Delhi is a huge city, so the easiest way to enjoy it alone is to pick one green or historic site per outing and let the rest go. Its tourism department lists many of the best ones with an opening time and a nearest metro station, which turns a vague plan into a route. November to February is a comfortable time for the long outdoor visits below.
The garden-and-tomb route
The best solo days in Delhi tend to pair a garden with a monument, because the garden gives you somewhere to sit and the monument gives you a reason to be there.
- Sunder Nursery (Nizamuddin West). A 90-acre heritage park that abuts Humayun's Tomb and opened to the public in 2018 after conservation work by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture with the Archaeological Survey of India. From October to March it is open daily 7:00 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:30. Delhi Tourism lists the foreign-visitor ticket at Rs 100 and the Violet Line stop as JLN Stadium (another Delhi Tourism page names Jangpura) (Delhi Tourism: Sunder Nursery, explore page).
- Humayun's Tomb (Nizamuddin). A UNESCO World Heritage Site built in 1570, set in a Char Bagh garden of pools and channels on about 30 acres. Delhi Tourism lists sunrise to 7:30 PM daily, nearest metro Jangpura on the Violet Line, and Rs 550 for foreign adults (Delhi Tourism: Humayun's Tomb). Walking from the nursery into the tomb is one smooth plan for a morning.
- Lodhi Garden (Lodi Road, near Khan Market). Delhi Tourism calls it a favourite picnic spot and a joy for morning walkers (Delhi Tourism: Lodhi Garden). The lake page lists 6:00 to 20:00 from October to March, with Jor Bagh (Yellow Line) as the metro stop (Lodi Gardens Lake).
- Garden of Five Senses (Said-ul-Ajaib). About 2 km from Qutub Minar, with a chime of 500 bells, a spiral Khaas Bagh walkway, a water-lily pool called Neel Baagh, and food and shopping courts for a lunch stop (Delhi Tourism: Garden of Five Senses).
Ruins, a stepwell and a ridge
These are shorter, stranger stops that suit people who like to look at their own pace.
- Hauz Khas Fort (Hauz Khas). A 13th-century complex from the reign of Alauddin Khalji, with a mosque and madrasa overlooking a royal water tank. Delhi Tourism lists 10:30 to 19:00 daily, nearest metro IIT on the Magenta Line, and Rs 250 for foreign adults (Delhi Tourism: Hauz Khas Fort).
- Agrasen ki Baoli (Central Delhi). An ancient stepwell protected by the Archaeological Survey of India, 60 metres long and 15 metres wide. It is listed as open daily 9:00 to 17:30, near Mandi House or Janpath metro stations (Delhi Tourism: Agrasen ki Baoli). It works as a 20-minute stop between other plans.
- Delhi Ridge. Delhi Tourism describes this dry deciduous forest as the city's "lungs", with more than 100 bird species and 10:00 to 16:00 listed as the best time to visit, via Vishwavidyalaya on the Yellow Line (Delhi Tourism: Delhi Ridge).
- Jantar Mantar. An observatory built in 1724 by Maharaja Jai Singh of Jaipur, listed as open sunrise to sunset (Delhi Tourism: Jantar Mantar).
- Qutub Minar (Mehrauli). A red and buff sandstone tower 72.5 metres high, begun in AD 1199 (Delhi Tourism: Qutab Minar, Incredible India). Check hours before travelling.
Quiet indoor hours
- Lotus Temple (near Nehru Place). Listed as open Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 to 17:30, closed Monday, with free entry. Delhi Tourism notes that photography needs permission and that adherents of any faith may visit to pray or meditate (Delhi Tourism: Lotus Temple).
- National Gallery of Modern Art (Jaipur House, India Gate). Established in 1954 and listed 10:00 to 17:00, closed Monday (Delhi Tourism: NGMA).
- National Crafts Museum (Pragati Maidan). Delhi Tourism lists galleries 10:00 to 17:00 (closed Monday) and a crafts demonstration area 10:00 to 17:30 daily (Delhi Tourism: Crafts Museum). Incredible India says it was established in 1956 and shows over 35,000 artefacts (Incredible India). Watching a demonstration is easier alone than it sounds, because nobody expects conversation.
- National Rail Museum. Listed 9:30 to 17:30, closed Monday, with more than 100 real-size exhibits including the 1875 Prince of Wales Saloon (Delhi Tourism: National Rail Museum).
For more on museum visits alone, see how to do a museum on your own.
Eating alone
Delhi Tourism's food-tours page names the markets and eating areas to start with: the Dilli Haats, Chandni Chowk around Jama Masjid and Connaught Place, plus named stalls and restaurants such as Karim Hotels, Natraj Dahi Bhalla, Jung Bahadur Kachori Wala and Pt. Babu Ram Devi Dayal Parathe Wale (Delhi Tourism: Food Tours). The page gives no opening times, so check each place. A single stall order is the gentlest way to eat alone; our guide to eating alone in public has more ideas.
Getting around
Delhi Tourism lists Metro among its ways of travelling within the city, next to buses, cabs and auto rickshaws (Delhi Tourism: Travel Within Delhi). Its place pages name a nearest station and line for most of the sites above, so use those as your anchors and plan the journey on the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation site. For safety and entry information, read the current official advisory before travelling (GOV.UK India travel advice); conditions change.
First solo outings
- Easy: an hour at the Lotus Temple on a Tuesday to Sunday, then a slow walk in the grounds. Entry is listed as free.
- Medium: a morning at Sunder Nursery, then Humayun's Tomb next door.
- Bolder: a day from Hauz Khas Fort to the Garden of Five Senses with lunch in between, or a stall order in Chandni Chowk.
Solo Era for iPhone
Draw one plant while you are there
Solo Era (an iPhone app) has a solitude mission at level 1: "Create a small botanical sketchbook page." Sunder Nursery or Lodhi Garden is one place to try it. Free to download. A subscription is required to start missions. Prices and any free trial are shown in the app and depend on the offer and eligibility.
More cities are in the cities hub. In the same country, see Jaipur and Mumbai. Further afield, there are guides to Kathmandu and Colombo. The new-city guide covers the mindset, and the first solo trip tips cover the basics.
Details change; check the venue before you go.
FAQ
Is the Lotus Temple free?
Delhi Tourism lists entry as free, open Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 17:30 (closed Monday), and says photography needs permission.
Which Delhi museums close on Monday?
The Lotus Temple is listed as closed on Mondays too. Delhi Tourism lists Monday closing for the National Gallery of Modern Art, the Crafts Museum galleries and the National Rail Museum.
Which metro station is nearest Humayun's Tomb?
Delhi Tourism names Jangpura on the Violet Line. Sunder Nursery is listed with JLN Stadium (Violet Line) on one page.
When is Lodhi Garden open?
The lake page lists 6:00 to 20:00 from October to March, with Jor Bagh on the Yellow Line as the nearest metro.
Is Agrasen ki Baoli open every day?
Delhi Tourism lists it as open all days, 9:00 to 17:30.
Sources (checked 2026-11-01)
- Delhi Tourism: Sunder Nursery
- Delhi Tourism: Sunder Nursery (explore page)
- Delhi Tourism: Humayun's Tomb
- Delhi Tourism: Lodhi Garden
- Delhi Tourism: Lodi Gardens Lake
- Delhi Tourism: Garden of Five Senses
- Delhi Tourism: Hauz Khas Fort
- Delhi Tourism: Agrasen ki Baoli
- Delhi Tourism: Delhi Ridge
- Delhi Tourism: Jantar Mantar
- Delhi Tourism: Qutab Minar
- Incredible India: Delhi
- Delhi Tourism: Lotus Temple
- Delhi Tourism: National Gallery of Modern Art
- Delhi Tourism: Crafts Museum
- Incredible India: National Crafts Museum
- Delhi Tourism: National Rail Museum
- Delhi Tourism: Food Tours
- Delhi Tourism: Travel Within Delhi
- Delhi Metro Rail Corporation
- GOV.UK: India travel advice
Solo Era for iPhone
Try it with Solo Era
Solo Era gives you one realistic mission a week, records how nervous you felt before and after, and keeps a photo journal of what you did. An iPhone app. A subscription is required to start missions; any free trial depends on the offer and eligibility shown in the app.
