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Day 4 of 13 · Sunday 1 Nov
Qutb Minar & the south
Where Delhi began: the Qutb complex and the first city, then south Delhi. Finish early — the tour starts at 05:30 tomorrow.
where you sleep what you see · tap a marker for its deep dive
73 m of carved sandstone from the 1190s, over the ruins of the first city of Delhi. Quietest at opening time.
The story: The Seven Cities of Delhi →Next door: a thousand years of tombs, stepwells and mosques scattered through parkland. About an hour, few visitors.
The Bahá’í house of worship (1986): 27 free-standing marble petals which, from the right angle on the lawn, are an afternoon in Sydney without the flight. Makrana marble — the Taj’s own quarry. Open Sundays; 30–40 min including the queue — skip if the queue is long.
Cafés overlooking the medieval reservoir and madrasa ruins.
15th-century tombs in Delhi’s loveliest park — the pre-Mughal chapter you haven’t seen yet, at strolling pace.
A 14th-century stepwell between office blocks, 10 minutes from the hotel — a 15-minute stop on the way back.
Six days on the road start tomorrow at 05:30.
On this day
What you are looking at, roughly in the order the day meets it.
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Qutb Minar — 73 m of fluted red sandstone begun in the 1190s to announce the arrival of the Delhi sultanate, its bands carved with Quranic script. Still the tallest brick minaret in the world.
The story: The Seven Cities of Delhi → -
The Iron Pillar — in the same courtyard: a 7-metre iron column cast in the Gupta period, ~1,600 years ago, and famously almost rust-free — a phosphorus-rich passive layer protects it. It stood somewhere else first; nobody is entirely sure where.
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Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque & the Alai Minar — the sultanate’s first mosque, built from the carved columns of 27 demolished temples — Hindu and Jain figures still visible under the arches. Behind it, the stump of the Alai Minar: a second tower meant to be twice the Qutb’s height, abandoned at one storey when its patron died.
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Mehrauli Archaeological Park — next door and nearly empty of visitors: a thousand years of ruins in parkland, including Balban’s tomb (arguably India’s first true arch), the Jamali Kamali mosque, and the Rajon ki Baoli stepwell.
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Lotus Temple — the Bahá’í house of worship (1986): 27 free-standing marble petals forming a lotus, one of the most visited buildings in the world. Silence inside, no idols, no sermons — all faiths admitted. Fariborz Sahba spent ten years on the geometry of the shells, and the family resemblance to Sydney is not imagined — both solve the same problem, how to stand a set of thin curved shells up without a frame, and both are clad in white (here Makrana marble, the Taj’s quarry).
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Hauz Khas — a 13th-century royal reservoir with Firoz Shah’s madrasa and tomb arranged along its edge, deer park behind, and the village lanes now full of cafés and boutiques. Medieval Delhi and hipster Delhi in a single frame.
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Lodhi Gardens — tombs of the Sayyid and Lodi dynasties — the 15th-century chapter between the sultans and the Mughals — landscaped into the city’s favourite park in 1936. Joggers, politicians on their morning walk, parakeets in the dome vaults.
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Agrasen ki Baoli — a 60-metre stepwell of uncertain (pre-Mughal) date wedged between office towers off Connaught Place: 103 steps descending in three tiers of arcades. Ten minutes from the hotel and a strange, sudden silence.
Where to eat
Breakfast is at the hotel. Researched picks, not a directory — the small print names who recommends each. Names link to Google Maps.
Lunch
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United Coffee House ₹₹₹ · Connaught Place, Inner Circle — High-ceilinged 1942 dining hall — kebab platters and butter chicken under the chandeliers. Same family since 1942; fixture of heritage-CP lists (TimeOut, LBB).
Unhurried — suits the last easy dinner before the 05:30 start.
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Naivedyam ₹₹ · Hauz Khas Village — Temple-decor South Indian vegetarian room at the village entrance, running since 1994 — thali or rava masala dosa with rasam. Thirty-year fixture of Delhi editorial lists for South Indian food.
No lake view — pair it with the walk to the reservoir and monuments next door.
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Hauz Khas Social ₹₹₹ · Hauz Khas Village — Multi-level café-bar whose terrace overlooks the reservoir and deer park — comfort food and cocktails. The village’s anchor venue since 2014; tops the lake-view lists.
Ask for lake-facing seating; loud after dark — better at lunch.
Dinner
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Kake Da Hotel ₹₹ · Connaught Place, Outer Circle — No-frills Punjabi dhaba on the Outer Circle — butter chicken, dal makhani, tandoori roti. CP institution since 1931; food-writer consensus for butter chicken.
Basic room, shared tables at peak times; open late.
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United Coffee House ₹₹₹ · Connaught Place, Inner Circle — High-ceilinged 1942 dining hall — kebab platters and butter chicken under the chandeliers. Same family since 1942; fixture of heritage-CP lists (TimeOut, LBB).
Unhurried — suits the last easy dinner before the 05:30 start.
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Indian Accent ₹₹₹₹ · The Lodhi, Lodhi Road — Contemporary Indian tasting menus — blue-cheese naan, dal moradabadi, meetha achar ribs. The fancy night out, at a Warsaw price. Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants, 13 consecutive years; India’s most-awarded restaurant.
Book several weeks ahead. Ten minutes by car from Khan Market.
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Bukhara ₹₹₹₹ · ITC Maurya, Chanakyapuri — Frontier tandoor room unchanged since 1977 — dal Bukhara simmered 18 hours, sikandari raan, eaten by hand. Has fed Clinton and Putin; ranked among Asia’s best since the 1980s.
Reservations limited — book via the hotel or expect a queue.
Drinks
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Hauz Khas Social ₹₹₹ · Hauz Khas Village — Multi-level café-bar whose terrace overlooks the reservoir and deer park — comfort food and cocktails. The village’s anchor venue since 2014; tops the lake-view lists.
Ask for lake-facing seating; loud after dark — better at lunch.
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Sidecar ₹₹₹ · Greater Kailash II — Neighbourhood cocktail bar by veteran bartender Yangdup Lama — classics-driven list. Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025; long India’s most-decorated bar.
About 25 minutes by car from Khan Market; reserve on weekends.
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Lair ₹₹₹ · Vasant Vihar — Dim speakeasy-style cocktail bar with a tiered menu and Asian small plates. No. 8 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 — ranked best bar in India.
Small room, in demand — book ahead. ~25 minutes by car from the hotel.