Delhi, India’s capital, is where most new arrivals alight – a megacity whose fast pace and jarring contrasts are guaranteed to induce a degree of wide-eyed exicement, no matter how many times you’ve been there. Afghan mausolea, millennia-old fort walls and Sufi shrines endure alongside Delhi's race for modernity. Five-star hotels host recitals by ghazal singers, sarod players and kathak dancers whose arts have been painstakingly preserved since the days of Mughals. Echoes of the British Raj abound, too, in gand architecture and uniforms of the sentries strutting down Raj Path and amid the sprawl of the southern suburbs, you can even sip cappuccinos in trendy air-con cafés while gazing over the remnants of 11th-century tombs, water tanks and rose gardens.

Cycle-rickshaws are a relaxing, and eco-friendly, way to explore the lanes of Old Delhi. Different streets are to be given over to different trades in this atmospheric district, which formed the hub of the former Mughal city. Dominating its skyline is the massive white dome of the Jama Masjid mosque, the next stop on your tour. After admiring the extraordinary view from its minarets, enjoy lunch at one of the famous kebab restaurants below, before driving past the Raj-era capital to Humayun’s Tomb, one of the India’s greatest early Mughal buildings. Older still is the iconic Qutb Minar victory tower on Delhi’s southern outskirts, the day’s final stop.

On the banks of the River Ganges, Varanasi (‘Kashi’ or ‘Benares’ as it’s also known) is among the oldest continuously inhabited places on earth. Streams of Hindu worshippers still come here today to bathe in the sacred waters of the river, believed to wash away the sins of past lifetimes. After an amble around the ghats and temples with your guide, you’ll return to Dashashwamedh Ghat to watch Ganga Aarthi, an impressive ritual in which teams of young priests in splendid ceremonial dress wave blazing oil lamps next to the Ganges. Devotional hymns, chants, drumming, bell ringing and gongs combine to create an intense atmosphere.

Watching the pre-dawn rituals on the ghats of Varanasi is a must, and there’s no better vantage point than from a rowing boat. When the sun rises, it bathes the sacred steps and people on them in a radiant light. Somewhat less uplifting, but an essential part of religious life in the city, are the cremation ghats, where bodies are burned on large pyres. Sarnath was where the Buddha gave his first sermon in 530BC, revealing the ‘Eight-Fold Path’ to his five disciples. The exact spot is marked by the cylindrical Dhamekh Stupa, built in 500 AD on the remnants of a much older one commissioned by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka. The structure takes pride of place in an immaculately kept park of well-tended lawns and flower beds.

Khajuraho’s extraordinary assemblage of shrines owes its survival to the remoteness of the location in central India. Even in the period between the 10th and 13th centuries when they were being built, the temples lay well of the beaten track and miraculously escaped the attention of the marauding Muslim armies that destroyed so much of India’s religious art in the medieval era. Famed above all for their erotica, the stone sculpture that adorns the Khajuraho shrines today appears astonishingly fresh. You’ll arrive in time for a look at some of the main temples before supper. The sensuously carved stonework looks at its most ethereal in the late-evening light.

Orchha ranks among our favourite destinations in northern India, thanks to its tumbledown, sleepy feel and picturesque setting amid swaths of dhak forest on the banks of the Betwa – an idyllic backdrop for a leisurely lunch. The monuments are deserted and in a generally poor state of repair, though all the more atmospheric for that. The most iconic are the 14 beautiful chhatris, or cenotaphs, rising from the river’s northern banks, which you’ll have the chance to visit before continuing on your journey to Agra.

Agra’s great Mughal Fort, on the banks of the Yamuna River, was where Emperor Shah Jahan, creator of the Taj Mahal, was imprisoned at the end of his life by his rather fanatical son, Aurangzeb – the old man is said to have wiled away his days gazing at the tomb through the windows of a gilded rooftop pavilion. On the opposite bank, the exquisitely decorated Itimad-ud Daulah tomb provides the next stop on today’s tour. The mausoleum’s inlay work foreshadowed that of the Taj, which you’ll visit towards the end of the afternoon, when the changing light transforms the marble surfaces from a pale ochre to orange and crimson.

Fatehpur Sikri, the former capital of Emperor Akbar, was built at lavish expense at end of the 16th century but only occupied for sixteen years, when the court decamped to Lahore. Today, the finely carved, dark-red buildings remain in fine condition and vividly evoke the opulence of the Mughal era. Among many highlights are the Diwan-i-Khas audience hall, with its richly sculpted throne pillar, the beautiful Tomb of Sheikh Salim Chishti (a revered Sufi mystic) and Buland Darwaza gateway.

Today’s other sightseeing stop, the famous Chand Baori stepwell, lies just off the main Agra–Jaipur highway at Abhaneri. Its ornately modelled steps provide a fine photo opportunity, and a welcome chance to stretch your legs!

Perched on the rim of a dramatic escarpment, Amber Fort retains some of the finest interiors surviving from the 16th and 17th centuries in India, notably a glittering ‘Hall of Mirrors’, or ‘Sheesh Mahal’, lined with intricate mirror mosaics where the Maharaja and his consorts would enjoy music and poetry recitals. Anyone interested in traditional Rajasthani textiles will also enjoy a visit to the Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing, located in a beautifully restored haveli in Amber village.

Jaipur itself is a swirl of life and colour, and its numerous monuments and markets provide the focus for the rest of the day. You’ll begin at the famous City Palace complex, which includes the much photographed ‘Hawa Mahal’, or ‘Palace of Winds’, a five-storey façade of elaborately screened windows from where the women of the royal household used to watch processions in the streets below.

With its awe-inspiring fort and labyrinthine, blue-painted old city, Jodhpur is without doubt one of the great highlights of this region. All being well, the group will arrive in time to freshen up and sample its unique atmosphere with a stroll around the bazaar area before supper back at the hotel.

We generally allow at least a couple of hours to tour the palace, museum and temples of Mehrangarh Fort, and to soak up the amazing views over the old city from the ramparts. The afternoon will be free for a spot of R&R back at the hotel, or an optional excursion to Umaid Bhavan – a vast, Art-Deco-style complex on Jodhpur’s southern outskirts, where you can enjoy high tea served by waiters in old-fashioned livery, as peacocks graze the lawns.

The first half of the journey from Jodhpur to Udaipur takes you across a vast, dusty plain studded with giant boulder hills and old-fashioned market towns. In the west, the shadowy wall of the Aravalli Mountains gradually grows more distinct. Before climbing into the range, the group will pause at Ranakpur to visit a cluster of richly sculpted Jain temples. From there the road ascends steeply then follows an undulating course through a rural hinterland inhabited mostly by Bhil farmers. Having checked into your hotel in Udaipur, you should have time to wander down to the lakeside to see the city’s great Rajput palaces in the sunset light.

Udaipur’s City Palace, seat of the Sisodia Dynasty, holds a feast of Rajput architecture, and yields magnificent views over Pichola Lake to the Aravallis. After visiting its museums, apartments and courtyard gardens, wander down to the Jagdish Temple nearby before heading into the old city with your guide to explore the markets. Late afternoon is the time to be on a rooftop at the water’s edge, soaking up the sunset colours and unique atmosphere of this romantic city over a long drink – a fitting end to this fabulous tour.