Humayun's Tomb

Located in Nizamuddin East in Delhi at the bank of River Yamuna, Humayun's tomb includes the main tomb of Humayun and numerous others too inclusive of Babur's tomb. The tomb for Humayun was ordered to be built by his Persian widow Hamida Banu Begum.

The work to build this tomb began in the year 1562 and took eight whole years i.e. 1570 to complete the structure and the work was carried out by Persian architects. The mausoleum also has a Chahr Bagh Garden style (the first garden tomb of India), the first of its kind in the entire area, this tomb is said to have been designed by the begum herself.

This tomb is a great portrayal of Mughal architecture, and the exceptional splendor of this tomb is said to have motivated numerous architectural novelty. The tomb has been declared as a world heritage site by UNESCO in the year 1993.

Things to do and see

The tomb by itself is an architectural splendor and can be gazed at all the way through.

• The garden surrounding the tomb has been divided into 36 squares with a grid of water channels and paths. This square garden is surrounded by a high rubble wall that is divided at the beginning into four squares by channels and these squares are further divided into smaller squares thus making the Chahr Bagh. The gardens have been laid in the Persian style and this style continued for quite sometime in the Mughal era.
  
  
• There are gateways on the long path to the main tomb from where the tomb can be viewed. The main tomb is octagonal in shape and is positioned above a pulpit with a row of pillars. Beneath this one can find graves of various other less famed people of the Humayun regime.
  
  
• The central room holds the monuments of Emperor Humayun and his wife Bega Begum, the tomb is crowned by a massive double dome 42.5 meters in height. This chamber has four double storeyed offsets and with arcade on their porticos. The openings are blocked with perforated screens.
  
  
• Humayun's tomb is the first tomb in India to use the concept of double dome and is made with white marble. The entire structure is built with red sandstone with a combination of white and black marble.
  
  
• The enclosed space can be entered from either the west or the south directions, both the gateways are double-storeyed. Of the late the southern gateway is kept closed, the center of the eastern wall is occupied by the baradari or the pavilion and the hamam or the bath chamber is present in the center of the northern wall.
  

Hotels, restaurants, climate and shopping

There are numerous hotels from budget accommodations maintained by the Government to star accommodations to suit the requirements of the traveler. Making reservations in advance is advisable as Delhi is the Country's capital and will always have its share of visitors. Food is a multi-cuisine affair of course local cuisine is a fantastic fair.

Climate is warm during summers and cold during winter. The blossom season is February and March and the whole of Delhi is green and beautiful to watch. Best time to visit Delhi is between February and April and between August and November. Shopping malls are abundant and there are all kinds of things from handicrafts, leather goods to textiles to be shopped at Delhi.