Things to do
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Agra Fort
Akbar rebuilt the Mughal stronghold in red sandstone from 1565, and his grandson Shah Jahan later set white marble palaces inside the walls. Aurangzeb confined his father here for his last eight years, in a tower looking downriver to the Taj. Much of the fort is still an army cantonment, so visits run through the Amar Singh Gate.
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Fatehpur Sikri
A red sandstone capital abandoned within a generation of its founding, Fatehpur Sikri served Akbar from 1571 until its water supply failed. The Buland Darwaza gateway rises 54 metres above the mosque courtyard, where the marble dargah of Salim Chishti draws pilgrims. The site lies west of Agra and a visit takes most of a day once the drive is counted.
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Mehtab Bagh
A Mughal garden square on the flood plain north of the river, laid out in line with the Taj Mahal on the opposite bank. A corner tower, an octagonal pond and stretches of river wall survive; the planting is a modern restoration. Late afternoon is when the marble takes the light from here, and the crowd is a fraction of the one across the water.
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Taj Mahal
Shah Jahan commissioned this marble mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, and work ran from 1632 until the middle of the century. Inlaid semi-precious stone covers the walls at close range, which the postcard view never shows. Gates open an hour before sunrise, the site closes on Fridays, and a three hour limit now applies to every ticket.
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Tomb of Itimad-ud-Daulah
Nur Jahan built this small tomb for her father, the Mughal treasurer Mirza Ghiyas Beg, between 1622 and 1628. It is reckoned the first Mughal building raised entirely in white marble, and its pietra dura inlay anticipates what the Taj would do at scale. On the far bank of the Yamuna, it takes under an hour and stays quiet.