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First time · Delhi

First time in Delhiदिल्ली

Delhi is a dawn-and-dusk city: do Old Delhi and the Red Fort in the first morning hours, hide from the heat and the smog indoors, take the metro or an app car between clusters — and never follow a stranger's 'it is closed' story.

Everything here is a short version of the Delhi guide. Prices and hours are estimates: check before you rely on them.

The honest verdict

Delhi's sights are good and far apart; the city is hot, loud, dense and, in winter, smoggy. Old Delhi is a maze, the metro is fast and cheap, and touts work the airport, New Delhi station and the main tourist streets. Four clusters cover a first visit, tied together by the metro and prepaid or app cars.

You will like

  • Old Delhi food lanes
  • Mughal monuments
  • The metro

What wears you down

  • Touts and hard sells
  • Heat in May–June
  • Smog Oct–Feb
Overview and trade-offs →

Five things not to miss

  1. 1Red Fort at openingThe palace-fort of Shah Jahan: the Lahori Gate bazaar, the audience halls and the lawns, before the heat and the groups.Best At opening; closed Mondays · ₹600 (≈ US$7) (foreign visitor)
  2. 2Jama MasjidOne of India's biggest mosques, a huge courtyard and a minaret view over Old Delhi.Best Morning, outside prayer times · Free; camera fee
  3. 3An Old Delhi food walk: parathas, jalebi, chaatThe lanes of Chandni Chowk feed the city: stuffed parathas, hot jalebi, dahi bhalla and kulfi.Best Before 11:30 or after 15:30 · ₹300–600 (≈ US$4–7) for four or five dishes
  4. 4Humayun's TombThe first big Mughal garden tomb, calm and shaded; the model for the Taj Mahal.Best First hour after opening or late afternoon · ₹600 (≈ US$7) (foreign visitor)
  5. 5Sunder NurseryA level garden park with tombs and a café next to the tomb; the cool half-hour that makes the morning bearable.Best After the tomb · About ₹100–300 (≈ US$2–4)
The full top 10 →

Where to stay on a first visit

  • Connaught PlaceFor: First visit, 2–4 nights, metro and foodCentral, with metro links to Old Delhi and easy cars to the tomb.
Compare every sleep area →

From the airport

Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL)

Fastest and cheapest
Airport Express metro to New Delhi station, then a short car ride · about 45 min · about ₹150 (≈ US$2)

Typical ride times and fares, 2026 desk estimates (check). Last services and night options are on the gateway page.

Airport-to-bed timings →

How long to stay

1 day
A stopover or the day before a train to Agra
2 days
The usual Delhi stay on the way to Agra and Jaipur
3 days
First visit with one long day added
5 days
First visit with Agra and a south Delhi day
Itineraries by length →
Show 5 more blocksHideThree mistakes to avoid, Money and SIM, Etiquette, The best time to go, A first day

Three mistakes to avoid

  • 'Closed' stories: someone at the airport, New Delhi station or Connaught Place says your hotel, the ticket office or the sight is closed and offers a 'better' shop or travel agent. Use the official counter or your app.(Scams)
  • Do not photograph military, police or metro security points.(Survive · red lines)
  • Touts: the airport, New Delhi station and Connaught Place are the hot spots; use prepaid taxi counters, app cars or the metro.(Survive · safety)
Scams and safety →

Money and SIM

Budget day
₹1,500–3,000 (≈ US$18–35) excl. bed
Paying
Cash for autos, street food, markets and small shops; cards in hotels, malls and many restaurants; app cars take cards in-app. UPI needs an Indian bank account, so foreign visitors cannot use it, apart from a few tourist UPI options (check). Keep ₹10 (≈ under US$1), ₹20 (≈ under US$1), ₹50 (≈ under US$1) and ₹100 (≈ US$2) notes: change for ₹500 (≈ US$6) and ₹2,000 (≈ US$25) is scarce.
Cash
Keep ₹2,000 (≈ US$25) in small notes; withdraw at ATMs inside banks or malls in daylight; UPI needs an Indian number, so do not rely on it.
SIM
Tourist eSIM bought before you fly: No counter, no queue. Data only on most plans; app cars work with your home number.
Money, SIMs and apps →

Etiquette: the top three

Mosques, temples and gurdwaras
Cover shoulders and knees; shoes off; cover your head at gurdwaras and some shrines; ask before photographing people.
Shoes
Off at religious sites and in homes; keep the token at deposit stalls.
Right hand
Eat, pass money and hand things with the right hand; the left is used for cleaning.
All etiquette notes →

The best time to go

FebMarOct

Feb: Mild and clearer; best month for walking.

Spring (Feb–Mar): Mild days, bougainvillea and roses, Holi in some years.

Month-by-month verdicts →

A first day

Day 1 — Red Fort at opening, Jama Masjid, parathas, a 13:30 lunch table

Start about 07:45

  1. 1Red Fort
  2. 2Jama Masjid
  3. 3Paranthe Wali Gali
  4. 4Khari Baoli Spice Market

Fixed point: Lunch table 13:30 (Connaught Place)

Hotel or AC café 14:00–16:30; Connaught Place at dusk.

Old Delhi lanes are best before 10:00 and after 17:00.

Timed version: Delhi in 3 days
All day plans →

Your Delhi checklist

The money points and the first-timer mistakes from this page in one list. Tick each one when you have handled it.

0 of 7 done

Ticks stay on this device only.

The full Delhi guide →