Highlights of Northern India & Nepal — Self-Launched

Land at Indira Gandhi International, take the Airport Express metro (£1.50) or a prepaid taxi (£4-6) to a hostel/guesthouse in Paharganj or Karol Bagh. Pick up an Indian SIM (Airtel/Jio, ~£3-5 with data), draw rupees from an ATM, and ease in with a wander around Connaught Place and a cheap thali dinner. Book your onward trains online at irctc.co.in (register in advance — cards can be fussy) or use a local agency.

🚌Airport Express metro ~£1.50

🛏Hostel private room or budget guesthouse, Paharganj

• →Connaught Place wander
• →SIM card and travel essentials
• →Book onward train tickets

Self-launch a full day of Mughal and colonial Delhi. Start at Jama Masjid (free to walk the courtyard, ~£1 to climb the minaret), then get lost in the lanes of Kinari Bazar — a cycle rickshaw loop costs ~£2-3 and is worth it. Metro to Humayun's Tomb (£3 entry, UNESCO-listed Mughal garden tomb), then continue to India Gate and drive/auto past Rashtrapati Bhawan and Parliament House. Optional: a GetYourGuide Old Delhi street-food walk (~£20) if you want a guided foodie intro.

🚌Delhi Metro day pass ~£2 + autos ~£3

🛏Hostel private room or budget guesthouse, Paharganj

• →Jama Masjid
• →Kinari Bazar walk
• →Humayun's Tomb
• →India Gate and Rajpath

Take the 06:05 or 10:35 double-decker / Shatabdi express from New Delhi to Jaipur Junction (~4.5-5.5 hrs, £5-12 in AC Chair or 3AC — book ahead on IRCTC). Arrive, check into a guesthouse inside the old walled city, and spend the late afternoon on a slow walk past Hawa Mahal and through Johari and Bapu Bazaars. Evening rooftop dinner overlooking the Pink City.

🚌Delhi–Jaipur train, 3AC ~£8

🛏Guesthouse in the old walled city, Jaipur

• →Train ride to Jaipur
• →Hawa Mahal exterior at dusk
• →Bazaar wander

Rent a scooter (£5/day) or take a local bus/auto from Hawa Mahal to Amber Fort (~£1) and arrive early to beat the crowds — entry ~£5-6, with an audio guide ~£2. Walk back into the old city for Jantar Mantar (£2) and a Hawa Mahal rooftop photo stop. Optional extras: a dawn walking tour of the chowkris (~£15 via GetYourGuide), a block-printing or bangle-making workshop with local artisans, and a plate of pyaaz kachori and lassi at Rawat Mishthan Bhandar (~£2).

🚌Local bus/auto to Amber ~£1-2

🛏Guesthouse in the old walled city, Jaipur

• →Amber Fort
• →Jantar Mantar
• →Hawa Mahal rooftop view
• →Artisan block-printing workshop (optional)

Catch a morning bus/train to Agra (~4-5 hrs; AC bus ~£5-7, train 3AC ~£5). Many travellers stop at Fatehpur Sikri en route by shared taxi. Check in, then do Agra Fort (£5, an hour or two) and save the Taj Mahal for sunset — tickets ~£12 and best bought online at asi.payumoney.com to skip the queue. Marvel at the inner chambers and mausoleum as the marble turns gold. Note the Taj is closed Fridays.

🚌Jaipur–Agra train or AC bus ~£6

🛏Budget hotel in Taj Ganj, Agra

• →Agra Fort
• →Taj Mahal sunset visit
• →Fatehpur Sikri (optional en route)

Morning free for a second Taj look at sunrise or a marble-inlay workshop. Mid-afternoon visit Sarnath, where Buddha gave his first sermon — Dhamekh Stupa and the museum are ~£1-2 combined, 30 min by auto (~£2). Then board the overnight train to Varanasi (e.g. the Marudhar/Neelachal or a direct service, 10-12 hrs, 3AC ~£10-14). Bring a sleeping bag liner, snacks and a padlock for your bag.

🚌Overnight train Agra–Varanasi, 3AC ~£12

🛏Overnight sleeper train (3AC)

• →Sarnath and Dhamekh Stupa
• →Silk brocade emporium (optional)
• →Overnight sleeper train

Arrive early, drop bags at a ghat-side guesthouse, then hire a rowing boat at Assi or Dashashwamedh Ghat for sunrise on the Ganges (~£6-9 shared, negotiate). Walk the bathing ghats, explore the narrow lanes, and try a banana lassi and kachori sabzi. Return at dusk for the Ganga aarti fire ceremony at Dashashwamedh Ghat — free if you stand, or ~£5 for a boat viewpoint.

🚌Autos and walking ~£2

🛏Guesthouse near Assi or Dashashwamedh Ghat

• →Sunrise rowing boat on the Ganges
• →Bathing ghats walk
• →Evening Ganga aarti ceremony

Cross the border overland. Take a morning train or bus Varanasi–Gorakhpur (~3-4 hrs, £2-3), then a shared jeep/bus to Sunauli/Bhairahawa border (~2 hrs, £1-2), clear Indian and Nepali immigration (get your Nepal visa on arrival, $30 for 15 days), then a local bus or shared tuk-tuk to Lumbini (~45 min, £1-2). Settle into a guesthouse in Lumbini Bazaar. Allow a full day for this — it's slow but straightforward.

🚌Train/bus Varanasi–Gorakhpur ~£3, shared jeep to Sunauli ~£2, local bus to Lumbini ~£2

🛏Guesthouse in Lumbini Bazaar

• →Overland India–Nepal border crossing
• →Nepal visa on arrival
• →Lumbini garden stroll at sunset

Morning: rent a bicycle or rickshaw to tour the Lumbini monastic zone — the Maya Devi Temple (Buddha's birthplace), Ashoka Pillar and the international monasteries are free or a couple of pounds. Midday, take a tourist bus or shared jeep to Sauraha/Chitwan (~4-5 hrs, £4-6). Book a Tharu village guesthouse for two nights; most arrange safari packages on the spot. Evening Tharu stick dance show (~£2-3) and dal bhat dinner.

🚌Lumbini–Sauraha bus ~£5

🛏Tharu family guesthouse in Sauraha

• →Maya Devi Temple and Ashoka Pillar
• →Monastic zone by bicycle
• →Tharu village walk and dance performance

Join a full-day jeep safari into the park (book direct with your guesthouse or a Sauraha operator, ~£35-45 including park fee, guide and lunch) — you've a real chance of one-horned rhino, deer, monkeys and gharial. Swap to a dug-out canoe trip on the Rapti for crocodile spotting (~£6) and walk the jungle edge with a licensed guide. Optional dawn birdwatching walk (~£5).

🚌On foot and park jeep (included in safari)

🛏Tharu family guesthouse in Sauraha

• →Full-day jeep safari
• →Dug-out canoe on the Rapti
• →Birdwatching walk (optional)

Tourist bus from Sauraha to Pokhara (~5-6 hrs on mountain roads, £6-8; leave by 07:00). Arrive in Lakeside, book a guesthouse with a Machhapuchhare view, and take a slow afternoon walking the lakeshore before dinner. Book Sarangkot sunrise transport at your guesthouse for the morning.

🚌Tourist bus Sauraha–Pokhara ~£7

🛏Lakeside guesthouse, Pokhara

• →Scenic mountain bus ride
• →Phewa Lake sunset stroll

Share a jeep or take a dawn taxi to Sarangkot (~£6-8 return, or hike up 1.5 hrs from Lakeside) for sunrise over the Annapurnas and Fishtail Peak. Walk back down the ridge to Pame (~2.5 hrs, easy) with a packed breakfast. Afternoon: rent a rowboat on Phewa Lake (~£4/hr) or a bicycle (~£3/day) to reach the World Peace Pagoda, then relax with lakefront momos and a beer.

🚌Shared jeep/taxi to Sarangkot ~£7 return

🛏Lakeside guesthouse, Pokhara

• →Sarangkot sunrise viewpoint
• →Sarangkot–Pame dawn walk
• →Phewa Lake rowboat or cycle to Peace Pagoda

Either take the scenic day bus along the Marsyangdi and Trisuli rivers (~7-8 hrs, £8-10) or fly Pokhara–Kathmandu in 25 minutes (~£60-80 with Buddha Air/Yeti — worth it if you're short on time or nervous about mountain roads; sit on the right for Himalaya views). Check into a guesthouse in Thamel and orientate over dinner.

🚌Tourist bus Pokhara–Kathmandu ~£9 (or flight ~£70)

🛏Guesthouse in Thamel, Kathmandu

• →River-valley drive through the hills
• →Thamel evening wander

Hire an auto or walk/bus to Pashupatinath (cremation ghats on the Bagmati, entry ~£8), then on to Boudhanath's vast stupa (~£4) for a kora clockwise circuit and a rooftop coffee. Add Patan or Kathmandu Durbar Square (~£4-8) and climb the 365 steps to Swayambhunath, the monkey temple. Optional: a GetYourGuide Kathmandu heritage walk (~£20) if you want context, or a Newari dinner in Patan.

🚌Autos and local buses ~£4

🛏Guesthouse in Thamel, Kathmandu

• →Pashupatinath Temple
• →Boudhanath Stupa kora
• →Swayambhunath
• →Durbar Square

Last morning for thangka or pashmina shopping and a lazy breakfast in Thamel, then a taxi to Tribhuvan International (~£4-5, allow 90 min before an international flight). If you want to extend, the Annapurna foothills are a day's bus away — a 4-day Ghandruk/Ghorepani teahouse trek out of Pokhara is easily arranged independently from £15-20 per day including teahouse lodging and meals.

🚌Taxi to airport ~£5

🛏—

• →Final shopping in Thamel
• →Airport transfer