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A complete guide to plan your trip to Taj Mahal

by · December 30, 2017

When Mr. Bill Clinton, former US president visited the Taj Mahal, said- “There are two kinds of people in the world. Those who have seen the Taj Mahal and loved it and those who have not seen the Taj and love it.”

To cherish the love for Taj, we have brought an all-round guide to plan your visit.

How to reach Taj Mahal

Agra is well connected by air, railway, and road routes.

Reaching Taj Mahal via air:

If you prefer air transport, then there is Air India flight from Delhi to Agra’s Kheria airport. You can hire a cab or taxi to reach the Taj Mahal from the airport.

Reaching Taj Mahal via railways:

There are five railway stations in Agra. The main and the central railway station- Cantt railway station is closest to the Taj Mahal.

Reaching Taj Mahal via road:

One can travel to the Taj via bus, private car, or taxi. From Delhi and Jaipur, Agra is about 5 hours run by road. If you are planning a day outing with family, then hiring a taxi would be most convenient. One can reach the Taj Mahal in less than four hours via road from Gwalior, Lucknow, Kanpur, and Jaipur.

If you are looking for a road trip to the Taj Mahal, Gozo provides intercity taxi rides at affordable price. For instance, with Gozo, one way fare from Delhi to Agra costs only around Rs 1900.

Must have food on your visit to the Taj Mahal

Agra is famous for the Mughlai cuisine. Here are some of the must have food when you visit Taj.

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Taj Mahal opening and closing time

The Taj Mahal visiting hours is from Sunrise (06:00 AM) to Sunset (06:30 PM) on all days except Friday.

On Friday afternoon, only the Taj Mosque is open to attend the prayers.

Taj Mahal entry ticket price

Indian Citizens: Rs 40

Foreigners: Rs 1000

There is no entry fee for children below 15 years of age. This is applicable for all children, irrespective of their nationality.

Inside the Taj Mahal complex, there is Taj Museum worth a visit. The timings for the Taj Museum is 10:00 AM to 05:00 PM and the entry is free.

As Taj Mahal is one of the world heritage sites in India, one can buy its entry ticket from any other world heritage sites in India. Similarly, tickets to other world heritage sites in India can be bought from the Taj Mahal ticket counters.

Best time to visit Taj Mahal

Agra has mainly three seasons- Summer, Winter, and Rainy. The average maximum temperature can reach up to 35 degree Celsius during June and the average minimum up to 14 degrees in January. Accordingly, we have categorized the best time to visit the Taj Mahal as mentioned below-

October to March:
This is the most pleasant time to visit the Taj Mahal as the climate is neither too sunny nor too dull. The noons have the soft, wintry breeze and mild sun. One can comfortably spend their afternoon in the Taj complex or walk around the streets.

August to October:

This period marks the beginning of monsoon and one can enjoy the Taj in clear, rain washed splendor. The rains this time usually drizzle and can add to your joy.

April to July:

This is the holiday season in India as most schools declare summer vacation during this time.  The temperature is high, but one can spend time in the lush green gardens at the Taj complex.

 One day-trip or weekend trip to the Taj

Taj Mahal is at a short distance from Delhi (only about 220 km). Many people consider a quick trip to Taj on their visit to India. There are two ways to do it-

  1. Take a train ride from Delhi to Agra and then ride a train back same evening. But this would require an elaborate pre-planning.
  2. You can have a chauffeur driven vehicle from your stay, to the Taj and the same vehicle to return towards the Delhi airport. This looks good on a last minute trip, when there is no other option.

Alternatively, you can book a round trip ride on Gozo. Gozo can arrange AC vehicles, Sedans for your comfortable ride. Gozo also offers referrals for licensed multilingual tour guides, for example English, Hindi, french, German, Italian, Japanese, and other languages.

 Shopping near Taj

You can find exclusive leather goods, carpets, and marble art pieces in the market near Taj. some of the popular markets include-

  • Sadar Bazaar: It is located near Agra Cantt railway station and any local can guide you to the place. It is a famous market for leather shoes, bags, and marble pieces.
  • Marble Cottage: It is located on Fatehabad Road. You can find here exclusive marble jewelry boxes with pietra-dura work and engraved natural stones.
  • Mughal Carpet: This is a good place to get the hand woven Persian carpets and rugs for your home. It is again located on the Fatehabad Road.

Souvenirs/gifts from Taj Mahal

The evergreen souvenir from Taj Mahal is the marble miniature of Taj itself. In fact, you can find a number of other gift items for your friends and relatives. For example- Pietra dura jewelry box, marble flower vase, Persian carpet, leather goods etc.

You can get an idea about the gifts and souvenirs from these pictures-

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Things to and not to carry on your visit to Taj

Things to carry:

If you are visiting Taj during Winter, i.e. during the month of December, January, and February, you can carry woolens.

If you are visiting the Taj Mahal during Monsoon i.e. during the month of August, September, October, then keeping umbrella or raincoat can be useful.

During summer, you can carry shades, scarves, and umbrella to avoid the afternoon sunshine.

Needless to say, camera is must for your visit. You can have a look at the splendid Taj Mahal pictures here and the international celebrities pictures at Taj.

Things not to carry:

As Taj Mahal is a world heritage site, there are certain restrictions inside the campus. We suggest avoiding carrying big bags and unnecessary items, as it will only increase the security check time and your load.

Food is not allowed inside the Taj Mausoleum. If you are carrying food with you, it’s better to consume the food first and then plan to visit inside so that you can be free from the weight of food that you are carrying.

Taj Mahal Nightlife

View of the Taj Mahal in the moonlight is itself an exotic experience. If you also want to visualize the love saga of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz, then Mohabbat-the-Taj, a musical drama is a worth visit. It is staged every day at Kalakriti convention centre, Fatehabad Road. Mohabbat-the-Taj is staged in hindi language and has the facility of headphonic translation into other languages. The ticket price for the play ranges up to Rs 1000.

Accomodation near Taj

If you are planning more than a days stay at Taj, then you can either choose from UP tourism accommodation, luxury hotels, paying guest houses, and budget hotels.

Because of large number of visitors, UP tourism accommodation requires at least two months prior booking. Following is the UP tourism housing and the booking contact numbers-

Taj Khema, Eastern gate of Taj Mahal: +91 562 2330 140, +91 562 2330 001

You can also ask Gozo for accommodation as Gozo has tie ups with major travel companies. This way you can also plan your stay near Taj at reasonable prices. Gozo also helps in arranging travel packages based on your preferences.

Taj Mahal Helpline Contacts

Tourist police station : +91 94 5440 2764

Tourist Helpline: +91 562 242 1204

Medical Helplines: +91 80061 39990 (Sapphire Hospital), +91 562 246 3043 (District Hospital)

Other tourist places near Taj Mahal

Agra is a land of forts. There are more forts and royal gardens in the vicinity of Taj. Some of them are-

  • Agra Fort
  • Mehtab Bagh
  • Jama Masjid
  • Jahangir Mahal
  • Mariam’s Tomb
  • Humayun’s Mosque
  • Ram Bagh
  • Chini ka Rauza
  • Panch Mahal
  • Anguri Bagh
  • Sur Sarovar Bird Sanctuary

Useful resources and blogs for planning your visit to the Taj Mahal

We express our gratitude for the valuable information and wonderful pictures to-

  • Department of Tourism, Government of Uttar Pradesh, India
  • Makemytrip.com
  • climate-data.org
  • Justdial.com
  • Pinterest.com

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