Top Tourist Attractions in AGRA, India
The city of Agra is one of the most popular tourist cities in India, it is about 220 km south of Delhi, the capital of India. In this article, we will discuss in detail the top tourist attractions in Agra. A masterpiece of Mughal architecture and one of the “new seven wonders of the world”, the Taj Mahal is the first reason the city is so popular with tourists from around the world.
Well, Agra is a historically important city as it was India’s capital of the great Mughal Empire for more than 100 years before Delhi. For this reason, the best architecture of Mughal art, mausoleums, beautiful palaces made of red stone and white marble, etc. are seen in this city.
The leather industry is one of the most traditional and original industries of Agra, the city is also famous for handicrafts, zari zardozi, and marvel and stone inlay work.
Best time to visit Agra
Agra gets very hot during summer and most of the tourist attractions in Agra are made of red sandstone or white marble. Because of this, the best time to visit Agra is during the winter season i.e. from October to March. At this time the weather is pleasant, there is no rain and due to the blooming of flowers, the shade of the gardens is also very beautiful.
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Agra
There are about 40 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India and out of this, there are 3 in Agra city and its nearby area.
1. Taj Mahal (1983)
2. Agra Fort (1983)
3. Fatehpur Sikri (1986)
Tourist Attractions in Agra
1. Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal is a very beautiful mausoleum made of white marble in the city of Agra in Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state by population. Seeing its immense beauty, its name is included in the New 7 Wonders of the World. It is said that the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan built it in 1631 AD in memory of his beautiful and favorite wife Mumtaz Mahal.
It is the masterpiece of Mughal architecture in India and there are many replicas or derivatives of the Taj Mahal in the world. The Taj Mahal tops the list of tourist attractions in India and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
2. Agra Fort
Photo Credit «© A.Savin, WikiCommons»
Agra Fort is an important historical fort and is the second most visited among the tourist attractions in AGRA after the Taj Mahal. The fort was the first capital of the Mughal Empire before it moved to Delhi in India. It was rebuilt by the great Mughal emperor Akbar from an earlier ruined fort into a massive fort made of red stone.
Later, his grandson Emperor Shah Jahan built many beautiful palaces and many buildings of the royal court inside it with white marble.
The main tourist places inside Agra Fort are Jahangir Mahal (Palace of Jahangir), Khas Mahal, Diwan-i-Khas, Diwan-i-Aam, and Meena Bazar.
3. Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah
The tomb of Itmad-ud-daulah, better known as the “Baby Taj”, is the earliest evidence of Mughal architecture. It was built around 1622 by Begum Nur Jahan, wife of Mughal Emperor Jahangir as a mausoleum for her father Mirza Ghiyas Beg.
At first glance, it seems that the Taj Mahal has been inspired by this. Seeing the huge entrance gate made of beautiful red sandstone and the square gardens filled with beautiful flowers inside, it is bound to imagine its complex with the Taj Mahal.
4. Tomb of Akbar, Sikandra
Akbar was the greatest of the Mughal kings and laid the foundation for a long and stable Mughal Empire in India. Akbar’s tomb is very beautifully built, it is located in Sikandra which is about 8 km northwest of Agra city center.
Akbar died in 1605 and after his death, his son Jahangir built his father’s tomb in 1605-1613. Later Akbar’s beloved wife Jodha bai alias Mariam got the rest of the beautification work done in the tomb’s premises, garden, etc.
Akbar’s tomb has a large and beautiful gateway with 4 pillars on top in the Mughal architectural style and a huge mausoleum building inside. The entire complex surrounded by gardens and animals makes it one of the tourist attractions in Agra city.
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5. Mehtab Bagh
Mehtab Bagh is gradually becoming very popular among the tourist attractions in Agra. This is a tourist spot recently developed by the government, across the river Yamuna on the opposite side of the Taj Mahal complex, it gives a very peaceful and beautiful view of the Taj Mahal, especially at sunset.
In the evening amidst the birds flying, their chirping, and the orange tint of the setting sun, Taj Mahal has the most beautiful view which cannot be described in words.
Mehtab Bagh also has two areas Taj View Point and Mehtab Bagh Garden. The Taj viewpoint is closer with a better view of the Taj Mahal and has proper seating arrangements of benches made of red stone.
6. Jama Masjid
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Jama Masjid Agra, located in the heart of the historic city of Agra and right opposite the Agra Fort, is one of the largest and most beautifully designed mosques in India. It is still the main mosque of the city of Agra and is regularly used by the Muslim community for worship and other religious functions.
The Jama Masjid was built by Jahanara Begum, daughter of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and his favorite wife Mumtaz Mahal, in 1643 following the permission and guidance of her emperor father. Due to its beauty, tourist place, and holy place, people throng here, making it one of the tourist attractions of Agra.
7. Gurdwara Guru Ka Tal
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Gurdwara or Sikh temple Guru Ka Taal, near Sikandra, Agra, is a historical Sikh pilgrimage site dedicated to the memory of the ninth Guru of the Sikhs, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji.
The historical significance of this place is that this Gurdwara was built at the place where Guru Tegh Bahadur offered his arrest to the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. The Gurudwara Guru Ka Tal was built later in the 1970s by the contribution and hard trying of Sant Baba Sadhu Singhji “Mauni”.
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Fatehpur Sikri - Ultimate Tourist Attractions in Agra
If you come to Agra, do not forget to visit Fatehpur Sikri, Agra tour is incomplete without it. Fatehpur Sikri, a town about 40 km from the city of Agra, was established by the great Mughal emperor Akbar as an entirely new capital, shifted from Agra.
The city was the capital of Emperor Akbar from 1571 to 1585 but was then abandoned and shifted back to the city of Agra due to water scarcity and many other reasons.
Fatehpur Sikri has two important places to see for tourists, one is Akbar’s palaces and capital city complex, and the other Jama Masjid complex (or Salim Chisti’s Dargah complex) and its entrance gate Buland Darwaza. Both places are very close and can be reached on foot.
8. Fatehpur Sikri Capital City
The city of Fatehpur Sikri was hugely built and was mainly made of red sandstone. The buildings inside use both Hindu and Muslim styles of architecture of the time.
The city complex houses all the luxurious palaces and buildings that were necessary for the running of the kingdom at that time.
The main buildings and attractions worth visiting in this city complex are Jodha Bai Mahal, Panch Mahal, Diwan-e-Aam, Diwan-e-Khas, Anoop Talao, Ibadat Khana, Naubat Khana etc.
9. Jama Masjid Fatehpur Sikri
Adjacent to the official capital complex is a large Jama Masjid compound and within it is the white marble tomb of the Sufi saint Salim Chishti. Jama Masjid is the oldest and grandest building in this courtyard.
The most famous here is the Buland Darwaza or “Gate of Victory”, built by the Mughal emperor Akbar in 1575 as the main entrance to the Jama Masjid courtyard.
The 40 m high (51 m from the ground) Buland Darwaza is the tallest gateway in the world and an example of advanced Mughal architecture even before the masterpiece Taj Mahal. Buland Darwaza is very popular among the tourist attractions in Agra.
Other Tourist attractions in AGRA
Agra is a very old and historical city, it has many other tourist places which are not mentioned above. Apart from this, Agra is very famous for its variety of food including traditional and street food.
If you have time, you can choose tourist attractions in Agra as per your interest from the following:
10. Mariam's tomb
The tomb of Mariam-uz-Zamani in Sikandra is the tomb of Mariam or Jodha Bai, mother of Emperor Jahangir and the favorite wife of the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
11. Khau Gali
Khau Gali or Khao Chaat Gali is Indian local street food and chaat (snacks) street located in Sadar Bazar of Agra which is very popular among the tourist attractions in Agra especially among domestic Indian tourist.
12. Rambagh Garden
The Rambagh Garden or Aram Bagh is the oldest Persian-style Mughal Garden with waterways and fountains in India, originally built by the Mughal emperor Babur in 1528.
