&BEYOND has a tradition of showcasing beautiful and elaborate tours to important sites in history. Explore a selection of Delhi’s finest monuments beginning at Humayun’s Tomb, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Perfectly illustrating Mughal architectural influence, this was the first garden tomb to be built in India and the mausoleum is the final resting place of the Mughal Emperor Humayun. Its structure was to further inspire many key architectural advances, culminating in the construction of the famed Taj Mahal nearly a century later. Commissioned by the Emperor’s chief wife, Bega Begum, the tomb is located close to the Old Fort and is the first significant structure known to be built using mostly red sandstone. Legend has it that the Emperor’s wife was so distraught after his death that she dedicated her life to honouring his legacy by building the most impressive mausoleum imaginable, where she would ultimately be laid to rest alongside him.
Continue your tour to the Qutb Minar, which was constructed in 1193 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the principal ruler of the Sultanate in Delhi. Conserved as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the masjid, or mosque, is one of the oldest in northern India. The architecture resembles Iranian styling, but is thought to have been modelled on Afghanistan’s Minaret of Jam.
Your tour takes you to the tombs and other monuments from the Lodi Dynasty in the elegant Lodhi Gardens. Two tombs, a mosque, and other buildings reside on a landscaped public garden. Originating from different dynasties, the Tomb of Mohammed Shah (1444), and the Tomb of Sikandar Lodi (1517), are important examples of Sultanate architecture. Your tour culminates at the sandstone and marble mausoleum of Sardarjung, built in the 1750s. Known as the last monumental garden tomb of the Mughal period, its lines mimic the grace of Humayun’s Tomb. Inscribed with Arabic calligraphy, the entrance of this colossal mausoleum boldly states: “When the hero of plain bravery departs from the transitory, may he become a resident of god’s paradise”.