History and Beauty - Taj Mahal – pure magic! 🕌✨ The intricate beauty and rich history are enchanting. Despite the crowds, found serene moments. A must-visit for culture and awe! 👌

Almost 5 stars but not there !! - So, we did this tour about 10 years ago when the Company was named Travel Force India ... I had found this company via the old Virtual Tourist Web site ... and after exchanging numerous emails with the owner we took 2 tours with the company. We did a day tour of Delhi and one of Agra via the train. First the Delhi tour ... we were picked up at our hotel and taken to Qutub Minar, The India Gate, Jama Masjid, Humayun's Tomb and the former house of Gandhi .... It was a great day of sightseeing ... and we enjoyed it very much .. we started at 8 am and finished at 4 pm .. well worth it. It seems like a lot but it worked out very well .... Got to see the major sites in Delhi ... at the end we asked the guide to drop us off at the Delhi Fort and we made our way back to the hotel after exporting on our own for a couple of hours. now the 2nd tour of The Taj Mahal and Agra .... We bought thru the company 1st class return train tickets, but this is no international standard 1st class (you have been warned) . Again they picked us up at the hotel at the crack of dawn .. i think it was 4:00 am We insisted on the driver take us to the train because the train station was pure chaos and there was no way we would have figured it out on our own. Once we arrived in Agra we had a person holding a sign with our names and it took us a bit but we found him. And we proceeded to go to the Taj Mahal .... And he was the part of the tour that really angered us .... You have to walk about 1/2 mile to the actual entrance of the Taj Mahal ... that isn't a problem .. but as you walk there is tons of people selling all types of souvenirs such as magnets, small plates, very touristy stuff ... our tour guide adamantly told us over and over not to buy anything from these vendors .. that he would take us to better places ... We know the trick .. to a place he gets commission ... and we told him over and over that we weren't interested in clothes or suits we wanted small little stuff ... And we did the MAJOR mistake of listening to the tour guide ... SO no MATTER what they SAY .. BUY what you want as you walk up to the entrance .. you WILL NOT FIND THOSE ITEMS anywhere else in India. After the going around the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort we were taken to the Sheraton for a buffet lunch ... it was very average and nothing special ... we then proceed to go to the city of no water Fatehpur Sikri .. and that was pretty cool we had the whole place to ourselves. on the way back to Agra the guide said he would take us to stores to get souvenirs ... and where does this guide take us ?? Clothes shops !!!! I told him in very basic and not complicated English that we were not going to buy an clothes or suits and that we wanted magnets, small plates and stuff with the Taj Mahal image on it .. so he takes us to what ??? another clothes shop ... My buddy then came up with the idea of asking them to take us back to the entrance of the Taj so we could buy stuff ... but it was near sunset and the guide claimed that they were closed now and couldn't go .... I was livid ... I asked the driver and guide to drop us off at a Pizza Hut and by pure luck some guy passed by selling magnets and we ended up buying all of them. Throughout the day the guide said he worked for tips ... so at the end of the tour I decided he had failed to deliver a good day for ME, and I wasn't about to tip him, my buddies did. The owner of the company got on the phone with me as we were being driven to the train station and I explained everything the guide had said and done ... and he apologized profusely but it was too late ... my day and trip was ruined because I was coherced into listening to the guide. I would recommend this company 100% but make sure you are very clear with what you want and what you want to do. Some other friends used this company and after I told them what happened to me they were happy to report back to me that on the walk into the Taj they bought as much as they wanted and that the guide (I'm sure this company uses several) was not happy because of course they don't get a commission and they told the guide NO shopping stops from the very beginning. The prices even 10 year ago were great ... if I was ever to go to India again there is no doubt I would use this service again ...