Thousands of tourists storm one of these places every day, but inside it, according to her, there is almost nothing to see.
A woman born in India who has traveled around her native country for years named three places worth seeing for anyone visiting for the first time, and two that can safely be skipped. Poonam Binayak wrote about this in a column for Business Insider.
“If you have time for only one attraction in India, let it be the Taj Mahal,” she advises.
The reference is to the white marble mausoleum in the city of Agra, which the emperor Shah Jahan built in memory of his wife. According to the traveler, it is best to come to the Eastern or Western gate before dawn, to avoid the crowds and the heat. On Fridays the mausoleum is closed.
After seeing it, Poonam advises crossing to the other bank of the Yamuna river to Mehtab Bagh. This is an old garden directly opposite the mausoleum, entry for foreigners to which costs 300 rupees, that is a little more than 3 dollars. From there the Taj Mahal is visible against the open sky, and there are significantly fewer people.
Varanasi
Poonam names as her favorite place in India Varanasi, one of the oldest cities in the world on the bank of the Ganges, a river sacred to Hindus. The main thing worth seeing there, in her opinion, is the Ganga aarti, the nightly religious ceremony in honor of the river. It takes place at Dashashwamedh, one of the stone steps down to the water, of which there are more than 80 in the city. Priests swing huge brass lamps to the ringing of bells and chanting.
“Every time I get goosebumps,” Poonam confessed.
The ceremony is free, lasts about 45 minutes and begins after sunset. To get a place on the steps, it is worth arriving 30–45 minutes early.
The backwaters of Kerala
In the south of India, in the state of Kerala, a network of backwaters, lakes and canals stretches along the coast. The best way to see them, the traveler believes, is to spend a night on a kettuvallam, a traditional rice barge converted into a floating house. The most popular town for such trips is Alappuzha, but the canals there, she says, are jammed with boats like a road at rush hour.
For quiet, Poonam advises heading to Valiyaparamba, a picturesque body of water in the Kasaragod district at the very north of the state. Its banks are covered with mangrove thickets and coconut palms, and about 90 species of birds live there. A night on a boat costs from 8,000 to more than 25,000 rupees, and meals are usually included in the price. The best season lasts from October to March.
Overrated: the Lotus Temple
Verdict: beautiful from outside, not worth the queue inside.
The Lotus Temple, the Bahá’í faith’s house of worship in the form of a flower of 27 marble petals, the traveler calls genuinely beautiful, but she would not go inside a second time. On a Saturday she stood in the queue for 30–35 minutes, and spent about five in the hall. Photography is prohibited there, and there are no statues or images, so, as Poonam says, there is nothing to look at. She advises strolling through the free gardens by the pools and not standing in the queue.
Overrated: the Gateway of India
Verdict: impressive, but usually reduced to a photo ruined by crowds.
The Gateway of India, a huge arch of yellow basalt erected in 1924 in honor of the visit of the British King George V, is, according to the traveler, impressive. However, a visit usually comes down to taking photographs, and even that is spoiled by crowds of people in the frame. Instead, Poonam advises taking a ferry by the arch and reaching Elephanta Island in an hour. There are ancient temples carved straight into the rock and dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, which are inscribed on the UNESCO list.
“I would rather spend a morning exploring the ancient temples of Elephanta and enjoying the journey across the harbor than linger at the Gateway of India,” Poonam concluded.
Konstantin is an acclaimed travel writer, celebrated for transforming ordinary journeys into extraordinary narratives. With years of experience exploring diverse destinations across the globe, his work blends vivid storytelling, cultural insights, and practical advice to inspire wanderlust and guide readers toward unforgettable adventures.
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