North India Highlights — Self-Launched Golden Triangle

Land at Indira Gandhi International and make your own way in: the Airport Express metro to New Delhi station costs about £1.50 and takes 20 minutes, or pre-book a prepaid taxi from the official counter (~£4-6). Skip the operator's included transfer and instead use a Women on Wheels-style pre-booked cab via a local app if arriving late. Base yourself in a guesthouse in Paharganj (walkable to New Delhi station) or the calmer Karol Bagh. Spend the evening acclimatising: a short wander down Main Bazaar, chai on a rooftop, and an early night. Pick up bottled water, a local SIM/e-SIM data plan (~£4 for 30 days) and sort your e-Visa printouts.

🚌Airport Express metro ~£1.50 or prepaid taxi ~£5

🛏Guesthouse in Paharganj or Karol Bagh, private room (~£14/night)

• →Airport Express metro into the city
• →Evening wander along Main Bazaar, Paharganj

Book a small-group Old Delhi street walk via GetYourGuide or Klook (~£12-18) — these are run by local guides, several of which support street-children rehabilitation projects similar to the operator's New Delhi Streetkids project (ask the company directly if you want your fee to go to that cause; Salaam Baalak Trust runs volunteer-supported city walks you can book direct for a small donation). You'll cover Jama Masjid (entry ~£0.50, camera fee extra), the lanes of Chandni Chowk by cycle-rickshaw (~£2), a spice market stop and a Sikh gurdwara where you can help in the langar kitchen. In the afternoon, take the 16:50 or 17:50 Gatimaan/Vande Bharat-style fast train from Hazrat Nizamuddin or New Delhi to Agra Cantt — book on IRCTC (2S from ~£1.50, AC Chair from ~£4). Arrive Agra, taxi to your hotel near Taj Ganj (~£2).

🚌Cycle-rickshaw and metro in Delhi ~£3; train Delhi–Agra ~£4 AC Chair; tuk-tuk to hotel ~£2

🛏Budget hotel near Taj Ganj, Agra (~£16/night)

• →Old Delhi guided street walk (Jama Masjid, Chandni Chowk, gurdwara)
• →Cycle-rickshaw ride through Chandni Chowk

Buy your Taj Mahal ticket online in advance (~£12 for foreigners, closed Fridays) for the 6am sunrise slot — it's the single best-value splurge of the trip. Enter at the East Gate to dodge the worst of the West Gate queues and expect to spend 2 hours. Back for breakfast, then walk or tuk-tuk to Itimad-ud-Daulah ('Baby Taj', ~£3) and Agra Fort (~£6). You can hire a licensed guide at the gate for ~£10-15 per group, or pre-book a GetYourGuide Agra Fort + Taj combo guide (~£20). Evening: rooftop dinner in Taj Ganj with a view of the mausoleum (~£8).

🚌Tuk-tuks around Agra ~£3

🛏Budget hotel near Taj Ganj, Agra (~£16/night)

• →Taj Mahal sunrise entry (~£12)
• →Baby Taj / Itimad-ud-Daulah (~£3)
• →Agra Fort (~£6)
• →Optional licensed local guide ~£10-15

The operator runs a private van; you'll do the same route on local buses or a shared taxi. Cheapest approach: morning bus Agra → Fatehpur Sikri (~45 min, ~£1), explore the deserted Mughal capital (~£6 entry, plus ~£2 for the tuk-tuk up from the bus stand), then bus back to the Agra–Jaipur highway junction and catch a local bus to Abhaneri (~2 hours, ~£1.50) to see Chand Baori's 3,500-step stepwell (free/small donation). Alternatively, split a shared taxi from Agra covering both sites and dropping at Jaipur for ~£30-40 per vehicle if you can find 2-3 other travellers via your hostel. Arrive Jaipur, check into a guesthouse inside the Old City walls near Bani Park or Hawa Mahal (~£15).

🚌Local buses Agra–Fatehpur Sikri–Abhaneri–Jaipur ~£6 total, or shared taxi split ~£10-15pp

🛏Heritage-style guesthouse in Jaipur Old City (~£15/night)

• →Fatehpur Sikri entry (~£6)
• →Chand Baori stepwell, Abhaneri (free/donation)

Take a local bus or shared auto from Hawa Mahal to Amber Fort (~£0.80, 20 min) and arrive for the 8am opening — entry ~£6, plus ~£3 for the audio guide (worth it). Walk up rather than ride the elephant. Come back into town for Jaipur City Palace (~£8) and a photo stop at Hawa Mahal from the street-side café (free; entry to the palace itself ~£2). Afternoon: book a Jaipur street-food crawl via GetYourGuide (~£20) covering pyaaz kachori, lassi at Lassiwala and a sweet-shop stop, or just DIY it for ~£5. Evening optional: a Bollywood film at the art-deco Raj Mandir cinema (~£2-4) — a classic India travellers' rite of passage.

🚌Local bus and shared autos ~£3

🛏Heritage-style guesthouse in Jaipur Old City (~£15/night)

• →Amber Fort (~£6 + audio guide ~£3)
• →Jaipur City Palace (~£8)
• →Hawa Mahal (~£2)
• →Optional Jaipur street-food crawl ~£20
• →Optional Raj Mandir Bollywood film ~£3

The included 'village immersion' and heritage-home night is the hardest part to replicate solo. Sawarda sits about 40 km from Jaipur on the Ajmer road. Take a local bus from Jaipur's Sindhi Camp or Ajmeri Gate stand to the Sawarda turn-off (~1 hour, ~£1) and a shared auto the last stretch (~£1). Independent rural heritage stays in the Sawarda/Jaipur district bookable direct or via Booking.com include village-style guesthouses and farmstays such as Dera Mandawa-style properties in Jaipur or the Sawarda/Chomu area village homestays (~£20-30 with meals). Spend the afternoon walking the village, chatting with elders about how farming and phone use are reshaping daily life, watching a family prayer session at dusk if invited, and eating a home-cooked thali.

🚌Local bus Jaipur–Sawarda ~£1, shared auto ~£1

🛏Village heritage homestay near Sawarda (~£28 incl. dinner & breakfast)

• →Guided village walk with a local host (~£5 tip/donation)
• →Home-cooked village dinner

Local bus or shared auto back to Jaipur (~£2), then the afternoon double-decker or Shatabdi-class train Jaipur → New Delhi (~2 hours fast train, AC Chair ~£6; slower passenger trains from ~£2). Check back into a Delhi guesthouse, then use the afternoon for Dilli Haat crafts market (~£2 entry) or Khan Market and Lodhi Garden if you want a calmer finale. Optional: a 2-hour Delhi food walk in Karol Bagh (~£15) if you skipped one earlier. Sort your onward transport for tomorrow.

🚌Shared auto and bus to Jaipur ~£2; train Jaipur–Delhi ~£6; metro in Delhi ~£1

🛏Guesthouse in Paharganj or Karol Bagh (~£14/night)

• →Dilli Haat crafts market (~£2)
• →Lodhi Garden or Khan Market wander
• →Optional Karol Bagh food walk ~£15

Breakfast, last-minute shopping for spices and textiles in Janpath or the Central Cottage Industries Emporium, then head to the airport by Airport Express metro (~£1.50) or pre-booked cab (~£5). If your flight is late, the Delhi Metro's Blue Line connects New Delhi station to Dwarka Sector 21 near the airport. Note that international departures need 2.5-3 hours, and the airport has an e-Visa-friendly exit immigration queue that can be slow.

🚌Airport Express metro ~£1.50 or taxi ~£5

🛏None (departure day)

• →Last-minute shopping at Janpath or Cottage Industries Emporium