Agra – Home to One of The Seven Wonders of The World

Taj Mahal, the wonder of the world, is well known in the whole world. That beautiful and breathtaking monument built by the Mughals is located in Agra, a city built on the banks of the Yamuna River in the State of Uttar Pradesh in North India. Because of the Taj Mahal, Agra is visited by thousands of tourists each year – it is a once-in-a-lifetime must see. Agra is located around 200 kms south of Delhi and easily reached by a train journey. Agra flights are now also available if one would like to visit the city and enjoy seeing its ancient monuments, tombs and historic temples.

Tourists who visit Delhi very often try to squeeze in a couple of days to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. This could be short-sighted on their part as there is much more to see in Agra besides the Taj. Some places and events worth mentioning are the Moti Masjid or Pearl Mosque; Akbar's Mausoleum; the Chini Ka Rauza; the Soami Bagh Samadh mausoleum; the red sandstone Agra Fort; the 6-D Adlabs Cinema complex and not forgetting the desert camel rides which prove a popular pastime.

Going back in Agra's history one finds it was once referred to as Agraba in the Mahabharata. Agra was the capital of the Lodhi Kingdom. During the 16th and 17th centuries when kings like Jehangir, Akbar and Shah Jahan ruled, Agra was transformed into a center for culture, art and commerce. Beautiful buildings and structures were erected and some of the crafts that were available at that time can still be seen on display today. As the popular historical story goes, Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz, so it now represents one of the greatest symbols of love.

There may be a few people who feel that travelling all the way to Agra to see the Taj Mahal could prove a tiring and complicated journey by changing trains, and in buses. However, now that there are direct Agra flights one should no longer fear such problems. Booking of flights can be done easily online, and an added perk is that the same online booking company could also handle the hotel booking, car hire etc. depending on your budget and choice. So it requires just one easy step to go on the computer and download the pertinent website. All you have to do after that is sit back and look forward to seeing the world's symbol of love.