Uttar Pradesh

The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, to house the tomb of his late wife, Mumtaz Mahal; it also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself. The tomb is the centrepiece of a 17-hectare complex, which includes a mosque and a guest house, and is set in formal gardens bounded on three sides by a crenellated wall.

Ghats in Varanasi are riverfront steps leading to the banks of the Ganges river. The city has 84 ghats. Most of the ghats are bathing and puja ceremonial ghats, while two ghats, Manikarnika and Harishchandra, are used exclusively as cremation sites. Most of the ghats in Varanasi were rebuilt in the 18th century under the Maratha patronage. The patrons of current ghats were Maharajas of Benares, Marathas, Shindes, Holkars, Bhonsles and Peshwes.

Fatehpur Sikri is a town in the Agra District of Uttar Pradesh, India. Situated 35.7 kilometres from the district headquarters of Agra, Fatehpur Sikri itself was founded as the capital of the Mughal Empire in 1571 by Emperor Akbar, serving this role from 1571 to 1585, when Akbar abandoned it due to a campaign in Punjab and was later completely abandoned in 1610. The name of the city is derived from the village called Sikri which previously occupied the location.

Lucknow is a metropolis and the second largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh where it serves as the capital and the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division. The city had a population of 2.8 million according to the 2011 census, making it the eleventh most populous city and the twelfth-most populous urban agglomeration of India.

Vrindavan, also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historic city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious significance for Hindus, who believe that Krishna, one of the main Gods in Hinduism, spent most of his childhood in this city. Vrindavan has about 5,500 temples dedicated to the worship of Krishna and his chief consort, Radha. It is one of the most sacred places for Vaishnava traditions.

Ayodhya is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became the top tourist destination of Uttar Pradesh with 110 million visitors in the first half of 2024, surpassing Varanasi. The settlement was historically known as Sāketa until it was renamed to Ayodhya during the Gupta period.

In Hindu tradition, Triveni Sangam is a confluence of three rivers that is a sacred place, with a bath there said to flush away all of one's sins and free one from the cycle of rebirth. The best-known of these confluences is the Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj which is the site of Kumbh Mela.

Sarnath is a town northeast of Varanasi, in Uttar Pradesh, India. It was here that the Buddha gave his first sermon after attaining enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. The Lion Capital of Ashoka, raised on a column in Sarnath in 250 BCE by the first Buddhist emperor Ashoka, commemorates this event. It is also the State Emblem of India. Sarnath is one of the eight most important pilgrimage sites for Buddhists, and has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, being added to the list in 2026.

Kushinagar is a town in the Kushinagar district in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is a Buddhist pilgrimage site where Gautama Buddha is believed to have attained parinirvana.

Dudhwa National Park is a national park in the Terai belt of marshy grasslands in northern Uttar Pradesh, India. It stretches over an area of 490.3 km2, with a buffer zone of 190 km2. It is part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the Lakhimpur Kheri district.

Jhansi Fort or Jhansi ka Qila is a fortress situated on a large hilltop called Bangira, in Uttar Pradesh. It served as a stronghold of the Karhade Brahmin Kings in Balwant Nagar from the 11th through the 17th century. There was another British fortress called the Star Fort which was located south of the main fortress of the town, at Jhansi Cantt.

Chitrakoot Dham is a city in the Chitrakoot district, in the India state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of the Chitrakoot district. Situated in the Baghelkhand region, it holds great cultural, historical, religious and archaeological importance and it is said that Rama, a major deity in Hinduism, spent 11 years of exile in Chitrakoot. It is connected to the town of Chitrakoot, situated in the Satna district of Madhya Pradesh.