For pure, ethereal beauty, there’s only one building in India to rival the Taj Mahal. The Sikhs’ holiest shrine, the ‘Golden Temple’, casts an undeniably powerful spell. The combined effect of the lustrous, gilded domes, the shimmering reflections in the water and hymns emanating from the shrine are at once humbling and elevating.

Another experience not to be missed while in the region is the flag lowering ceremony at Wagah, where, each day, resplendently moustachioed soldiers from the rival nations perform a ludicrous marching and saluting routine leading up to the slamming shut of the frontier gates. Think of the Monty Python ‘Funny Walks’ skit in front of large, cheering crowds and you’ll get the picture!

After visiting the Golden Temple, follow the streams of worshippers making their way to the nearby Guru-ka-Langa, where every day thousands of free, communal meals are served by legions of volunteers. Sharing food with all comers, regardless of creed, is one of the central tenets of the Sikh faith, and there’s no more emphatic assertion of this than the sight of so many people sitting cross-legged on long coir floor mats, eating simple dal and chapattis together.

Clustered on a wooded ridge in the Himalayan foothills of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamsala – or more accurately the township of McLeod Ganj above it – is internationally famous as the home of the Tibetan spiritual leader in exile, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It’s also the home of a sizeable, and ever-growing, numbers of Tibetan refugees, most of whom undertook dangerous journeys across the mountains of their homeland to get there.

Their presence has totally transformed what was formerly a sleepy hill station into one of India’s principal attractions for foreign visitors. Tourists from all over the world come not only to attend public teachings by the Dalai Lama himself, but also to study Buddhist meditation, Tibetan performing arts, crafts and medicine, and to experience the unique atmosphere of this refugee town in the Himalayas.

Set against the grey, snow-capped crags of the Dhauladhar Range (which here reach a culminating altitude of around 4,600m/15,000ft), the rooftops of McLeod Ganj are strung with fluttering prayer flags. Monasteries and temples house ranks of red-and-gold prayer wheels visited year-round by streams of Tibetan pilgrims from the plains. 

The Kalachakra (‘Wheel of Time’) Temple is the largest Tibetan shrine in the town, and a popular one with visitors and pilgrims alike. Its walls are festooned with brightly coloured murals showing 722 deities and mandalas (sacred diagrams). A great place to see how such art is produced is the Norbulingka Institute, a centre dedicated to the preservation of traditional Tibetan culture. Thangka painting, screen-printing, appliqué, woodcarving, papermaking and metalwork and all taught in the institute.

Built by a local judge in 1918, Judge’s Court ranks among our favourite retreats in India, thanks to its idyllic location and old-world atmosphere. On passing through its gateway, you enter a parallel world reminiscent of a bygone era: breakfast is served under a mango tree in the garden by liveried staff, and supper is preceded by a leisurely “cocktail hour” on the lawn. The rooms are huge and furnished in period, with dark wood beds and chintzy touches that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Kipling’s time.

The village of Pragpur, in the Kangra District of the Shivalik Hills, provides an atmospheric staging post en route to the mountains. It’s one of the region’s prettiest villages, with cobbled streets winding through ranks of mud-walled, slate-roofed houses. Among them are the mansions of the Sood community, who migrated here in Mughal times and subsequently prospered in the cloth trade. Weaving remains an important cottage industry and on a walking tour you’ll have the chance to see traditional Himachali shawls being made.

The ramshackle capital of Himachal Pradesh, Shimla straddles a high, forested ridge in the foothills of the Himalaya. During the Raj era, the entire British administration, complete families and retinues of servants, used to travel all the way from Calcutta to this fragrant, cool spot in the hills to escape the summer heat, and over time, a miniature version of home-counties England sprang among the cedar trees, with an Anglican church, bandstand and theatre. Thanks largely to its proximity to Delhi, the hill station remains a popular holiday destination today. Strolls along the Mall, shopping expeditions in the warrenous bazaar and pony rides through the pine forest are the order of the day.

Taking a toy train in India is a very special experience, as these small locomotives ply the routes on historic railway lines taking visitors to the country's hill stations. What they lack in speed, they make up for in charm and should not be overlooked as a wonderful method of transport.

The Kalka-Shimla Railway, was built by the British in 1903 to reach their summer capital. 

A day at leisure today, which you could spend relaxing in your hotel, exploring Shimla further, or with a round of golf at the picturesque 18 hole, Naldehra Golf Course. 

And don’t miss afternoon tiffin in the atmospheric Indian Coffee House, whose waiters still wear starched tunics and pleated pugris – one of the town’s signature pleasures!