo opportunities, so don’t forget to bring your camera!
Pro tip
To make your visit to Agra as enjoyable as possible, we recommend ordering your tickets in advance. This will save you a lot of time and at least you won’t be ripped off! We bought our tickets online for all three sights. We paid about € 45 for both of us and could enter everywhere straight away. The only thing left to pay is tax at the Tomb of Itimad ud-Daulah, which is about € 0,20 per person.
Dinner at Shankara Vegis Restaurant
Our favorite dinner spot in Agra is undoubtedly Shankara Vegis Restaurant. It’s a small place with only vegetarian, local dishes. The food is delicious, cheap, and the manager is really friendly. What more could you ask for?
Since everything sounded delicious, we asked for some recommendations from the manager. Based on our preferences, he gave us the perfect dishes! Our absolute favorite was the Kaju Matar curry, a mix of sweet green peas and cashew nuts in a spiced cashew gravy. It’s both spicy and sweet, and we love it! Be sure to order some fried rice to go with it. The vegetable pakora were delicious as well, these are spiced Indian fritters made from carrots and onions, and so tasty!
Pro tip
In need of Indian rupees, we asked the manager whether he knew a trustworthy money exchange place. A little embarrassed, he admitted that he did money exchanges too, but more as a second job. Convinced by his friendliness (and great food), we decided to take the plunge and we can confirm: we got a really good rate! Compared to our offer at the airport, we got almost 7 rupees more per euro. Two birds with one stone.
Sunset at Taj Yamuna View Point
Wrap up your day by catching one final view of the incredible Taj Mahal. Head to Taj Yamuna View Point, situated on the east side, for the perfect sunset spot with breathtaking views of the Taj Mahal. Chances are you will see other people here, but never a big crowd and almost no other tourists. Talk about the perfect way to end your day!
On some occasions there’s a man selling (sunset) boat rides on the river. He doesn’t operate everyday and it’s only that single man that offers this, but if you see him near a boat/on the river you could try and negotiate a price to get that ultimate sunset boat ride! When we were there, the guy was nowhere to be found. This could be because we arrived too late (just around sunset), or because he doesn’t operate during this time of the year. Nevertheless, we have heard stories (both online and in person) whether this was a hoax or not, and even the locals confirm that it is true! So even though we were not lucky enough to make our last night in Agra a tiny bit more special, we hope our reader’s fortune is better than ours. Multiple locals told us that a price of around 1500 rupees (about € 17) would be enough to persuade the “captain”!
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