Top 10 Tourist Attractions in Delhi/New Delhi

New Delhi, the capital of India and a popular tourist destination, is situated on the banks of river Yamuna in the northern part of India. The best season to visit Delhi is during February to April and August to November. The bloom season of February and March make Delhi colorful. This time of the year brings greenery on the face of Delhi.

Here is a list of top 10 tourist attractions in Delhi/ New Delhi:

1. Red Fort

The Delhi Fort also known as Lal Qila, meaning the Red Fort, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Red Fort and the city of Shahjahanabad was constructed by the Emperor Shahjahan in 1639 A.D. The layout of the Red Fort was organized to retain and integrate this site with the Salimgarh Fort.

The planning and aesthetics of the Red Fort represent the zenith of Mughal creativity which prevailed during the region of Emperor Shahjahan. Red Fort showcases the very high level of art form and ornamental work.

The art work in the Fort is a synthesis of Persian, European and Indian art which resulted in the development of unique Shahjahani style which is very rich in form, expression and colour.

2. Humayun's Tomb
Humayun's tomb is a complex of buildings of Mughal architecture which encompasses the main tomb of the Emperor Humayun as well as numerous others. The complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the first example of this type of Mughal architecture in India. This style of mausoleum was the same that created the Taj Mahal in Agra.

The tomb of Humayun was built by the orders of Hamida Banu Begum, Humayun's widow starting in 1562.


3. Qutab Minar
Qutub Minar is the tallest brick minaret in the world, and an important example of Indo-Islamic Architecture. The tower is in the Qutb complex in South Delhi, India. The Qutub Minar and its monuments are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Qutub Minar is 72.5 metres high (237.8 ft) with 399 steps leading to the top. The diameter of the base is 14.3 metres wide while the top floor measures 2.75 metres in diameter.

The place where Qutub Minar stands today was once occupied by about 20 Jain temples.

Also located in the Qutab complaex is the Iron pillar of Delhi. It is one of the world's foremost metallurgical curiosities. The pillar is almost seven meters high and weighs more than six tons. It was erected by Chandragupta II Vikramaditya. The pillar is made up of 98% wrought iron of pure quality, and is a testament to the high level of skill achieved by ancient Indian iron smiths in the extraction and processing of iron. It has attracted the attention of archaeologists and metallurgists as it has withstood corrosion for the last 1600 years, despite harsh weather.


4. Old Fort

The Old Fort, also known as the Purana Qila, is one of the most famous monuments in Delhi, and is its oldest historical site. The fort was constructed in the 16th-century by the founder of the Sur Dynasty, Sher Shah Suri. The fort's unique Mughal-Hindu-Afghan architecture makes it a popular tourist destination in Delhi.


5. Mughal Gardens
Spread over an area of 6 hectares, the Mughal Garden was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens for Lady Harding. Mughal Garden is designed in a Mughal style with a blend of British style. Adorned with Mughal style canals, terraces and fountains, Mughal Garden is a circular garden.

Mughal Garden houses four waterways with beautiful fountains at the intersections. The interiors of the waterways are designed in the shape of lotus leaves with the red sandstone discs.

6. Lodhi Gardens
Lodhi Gardens contains architectural works of the Lodhis, a pashtun Muslim dynasty which ruled much of Northern India during the 16th century. The gardens are situated between Khan Market and Safdarjung's Tomb on Lodhi Road.

These gardens were laid out in 1936 around four monuments built during the Lodi dynasty, the last of the Delhi Sultanate.




7. Jantar Mantar
The Jantar Mantar is a collection of architectural astronomical instruments, built by Maharaja Jai Singh II from 1724 onwards.

The shadows cast by these instruments were formerly used to calculate time, lunar and solar calendars, time as wells astrological movements, all with an incredible degree of accuracy.

Jai Singh later had another similar observatory, now known by the same name, built for him at Jaipur.





8. India Gate
Situated on the Rajpath in New Delhi, India Gate (originally called the All India War Memorial) is a monument built by Edwin Lutyens to commemorate the Indian soldiers who died in World War I and the Afghan Wars.

The names of the soldiers who died in these wars are inscribed on the walls. It was completed in 1931. Burning under it since 1971 is the Amar Jawan Jyoti (the flame of the immortal warrior), which marks the Unknown Soldier's Tomb.



9. Lotus Temple
The Bahá'í House of Worship, popularly known as the Lotus Temple, is a Bahá'í House of Worship and also a prominent attraction in Delhi. It was completed in 1986.

Inspired by the lotus flower, its design is composed of 27 free-standing marble clad "petals" arranged in clusters of three to form nine sides. It was designed by an Iranian architect named Fariborz Sahba.

It has won numerous architectural awards and been featured in hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles.

10. Connaught Place
Connaught Place is Delhi's largest financial, commercial and business center. Located in the heart of New Delhi, India, Connaught Place, often abbreviated as CP, houses the headquarters of several Indian firms.

It is instantly recognizable on any map of Delhi, being the big circle in the middle with radial roads spreading out in all directions, like spokes on a wheel.

Robert Tor Russell, Chief architect to the Government of India designed Connaught Place in 1932 as per the lines propagated by W.H. Nichollas.


Image courtesy: Wikipedia