Golden Triangle India Itinerary

The Golden Triangle India Itinerary is the most typical route you can travel on any backpacking trip around India. That however does not mean you should miss it. It’s incredible. That’s why it’s so popular.

The Golden Triangle is a loop around the North of India which technically in its truest from just consists of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur; hence the triangle as that’s the shape it makes on a map. No India travel itinerary would be complete without it.

You can’t go to India and not see the Taj Mahal which is in Agra. I mean you can, but you shouldn’t. It is one of the seven wonders of the world after all.

In Agra you’ll find the Taj Mahal and in Jaipur the City Palace is the main attraction. We extended our triangle slightly wonkily out to the side to include Udaipur, also known as lake city.

Doing the Golden Triangle loop is a great way to see some of the best sights of India but there are a lot of logistics involved as the distances between each place are long and can be confusing at times.

I spent hours, actually days, researching this bit of my trip (and working out if I wanted to branch out from The Golden Triangle and see other places nearby) so here’s a round up of where I went, what there is to see in each location and how to get between each place. One place I didn’t go but wish I had was Jodhpur or the Blue City as it’s called. If you do like to go there, check out this 2-day Johdpur itinerary. 

A lot of organised tours offer this route or similar too since it is such a popular tourist track but it is more than possible to do it on your own and doing so will save you A LOT of money. It also means you can go off and do your own thing and see what you want rather than having to do what the tour group tells you and wait until you’re allotted “independent activity” time.

If you think you’d rather do this route in a tour though just scroll down the page to the inspiration section and you should find some options there from Get Your Guide.

Check out the map below for what the route I took looks like (my wonky triangle ?)

I also headed up to Rishikesh, near the Himalayas, for some time closer to the hills in India and to do my Yoga Teacher Training Qualification. I wish I’d had more time and been able to visit Jaisalmer and go on a desert safari too.

Golden Triangle India Itinerary

• Agra – Taj Mahal and Agra Fort
• Jaipur – Amber fort, City Palace, Tiger Fort, Jal Mahal and many more
• Udaipur– Lake Palaces, City Palace and more a short journey away

Duration: At least one week

Click on each location below or above for more information, including how to get to the next destination in the golden triangle at the bottom of each post and where to stay.