Delhi

October and November are the best months — post-monsoon clarity, comfortable 25–30°C days, and the city feeling celebratory after Diwali. February and March are also excellent before the heat builds. Avoid May and June (45°C heat is genuinely dangerous for outdoor sightseeing), and be aware that November–January brings Delhi's infamous smog — particulate pollution from crop burning in Punjab combines with cold air to create AQI levels regularly above 400. If you're sensitive to air quality, October is the safer choice over January.

Delhi is broadly safe for tourists with appropriate awareness. The main risks are financial scams (gem shop schemes near Connaught Place, tuk-tuk drivers taking detours to commission shops), overcharging by auto-rickshaws (always insist on meter or agree on price before boarding), and in some areas, harassment. Solo women travelers need more specific preparation: use Ola/Uber rather than hailing autos at night, don't walk alone in Old Delhi or Paharganj after dark, and share your location with someone. Monument areas have functioning tourist police.

Absolutely — it's one of the best metro systems in Asia. Air-conditioned, reliable, cheap (20–60 INR, roughly $0.25–0.75 per ride), and connects Chandni Chowk, Connaught Place, Qutub Minar, and the airport. Buy a tourist card from the counter (200 INR plus 50 INR deposit). The metro won't get you into Old Delhi's inner lanes, but it handles every major sightseeing corridor and eliminates the traffic gridlock problem.

Delhi's food is built on Mughal influences and Punjabi cooking. The Old Delhi breakfast — jalebi at Old Famous Jalebi Wala, chole bhature at Sita Ram Diwan Chand, bedmi puri on the street — is unbeatable. For lunch: Karim's for mutton korma and seekh kebab (since 1913). Paranthewali Gali for stuffed flatbreads at any hour. The evening scene in South Delhi (Hauz Khas, Def Col) has excellent contemporary Indian restaurants. The street food of Chandni Chowk is genuinely extraordinary; eat only cooked, hot food from busy stalls.

Go in the morning (before 10 AM) rather than afternoon, when the lanes are slightly less dense. Hire a cycle-rickshaw from the Jama Masjid side — the drivers know the lanes and double as informal guides. Wear comfortable, closed shoes (the alleys are unpaved and wet). Accept that you will be pushed, jostled, honked at, and solicited — it's not aggression, it's density. Lock your phone away in a front pocket. Eat from busy stalls, skip any stall that's dead. And bring patience: this is one of Asia's most intense urban experiences, and that is precisely the point.

Yes — Agra is 200 km south via the Yamuna Expressway (3 hours by car) or 2 hours on the Gatimaan Express train from Hazrat Nizamuddin station. The Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays. A day trip is feasible: leave Delhi by 6 AM, reach Agra Cantt by 8 AM, visit the Taj (best from 7–9 AM), Agra Fort mid-day, and return by evening. A private cab for the day costs around 3,000–4,000 INR ($36–48). Also consider overnight in Agra — it's genuinely a better way to see the Taj at dawn rather than mid-morning.

In October–January, very bad. Delhi regularly records some of the highest PM2.5 particulate levels in the world during this period, combining crop-burning smoke from neighboring states with cold air inversion. AQI regularly sits 300–500+ from November to January. If you have respiratory issues, asthma, or young children, plan accordingly: bring an N95 mask, avoid outdoor exercise, and consider the October or February-March window instead. Indoor attractions are fine; the main impact is outdoor sightseeing comfort.

The classic first-time India circuit: Delhi (3–4 nights) → Agra (2 nights, for the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, and Fatehpur Sikri) → Jaipur (3–4 nights, for the Amber Fort, City Palace, and the pink-city markets) → back to Delhi. All three are within 250 km of each other. Most travelers do it by car with a driver (6,000–9,000 INR/day including car and driver), which is comfortable and handles luggage logistics well. Total trip is 9–12 days.

Most Western visitors need an Indian e-Tourist Visa — apply at indianvisaonline.gov.in at least 1–2 weeks before travel (processing is officially 72 hours but can take longer). Cost varies by nationality: typically $25–100 USD. The e-Visa allows double entry for 60 days and is linked to your passport digitally. You do not receive a sticker; immigration scans your passport on arrival. Canadian passport holders face longer processing times; apply a month ahead.

Yes, with a caveat: the city is genuinely overwhelming for first-timers. Delhi has better tourism infrastructure than most Indian cities — functioning metro, airport, English signage, tourist police at monuments. But the first 12 hours on Indian streets are a lot regardless of how well-traveled you are. Stay somewhere with responsive staff who can help with transport. Don't plan your first day too intensely — give yourself a couple of hours to recalibrate.

The Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya dargah is one of the most important Sufi shrines in South Asia — the tomb of the 14th-century saint Nizamuddin Auliya, who counted the poet Amir Khusrow among his disciples. Every Thursday evening, qawwali (Sufi devotional music) is performed in the shrine courtyard, open to all visitors, starting around 6 PM after Maghrib prayers. The experience — the music, the incense, the light, the crowd of devotees — is among the most moving things Delhi offers.

First light — most Delhi monuments open at sunrise (typically 6–7 AM depending on season). Humayun's Tomb and Qutub Minar at 7 AM are extraordinary and nearly empty. By 11 AM, tour groups and afternoon heat have arrived simultaneously. If you can only visit at one time: Humayun's Tomb at 7 AM wins. The Red Fort is manageable from opening through 9:30 AM before school groups arrive.

Conservative and practical. For temples and mosques, cover shoulders and knees; carry a light scarf or shawl. For Jama Masjid, women must cover their head and arms (headscarves are lent at the entrance). In summer (April–June), loose cotton clothing is essential — synthetics in Delhi's heat are genuinely miserable. Closed-toe footwear for walking Old Delhi's uneven lanes. Don't dress in ways that attract attention; blending toward local sensibility reduces unwanted interactions.

With judgment, yes. Eat from stalls that are busy, where food is cooked fresh in front of you, and where you can see the preparation. Avoid pre-prepared food sitting in the heat. Drink only bottled water or water from sealed bottles. Avoid raw vegetables, salads, and anything washed in tap water. The famous Delhi belly is real — build in buffer days if you need your stomach to work at full capacity early in the trip. A probiotic regimen before arrival and Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) if you get sick.

Chandni Chowk for scale, chaos, and the sensory experience of the oldest bazaar. Khari Baoli (the spice market off Chandni Chowk) is the largest in Asia — sacks of dried chiles and turmeric the size of a person. Dilli Haat (INA Metro) for fixed-price state craft fair. Khan Market for books, specialty food, and upscale shopping. Sarojini Nagar for incredibly cheap clothing (export surplus). Mehrauli antique market on Sunday mornings for old brass, textiles, and furniture.

Indira Gandhi International Airport (IATA: DEL) has four terminals. Terminal 3 handles most international airlines; Terminals 1 and 2 handle domestic IndiGo and SpiceJet operations; Terminal 3 also handles Air India and Vistara domestic. Check your ticket carefully — Terminals 1/2 and Terminal 3 are several kilometers apart with no direct shuttle. The Delhi Metro Airport Express (Line 8) connects T3 directly to New Delhi Railway Station in 19 minutes (60 INR).

Hindi is the primary language of daily life in Delhi; Punjabi is widely spoken, particularly in West Delhi neighborhoods (the city received millions of Punjabi refugees at Partition). English is co-official and works reliably in hotels, restaurants, monuments, and shops in tourist areas and South Delhi. The metro system is bilingual (Hindi-English). Old Delhi market interactions may involve gestures and numbers shown on a phone for pricing.

The Indian Rupee (INR) at roughly 83–85 per USD. India has undergone a payments revolution — UPI (Unified Payments Interface) means many vendors now accept instant mobile payments via a QR code. International visitors can use UPI-linked apps but setup requires an Indian SIM card. Cards work at hotels and better restaurants. Carry 2,000–3,000 INR in cash for autos, street food, and markets. ATM withdrawal limits are typically 10,000 INR per transaction.