Kolkata

The former capital of British India, home to the Victoria Memorial, Howrah Bridge and Tagore's ancestral house, and to Durga Puja — a festival inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, lies on the east bank of the Hooghly, a distributary of the Ganges. It was the capital of British India from 1772 to 1911 and is known as the 'City of Joy' and India's cultural capital; Rabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa and Satyajit Ray are all closely linked with the city. Main areas: the Maidan in the center is home to the Victoria Memorial, St Paul's Cathedral, the Indian Museum and Park Street; the old city to the north has the colonial buildings of BBD Bagh, Howrah Bridge and its flower market, the Marble Palace, Jorasanko Thakur Bari (Tagore's house), the idol-makers' quarter of Kumartuli and College Street; upriver are Dakshineswar Kali Temple and, on the opposite bank, Belur Math; to the south are Kalighat Kali Temple and the Birla Mandir; and to the east are Science City, Tangra's Chinatown and New Town's Eco Park. The best time to visit is November–February, when it's cool and dry. In October, Durga Puja fills the city with pandals (festival pavilions) — spectacular, but expect traffic jams and higher hotel prices. April–June is sweltering, and the June–September monsoon brings heavy rain and frequent flooding. Getting there and around: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport has domestic and international flights. The metro covers the main north–south corridor and can be combined with ride-hailing apps, yellow taxis and Hooghly River ferries (the Dakshineswar–Belur route is especially handy). The trams have largely stopped running, with only a few heritage routes remaining. Allow 3–4 days. Don't miss early-morning street breakfasts and sweets such as rasgulla and mishti doi, and drink bottled water.

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