I had no idea the wonderous Taj Mahal was created by a grief-stricken Mogul Emperor who lost his one true love…well one of many loves but I’ll get to that!

A magnificent structure and the most eloquently designed tomb I have ever encountered, my expectations were VERY high on visiting this wonder of the world. I had heard mixed reviews in Dehli ranging from, “it’s over-rated” to “I wanted to kneel before it’s beauty!” and after my visit I one hundred percent side with the latter!

The city of Agra is home to the Taj Mahal and located about two hours from Dehli via express train. It is a fairly rustic town, aside from the many international hotel brands that have sprung up to accommodate the huge number of tourists – 45,000 per day during peak season apparently! If you’re doing the “Golden Triangle” tourist circuit (Dehli – Agra – Jaipur) one night in Agra is more than enough, I’ll explain more about the triangle trail in a later post.

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Getting There

Having caught the early train from Dehli (pre-booked a few weeks in advance – this is essential for most railway travel across India*) we arrived in Agra around 9:30am and ordered a taxi from the “official” taxi booth just outside the front of the train station. This didn’t stop our taxi driver and his associate trying to offer us the “best” tour of the Taj Mahal and insisting on picking us up from our hotel later – but we politely declined.

Our hotel of choice, the Radisson Blu, is located just 1km from the Taj Mahal East Gate, no vehicles are allowed 500m from the entrance so walking is the best option and we got a great deal for booking the room in advance.

Top tip – Bags/backpacks are prohibited in the Taj, other than a small camera bag. There are lockers available in the building where you purchase tickets but in our case these were full, so we learned the hard way and ended up running back to the hotel to leave some belongings!

There is also an additional charge of Rs.250 to bring in a camera.

I know I’ve mentioned this before in relation to India but as a “foreigner” you will have to pay Rs.1000 entrance fee, ten times the local price, but the equivalent of about €14 and worth every penny. There is also a separate entrance queue for “foreigners” which meant we avoided wasting hours queueing in the heat, that said it did feel a little bit unequal just skipping past. We visited on a Sunday, which is a busier day with many locals off work, but the crowds were very manageable. It is also worth noting the Taj is closed to the public on Fridays.

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To Guide or not to Guide?

NO is the answer, it’s really not necessary, we were told we’d be harassed without a guide! There were of course many enterprising folk flogging one-on-one tours but once we got beyond the entrance gate it calmed down. It’s a much nicer experience to wander around yourself and take it all in, plus there are information plaques dotted around the site for fact fiends.

In December/January there can be a mist shrouding the exterior of the Taj Mahal but luckily by the time we arrived, around midday, this had burned off in the sun. We entered the grounds through the East Gate, which leads to a wide open forecourt and the impressive red sandstone Main Gate. It was here we caught our first glimpse of the Taj Mahal! The iconic outline and incredible white facade gleaming in the sunlight, to such an extent we needed sunglasses to take the glare off!

The symmetry of the entire site is what makes it so unique, everything is immaculately lined, from the gardens and fountains, to the four towers/minarets at each corner of the main mausoleum and the identical twin mosques flanking each side. Camera lovers get ready for photo-ops galore! 🙂

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In order to enter the main mausoleum we had to pop on nifty cling film shoe covers and again there was a bit of queueing involved. That part was a tad disorganised, there were guards allowing groups in and out but it felt like a bit of a cattlemarket! trying to squeeze through the narrow entrance door and into the main octagonal room.

Here, lies the cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal – the 14th wife of Emperor Shah Jahan. Mumtaz tragically died whilst giving birth in 1631 and her devastated husband built this tomb in her honour – the ultimate declaration of his love! It took almost twenty years to build; huge heavy marble blocks were carried by elephants from far away mines, as well as semi precious stones and it’s said it took 20,000 labourers to complete the work.

Sadly Shah Jahan himself was later imprisoned by his son and following his death his body too was interred within the Taj Mahal, next to his wife. Interestingly I noticed lots of people tossing coins over the barrier on top of the cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan, so of course I gave it a go too and made a wish just to cover myself!

In total we spent about 3/4 hours roaming the grounds and there is also a great view from just outside the main tomb, of another ancient site, “Agra Fort” sitting just across the river. Unfortunately hunger got the better of us before sunset but even from midday until 04:00pm the colour of the Taj Mahal changed dramatically, from bright white to a beautiful soft enamel shade.

If you can, try to make it for sunrise/sunset to catch soft pink hues or on the night of a full moon for truly unique pearl grey tones – I’ll have to wait for my return visit!

Have you been to the Taj Mahal or planning a trip soon? Please share any recommendations, comments or questions below…