My cousins are coming from Germany and want to see Delhi especially South Delhi. It is an area in Delhi which have not been too much, maybe just once or twice. I would like members to suggest places to visit in South Delhi, which can be covered in 2 -3 days. Does the HoHo bus go around South Delhi? Would you say it is a good idea to take them on it?
Hello, @Akhil! Welcome to the forum! South Delhi is an administrative district of Delhi. It is bounded by the Yamuna River to the East, New Delhi to the North, Faridabad District to the Southeast, Gurgaon District to the Southwest and South West Delhi to the West. Here are the best tourist attractions in South Delhi: Religious Chhatarpur Temple - This is also known as the Shri Aadya Katyayani Shakti Peetham. It is located in the South, in Chhatarpur. It's dedicated to the Goddess Katyayani. It was established in 1974 by Baba Sant Nagpal Ji. Before the Akshardham Temple was constructed, this was the biggest temple complex in the country. The complex has about 20 small and large temples in the premises. Goddess Katyayani, the temple's presiding deity, is a part of the Navadurga, the nine forms of the Hindu Goddess Durga. The shrine where the Goddess is located is only opened during the Navratri season. The complex also has temples dedicated to Lord Rama, Lord Ganesha and Lord Shiva. Lotus Temple - This temple was opened to the public during the year 1986. The temple is part of the Baha I Houses of Worship so it is open to all guests, regardless of their religion, status in life or nationality. Guests can also chant or read any holy scripture from their religions. No sermons or religious ceremonies can be done inside the temple premises. No pictures, altars, statues or idols are also installed inside the temple. In 2001, the temple was the most visited building, not only in India, but also in the world. Jama Masjid - The other name for this is the Masjid I Jahan Numa, which means A Mosque Commanding View of the World. It is one of the largest mosques in the country. It was built by Shah Jahan during the years 1644 to 1656. The mosque has three great gates, four towers and two high minarets. Its courtyard can accommodate up to 25,000 pilgrims at a time. The mosque has been the target for two terror attacks, 1 in 2006 and 1 in 2010. Kalkaji Temple - This temple is just adjacent to the Nehru Place. It is also known as the Jayanti Peetha or Manokamna Siddha Peetha. Manokamna means desire, Siddha means fulfilment and Peetha means shrine, so the temple is believed to be a shrine which can fulfil one's desires. It is believed that the image of Goddess Kalika here is a self-manifested one. According to legends, the gods of the neighbourhood, where the temple is located presently, were troubled by two giants. Goddess Parvati helped them by giving birth to Kaushki Devi through her mouth. The Goddess Kaushki Devi slaughtered the giants but out of their blood came thousands more of giants. Goddess Parvati took pity upon her offspring so out of Kaushki Devi's eyebrows came out Kali Devi. She drank the giants' blood and the battle was won. So Kali Devi fixed her home here and the locals worshipped her since then. Historical Humayun's Tomb - This is the tomb of Humayun, which was built by his son, Akbar during the years 1565 to 1572. It is the first garden tomb in the country as well as the first to use red sandstone for such a large structure. The main complex has the tombs of Humayun, Bega Begum herself, Hamida Begum, Dara Shikoh, Jahandar Shah, Farrukhsiyar, Rafi Ul Darjat, Rafi Ud Daulat, Muhammad Kam Baksh and Alamgir II. The tomb was built nine years after Humayun's death and the remains of the Emperor was transferred from Purana Qila to the tomb after its completion. Apparently, Empress Bega Begum paid almost entirely for the construction of tomb, as she was so grieved with her husband's death. Safdarjung Madarsa - This was built in 1754 for the statesman, Safdarjung. He was the prime minister of the Mughal Empire under Ahmand Shah Bahadur's reign. The story goes that Safdarjung overexercised his powers and as a result, was driven out of Delhi. He died shortly after his exile. His son, Nawab Shujaud Daula, pleaded to the Emperor so that he can build a tomb for his father and he was granted the request. It is the last tomb garden built by the Mughals. Agrasen Ki Baoli - This is a 60 metre long and 15 metre wide step well on Hailey Road, near Connaught Place. It is unclear who built this step well but some evidences suggest that it's King Agrasen who originally built it. It was then renovated by the Agrawal Community in the 14th century. It has 103 steps and 3 levels, with each one having their own niches on both sides. It is one amongst a few of the step wells that can be found in Delhi. Qutub Minar - This is about 72 metres high, making it the tallest brick minaret in the world. It is located in Mehrauli in Delhi. Inside the tower, there are 379 steps leading to the top. Qutub Al Din Aibak was constructed in the year 1200 AD but his son in law, Iltutmish, added in three storeys in the tower during 1220 AD. However, in 1369, the top storey was struck by lightning and destroyed it so Firoz Shah Tughlaq renovated the tower and even added in two new storeys each year. The HoHo Bus of Delhi has a One Day (Red Route) Tour and Two Days (Green Route) Tour. Here are the attractions that both routes go through: Rashtrapati Bhavan, Baba Kharak Singh Marg, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, Red Fort, Rajghat, National Gallery of Modern Art, India Gate, Purana Qila, Humayun Tomb, Metro Museum, Lotus Temple, Embassy Lane, Qutub Minar, Hauz Khas Village, Dilli Haat, National Rail Museum, National Museum, Nehru Museum, National Science Museum, Central College Industries Emporium and Jantar Mantar. I highlighted in bold the attractions that are located in South Delhi. Other attractions are in the other parts of Delhi. Furthermore, the attractions I've mentioned above are not included in the tour like the Chhatarpur Temple, Jama Masjid and Kalkaji Temple. If you haven't visited the attractions mentioned above, which the HoHo bus passes through, then it would be a good idea to try it out. You can go for the Two Days Tour so you can cover all the attractions of the city from the HoHo bus. You can probably fit in about 6 to 8 attractions in 1 day. However, if you have already seen most of the attractions above, then it's better to just tour South Delhi on your own. You can hire a taxi for a day and you can visit the tourist attractions in Delhi that I've posted. I hope this helps!
