Taj Mahal by Moonlight: Night Viewing Dates, Tickets and How to Book This Winter

Which nights it runs

Night viewing takes the full moon plus the two nights either side. That gives you 22 to 26 November, then 21 to 24 December. Friday 25 December is dropped, because the Taj never opens at night on a Friday.

Tickets and the Shilpgram gate

Tickets are sold online through the Archaeological Survey of India, and you can't buy one at the gate. A foreign adult pays ₹750, an Indian adult ₹510, and a child aged 3 to 15 pays ₹500. Slots run from 8 p.m. until just before midnight, in timed batches. Report at Shilpgram, beside the Eastern Gate, half an hour before the time on your ticket, and bring photo ID.

What you see from the platform

You stand on the red sandstone platform just inside the main gateway. The dome is several hundred metres off, framed by the dark arch. You don't go into the garden, onto the terrace or inside the mausoleum. Allow half an hour in there, plus the queue and the security search. Tripods and phones are not allowed in. Winter fog can wipe out the view, and there are no refunds.

Daylight across the river

Mehtab Bagh is the garden on the far bank of the Yamuna, directly opposite the Taj. Buffalo graze on the sandbanks below. The gates close at sunset, so you watch the light go and then you leave. The best light is from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Entry is ₹300 for foreign nationals and ₹25 for Indian, SAARC and BIMSTEC visitors, and under-15s go free. Foreign visitors also pay a ₹500 ADA toll, which isn't charged on Fridays. Nothing is sold inside, so carry water. It's 8 km from Agra Fort by road, over the Yamuna bridge.

The Tomb of Itimad-ud-Daulah, known as the Baby Taj, is on the same bank about 4 km from Agra Fort, and it fits into the same afternoon. It was built for Nur Jahan's father. It was the first Mughal building made entirely of white marble, and the surfaces are inlaid with coloured stone and cut into screens. It's open from sunrise to sunset. Entry is ₹310 for foreign nationals and ₹30 for Indian, SAARC and BIMSTEC visitors. The ₹500 toll covers several Agra monuments on the same day.

The Mughal Heritage Walk starts in Kachhpura village on the north bank. It ends at Mehtab Bagh, with the Taj across the water. It costs ₹850 a person and takes about two hours on foot, along unpaved lanes and past a Mughal stepwell. Kachhpura is 20 to 30 minutes by auto-rickshaw from central Agra, over the bridge.

Before a late slot

If your slot is at 9 or 10 p.m., the light and sound show at Agra Fort fills the evening beforehand. The Hindi show runs from 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. and the English one from 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. The English show sometimes moves to 8:30 p.m., so check on the day. Tickets are ₹800 for international adults and ₹300 for Indian adults. Ages 8 to 17 pay ₹400 and ₹150. You can buy online or at the fort. The fort is a 15-minute drive from the Taj's eastern side. If you're in the 8 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. batch, skip it, because you won't make both.

Kalakriti Cultural & Convention Centre on Fatehabad Road stages 'Mohabbat the Taj' every night, full moon or not. It tells the Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal story that the night viewing never explains. In winter it starts at 7 p.m., though timings shift with the season, so confirm when you book. Standard seats are ₹1,200 for foreign visitors and ₹800 for Indians, and under-fives go free. It runs 80 to 90 minutes in Hindi and Urdu, with headphone translation in English, French and German. Book through the theatre rather than through an agent. The production is broad and brightly lit.

Taj Nature Walk is about 500 metres from the Eastern Gate, so you can walk there from the reporting point. It's open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., and entry is ₹200 for foreign tourists and ₹50 for Indian adults. Gravel paths wind between grassy mounds and ponds, with gazebos on the high points and peacocks on the paths. The trees block most of the dome, so come for somewhere quiet and cheap to sit out the late afternoon. October to April is the good season for birds here.

Rooftop views near the Taj

Infini is the rooftop lounge at the Taj Hotel & Convention Centre on Taj East Gate Road, the same side of the monument as Shilpgram. It's open every day from midday to 11 p.m., the dress code is smart casual, and there's live music with the cocktails. From up here the Taj is a small pale shape on the skyline. For a drink before a late slot, it's the easiest one to reach.

For a close view at almost no cost, go up to the rooftop restaurant at Hotel Saniya Palace. It's at Chowk Kajziyan, in the lanes by the South Gate, a few minutes' walk from the entrance. The Taj rises up surprisingly large behind the potted plants on the parapet. The place is basic and the food is rated well below the view, so go for a drink rather than a meal.

The other cheap roof is The Hippie Cafe at Joey's Hostel in Taj Ganj, eight or nine minutes' walk from the monument. The dome sits above a tangle of water tanks and washing lines. The kitchen is slow once it fills up. It's also the one place here where you'll end up swapping night-slot times with other travellers.

Hotels with the view

The Oberoi Amarvilas is 600 metres from the Taj, close enough that guests are driven over by golf buggy. Every room and the terraced garden face the monument with nothing in the way. If your night ticket falls through, this is the fallback that still gives you the dome under a full moon. The Lounge is open from 5:15 a.m. to midnight and has an open-air terrace facing the Taj, which is where you'd sit out the evening. The bar is closed while it's being reworked. Esphahan serves Mughal-influenced dinners with live music, and you can book a private candlelit dinner on a balcony. It's the most expensive address in Agra by a wide margin.

Tajview, Agra on Fatehabad Road has a top-floor terrace called the Sky Deck, serving an Indian menu and small plates in the open air. Book the table through the hotel, and tell them in advance if there are more than two of you. Several of the room categories are sold as Taj-view rooms.

ITC Mughal is in Tajganj about 4 km out, so from its Jharoka-e-Taj viewing balcony the dome is a distant shape. It does run an evening programme every night: a puppet show at 6:30 p.m., a magic show at 7 p.m. and live music at Maikhana from 6 to 8 p.m. Peshawri, the grill house, serves dinner until 11:30 p.m., which is the part that matters if your slot is at 11.

Before you go

Night tickets are online only and each winter window is four or five nights, so book as soon as you've settled the date. Everything across the river closes at sunset, so keep the north bank for the afternoon and the roofs for after dark. See the Agra guide and the Agra hotel search.