Delhi

Delhi is not a single city — it is the accumulated weight of seven cities built on top of one another over three millennia. From the ancient ruins of Indraprastha to the Mughal splendour of Shah Jahan's Shahjahanabad (Old Delhi), to the British colonial New Delhi of Edwin Lutyens, to the sprawling modern National Capital Territory of 33 million people — every layer of history is still visible, walkable, and alive. Three UNESCO World Heritage Sites lie within city limits: the Red Fort, Qutub Minar, and Humayun's Tomb.

Old Delhi is the city at its most overwhelming and most magnificent. The narrow lanes of Chandni Chowk — built in the 17th century by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan — are still packed with spice merchants, silversmiths, street food vendors, and cycle rickshaws navigating impossible traffic. The Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque, looms above it all. To enter this part of Delhi is to step into a living history that has barely paused for breath in 400 years.

New Delhi, built by the British in the early 20th century and inaugurated in 1931, is a city of wide boulevards, imperial monuments, and formal geometry. India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan, and the Rajpath axis create one of the world's great ceremonial urban landscapes. The contrast between these two Delhis — separated by barely two kilometres — is among travel's great experiences. Delhi is also the gateway to the Golden Triangle: Agra (the Taj Mahal, 2.5 hours by express train) and Jaipur (5 hours) are among India's most celebrated destinations.