The crowded, colourful and unruly heart of India.
Don’t let your first impressions of Delhi stick like a sacred cow in a traffic jam: get behind the madcap fascade and discover the inner peace of a city rich with culture, architecture and human diversity, deep with history and totally addictive to epicureans.
Both Old and New Delhi exert a beguiling charm on visitors. Lose yourself unwinding the secrets of the city’s Mughal past in the labyrinthine streets of Old Delhi before emerging into the wide open spaces of imperial New Delhi, with its ordered governmental vistas and generous leafy avenues.
Sights
Mix four major religions, thousands of years of history and cultural development, significant movements of different populations, invasions and colonialisation and you get one of the most vibrant and profound cultures in the world. This civilisation is evident in the plentiful historical sites around Delhi.
Where To Stay?
It’s wise to book a room in advance in Delhi as the more salubrious places can fill up in a flash, leaving new arrivals easy prey for the commission sharks. Many places to stay offer airport pick-ups (for a charge) with advance notice. Keep ear plugs handy if you’re a light sleeper.
Entertainment
Delhi’s licensing laws have been relaxed and young Delhiites are making up ground, drinking not just beer and spirits but adventurous cocktails. It’s all still quite expensive (one drink can cost more than a night in a budget hotel), but that doesn’t stop the bright young things with cash to splash.
Getting There, Getting Around
Delhi is India’s flight centre, with international and domestic flights readily available in a range of costs and comforts plus travel agents queuing up to negotiate a deal. Both domestic and international terminals for the Indira Gandhi International Airport are quite a way out of town – domestic 7km (4.5mi) from the city and international 11km (6mi) – so be prepared for the taxi driver ambush upon arrival. The Inter State Bus Terminal at Kashmiri Gate, north of the ‘Old’ Delhi Train Station, has long distance trips south to Rajasthan and north to Chandigarh, and to the hill stations of Himachal Pradesh. The New Delhi Train Station is as user friendly as such a place can be in India, if you ignore the touts who have all sorts of stories aimed at parting tourists with their money. From here you can organise long-distance trips east across the Ganges Plain to Kolkata, and south to Mumbai (Bombay) via Agra.
Delhi’s bus system is not for the faint hearted, or indeed for those who need to get somewhere on time. The network covers most of the city and is dirt cheap, but is also overcrowded and ramshackle – adventure travel you might say. There are plenty of metered yellow-and-black taxis, but don’t expect the existence of a meter to mean they will be used. Learn to negotiate before you get going. Auto-rickshaws are generally speedy over short distances and less expensive – cycle rickshaws are somewhat romantic, but harder to find now they have been removed from the modern parts of the city. Motorcycle rickshaws are a better bet during busy hours. They have set courses and prices and can muscle their way through traffic as well. Trying to cycle through Delhi streets would be a foolish choice for a traveller. Try the metro instead – check out www.delhimetrorail.com for more details.
