How to Spend 3 Days in Lucknow
With three days in Lucknow, you'll have enough time to take a full-day tour of the city's highlights, do some shopping and eating, and take a day trip to the Buddhist sites at Kushinagar or even see the Taj Mahal. Here's how to do it.
Day 1: History and Architecture
Devote your first day in Lucknow to visiting some of the city’s most important historic sites. Signing up for a full-day tour is ideal if you want to see as much as you can in one day while learning about history from a local guide. Most tours include visits to some of the city’s most important colonial attractions, notably the ruins of the British Residence and La Martinière College, and Islamic sites such as the city’s famous imambaras, Shia congregation halls. Finish your day with a food tour and try out some of the city’s famous Awadhi cuisine.
Day 2: Local Culture
On your second day in town, learn about Lucknow’s chikan embroidery and meet craftspeople on a tour focused on local handicraft traditions. If you want to pick up some embroidery to take home, head to the Janpath Market near popular Hazratganj. Another attraction worth considering is Kaiserbagh, a 19th-century palace complex filled with period ephemera. It's best visited with a guide to learn about life in Lucknow when it was still part of the Awadh state. Finish your day with a culinary experience in a local home; cooking classes are also available for those who want to learn how to make Awadhi food themselves.
Day 3: Day Trip to Kushinagar or the Taj Mahal
Consider taking a day trip on your last day in town. If Lucknow is your main destination in India and you were hoping to see the Taj Mahal, it can easily be done as a day trip. Your best bet is to book a package tour to Agra that includes round-trip transportation and guide services rather than try to deal with separate bookings yourself. If you’ve already seen the Taj or prefer something off the beaten path, consider a day trip to the Buddhist pilgrimage town of Kushinagar; many people believe that Gautama Buddha died and was cremated in the town, and Emperor Ashoka, who was instrumental in spreading Buddhism in India, commissioned a stupa here. Today the town has numerous stupas and museums, many commissioned by Buddhist delegations from other countries.
13 Tours and Activities
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Kushinagar where Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana
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A tour to the holy place of "Kushinagar" which is the place where Lord Buddha passed away at this place near the Hiranyavati River. Many of its stupas and viharas date back to 230 BC-AD 413. 543 BC. The excavations has revealed some antique artifacts and structures related to all sects of Buddhism. Kushinagar also expresses the common thread of all sects of Buddhism through its magnificent Viharas, Chaityas, temples and Tibetan monasteries.
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From
$98.67
Price varies by group size
From
$98.67
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
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6-Hour Lucknow Sightseeing Tour with Hotel Pickup
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Appreciating all of Lucknow’s historic and cultural highlights can be difficult on a self-led tour. Discover attractions including the Asfi Mosque, Tombs of Sa'adat Ali Khan and the Begum, and Chota Imambara on a day tour, benefiting from the small-group size for a more intimate experience. Gain insight into the city as you explore its streets with your local guide, and save time with round-trip transfer from your hotel.
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From
$80.00
From
$80.00
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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Lucknow Culinary Walk with Food Tastings
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Lucknow is known for its culinary scene, dominated by rich meat-heavy dishes typical of the local Awadhi culinary traditions. With this food walk, you can try some of the best the city has to offer with an expert guide by your side to help navigate. You'll visit four different spot to try kebabs, curried lamb, and marinated skewered meat, as well as rich local desserts.
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From
$34.32
From
$34.32
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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12-Hour Agra Day Trip from Lucknow
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Want to see the Taj Mahal but don't have a lot of time to spare? Consider this tour from Lucknow, which will get you to Agra and back in around 12 hours. You'll start early in the morning, visiting the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort, with an optional stop for breakfast along the way. You’ll then head back to Lucknow, arriving in time for dinner.
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From
$266.67
Price varies by group size
From
$266.67
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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A Walking Tour for Vegetarian Foodies in Lucknow
This walking tour for vegetarian foodies takes you to the most authentic eateries that invented or mastered the dishes over 150 years ago. To enjoy this walk, it is recommended that you have a light breakfast, as the tour offers an opportunity to savor a lot of local vegetarian delicacies.
Highlights
• Authentic Vegetarian dishes
• Specialty accompaniments
• Paan, prepared from Betel leaves
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From
$195.00
Price varies by group size
From
$195.00
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
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La Martiniere Decoded
Lucknow's best-known school and a gem of local architecture, La Martiniere is one of the prettiest spots in the city. With this tour, you'll get to visit the campus with an expert local guide, learning all about its history as you go. You'll also get a chance to stop for tea and snacks while at the school.
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From
$96.00
From
$96.00
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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Cook and Dine in a 100-year-old Home with a Local in Lucknow
When in Lucknow, one has to experience the Nawabi (royal) culture! Here is your chance to interact with a local, Sheeba who lives in a 100 year old haveli (residential palace) and hear interesting stories about her family and their food journey. Indulge in a hands on cooking class with her and enjoy a royal spread of home cooked food!
Highlights of the experience:
4 course homemade lunch/dinner
Opportunity to interact with a local in their 100 year old home
Cooking demonstration
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From
$24.54
From
$24.54
Victorian Walk
Victorian Walk at HAZRATGUNGE (Hazratganj) lets you into its rich history, legacy and of course the marketplace that has evolved with times to cater the cultured and the elite of Lucknow. We take you on this walking tour, that includes a seated session to enjoy a Darjeeling Tea and some tea-time essentials. On this tour you will discover and rediscover Hazratganj of yore and will be able to compare it with the transformed Ganj of today. Understand the checkered history of Hazratganj from the mutiny days of 1857 till the second world war in 1939-45 and again till the Indian independence in 1947. Further on, you learn about how Hazratganj plays a pivotal role in people’s life and why the people of Lucknow take pride in being seen here.
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From
$58.67
From
$58.67
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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Curated Dining At Kotwara House
In this evening tour, enjoy a curated dining experience at Kotwara House, the residence of one of the oldest royal families of Awadh. Situated in the posh Qaiser Bagh area of Lucknow, this royal residence of the present Raja Muzaffar Ali is a living museum of art and craft. Essentially a painter, poet and film-maker, Muzaffar Ali is known for his classic film Umrao Jaan. Enjoy a meal specially curated by Muzaffar Ali and his wife Meera Ali.
Highlights: -
• Legacy of Kotwara House
• Curated menu from the royal kitchens of Awadh
• Chance to meet Muzaffar Ali, subject to availability
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From
$258.00
Price varies by group size
From
$258.00
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
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Custom Private Lucknow Sightseeing Trip with Guided Trip
Receive personalized service and avoid haggling with taxi drivers or navigating the public transit on this private, full-day sightseeing tour of Lucknow. The city is full of historical monuments, and you’ll get the chance to visit many of them. You can linger at the places that interest you most, as this is your private day tour. Learn about the city’s long and fascinating history from your knowledgeable driver.
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From
$69.79
Price varies by group size
From
$69.79
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Face masks provided for travelers
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Lucknow Mutiny - An Exclusively Curated Tour
On this exclusively curated tour, ‘Revisiting the Lucknow of 1857-58’, you will learn about the Lucknow Mutiny also known as the Siege of Lucknow. You will follow the routes and relief efforts led by the British Major General Henry Havelock, Lieutenant General James Outram and General Colin Campbell. Visits will be made to the sites and areas that were affected during the siege of Lucknow. Your guide will share how this siege progressed to a conclusive end, but not without sacrifices from both warring fronts.
Highlights:-
• History of the Siege of Lucknow
• La Martiniere
• Sikanderbagh
• Residency
• Lunch in a local restaurant
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From
$281.00
Price varies by group size
From
$281.00
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
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Private Walking Tour of Kaiserbagh Palace Complex
This is a private two hour walking tour of the Kaiserbagh Palace complex. This historic Palace is considered one of India’s beautiful royal buildings. It was planned and built by the Rajput ruler, Wajid-Ali-Shah in the mid 1800s. Your tour will also take you to the Kotwara House, now the home of famous Indian filmmaker, Muzaffar Ali.
Highlights:-
• Kaiserbagh Palace Complex
• Tea at Kotwara House.
• Film clip from Muzaffar Ali’s film, “Umrao Jaan”
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From
$182.00
Price varies by group size
From
$182.00
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
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Threads of Lucknow
Lucknow has been a center of an embroidery industry that has survived and still flourishes today. This excursion will familiarize you with the industry and give you an intricate, detailed view of an art form, which reflects the past but is just as important today.
Highlights:
• Embroidery familiarization
• Chikan and Zari embroideries styles
• Talk by an Expert
• Home cooked Rastogi Lunch (Beverage Excluded)
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From
$418.00
Price varies by group size
From
$418.00
Price varies by group size
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitizer available to travelers and staff
Learn More