Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state of India. It is also the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division. Located in what was historically known as the Awadh region, Lucknow has always been a multicultural city. Courtly manners, beautiful gardens, poetry, music, and fine cuisine patronized by the Persian-loving Shia Nawabs of the city are well known amongst Indians and students of South Asian culture and history. Lucknow is popularly known as the The City of Nawabs. It is also known as the Golden City of the East, Shiraz-i-Hind and The Constantinople of India.
Today, Lucknow is a vibrant city that is witnessing an economic boom and is among the top ten fastest growing non-major-metropolitan cities of India. It is the second largest city in Uttar Pradesh state. The unique combination of its cultured grace and newly acquired pace is its most promising feature that augurs well for the future.
Best For:
Architecture
Purchasing Lucknowi chikan work
Exploring the nooks and alleys, temples and passageways in the old city
The ancient history of Lucknow is believed to begin after the Suryawanshi king Lord Rama ordered his younger brother Lakshman to establish a town at the present site of Lakshman Tila. Lucknow was named Lakshmanpuri or Lakhanpuri or Laknamau after him. Slowly the name Lakhanpuri became 'Lakhnau' and then named 'Lucknow' by the British. After 1350 AD Lucknow and parts of Awadh region have been under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate, the Mughal Empire, the Nawabs of Awadh, the East India Company and the British Raj. Lucknow has been one of the major centers of First War of Independence, participated actively in India's Independence movement, and after Independence has emerged as an important city of North India.
Lucknow has a warm subtropical climate with cool dry winter from December to February and dry hot summer from April to June. The rainy season is from mid-June to mid-September. The most pleasant weather is between October and February. In winter the maximum temperature is around 24 degrees Celsius and the minimum is in the 3 to 4 degrees Celsius range. Fog is quite common from late December to late January. Summers can be quite hot with temperatures rising to the 40 to 45 degree Celsius range.
Lucknow gets an average rainfall of 1010 mm mostly from the south-west monsoon wind between June and September.
The Indian Rupee is the official currency of Lucknow. Currency can be converted at the currency exchange counters at the Airport. Most large hotels are able to change currency/travellers cheques though one gets a better rate at large bank branches. The widely accepted travellers cheques are Thomas Cook, Visa, American Express,etc. Most shops and establishments accept Visa and Mastercard. Credit and debit cards are accepted in only large shops and major hotels.
No permits are required to travel to Lucknow, other than a visa for India.
By Road From Hazratganj intersection in Lucknow city four Indian National Highways originate, viz, NH-24 to Delhi, NH-25 to Raksa, Jhansi(M.P. Border), NH-56 to Varanasi and NH-28 to Mokama (Bihar). There are three bus stations. The inter-state terminal is opposite the Charbagh Railway Station while the intra-state terminal is at Qaiserbagh. One more inter-state bus terminal has become operational in Alambagh on Lucknow-Kanpur road to reduce the burden on the busy Charbagh bus terminal. UPSRTC is the principal public road transporter of the passenger traffic. Now inter-city travel in private cars is also becoming very common.
By Air Lucknow is directly connected by air with New Delhi, Patna, Kolkata, and Mumbai and other major Indian cities. The Amausi Airport at Amausi is located around 20 km from the city centre. It is an international airport and is the 13th online station for Air India. International destinations include Dubai, Jeddah, Muscat and Sharjah. Flights to London, Bangkok and Hong Kong may also commence soon. During Haj special flights are also operated from Lucknow. Oman Air and Cosmo Air are a few international airlines that are successfully operating direct international flights from Lucknow to international destinations & vice-versa.
By Train The main railway station is Charbagh Railway Station at Charbagh. The main terminal belongs to Northern Railway(NR) division of Indian Railways and the second terminal is run by the North Eastern Railway(NER). Lucknow is a major junction with links to all major cities of the state and country. Lucknow has further nine railway stations viz. Dilkhusha, Gomatinagar, Badshahnagar, Aishbagh, Lucknow City, Daliganj, Manak Nagar, Amausi and Mohibullapur.
Getting Around –Local The available multiple modes of public transport in the city are taxis, city buses, cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws, and Vikram-Tempos at affordable rates. The city bus service is run by Lucknow Mahanagar Parivahan Sewa, a division of Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC).
Monuments The Asafi Imambara (popularly known as Bara Imambara), the Chhota Imambara, Residency, and Shah Najaf are monuments of architectural importance at Lucknow. The famous 'Bhul Bhulaiyan' (Labyrinth) is part of Asafi Imambara complex. Some other places of interest are the Picture Gallery, Chattar Manzil, State Museum/Lucknow Zoo, Shaheed Smarak, Dilkusha, Ambedkar Memorial, Planetarium, and Ram Krishna Math.
Lucknow Zoo The British-built architectural sights in Lucknow include the Vidhan Sabha (State Legislative Assembly), the Clock Tower and the Charbagh Railway Station, with its distinctive domes, arches and pillars.
Husainabad Clock Tower Some of the oldest schools in India are also situated in Lucknow: La Martiniere Lucknow, St. Francis' College, Lucknow and the Colvin Taluqdar's College.
Ambedkar Memorial Lucknow has several well-kept parks that attracts people in large numbers in the evenings, holidays and weekends. The bigger parks are Ambedkar Memorial and Lohia park in Gomtinagar, Swarn Jayanti park and Aurobindo Park in Indiranagar, Dilkusha Park, Begum Hazrat Mahal Park, Globe Park, Mukherjee Phuhaar, Haathi Park, Buddha park, and Neebu Park. The sprawling National Botanical Garden at Sikandarbagh on the banks of Gomti river is also worth visiting.
Kukrail Reserve Forest The city also has the Kukrail Reserve Forest(a picnic spot and Gharial rehablitaion centre) Moosa Bagh and Utretia are other popular picnic spots.
Natural attractions accessible from Lucknow are Katarnia Ghat, Dudhwa National Park, Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary and Samaspur Bird Sanctuary.
When it comes to dining, Lucknow is a gastronome's delight as the Awadh region has its own distinct Nawabi style cuisine with various kinds of biryanis, kebabs and breads like 'sheermal' / 'roomali roti' all very popular delicacies.
Seekh Kababs Lucknow has also pioneered the slow-fire cooking called Dum Pukht. The world-famous chef Imtiaz Qureishi hails from Lucknow.
With several bakeries in town, the sweet-toothed will never go unsatisfied. The delicious cakes, pastries and the traditional Keser-pista biscuits are sure to make one come back for more.
The city has a range of fine restaurants catering to all tastes and budgets. From 'Oudhyana' 'Zaika' 'Royal Cafe' 'Falaknuma' 'Dastarkhwan' 'Daal Mein Kaala' 'Naushi-Jaan' to fastfood joints like Pizza Hut, McDonalds to traditional eateries like 'Tundeys' and 'Rahims' in the Akbari Gate area the choice is wide.
Makkhan Malai, 'Malai Gilori' of Chowk , the famous Tundey Kebabs, named after the one-armed chef Haji Murad Ali and 'Kakori kebabs' are very popular with food lovers.
A street food court with a number of street-side restaurants and eating joints are also present in China Bazaar (near Tulsi theatre) serving affordable Avadhi-Mughlai-Punjabi remix cuisine.
The Chaat in Lucknow is on par with the best you will get anywhere in the country. There are quite a few places serving outstanding chaat, like Shukla Chaat in Ganeshganj, Moti Mahal, Radhey Lal in Aliganj Chhappan Bhog in Sadar and Mahesh Sweets in Nirala Nagar . Actually, you can pretty much have Chaat in any corner of Lucknow and never be disappointed.
Paan Shop After a delicious dinner, one can have Paan from the shops Malhotra Pan Bhandar near K.D. Singh Babu Stadium and the State Bank of India,
Some of the Five Star hotels are The Piccadily, The Taj Residency, Hotel Clarks Avadh. Some of the Four Star hotels are Hotel Sagar International, Hotel Gemini Continental, Hotel Deep Palace. Some of the Three Star hotels are Rahi Hotel Gomti, La Place Park Inn, Hotel Shimla Palace,
Purchasing Lucknowi chikan work would have to top your shopping list in Lucknow.The city of Lucknow is synonymous with the fine art of embroidery-chikankari (shadow work) and zardosi (silver and gold embroidery). The world-renowned chikan work garments, be it saris, kurtas or dupattas make excellent gifts to carry home.
Aminabad, a quaint bazaar like Delhi's Chandni Chowk, is situated in the heart of the city. It is a large shopping centre that caters to a wide variety of consumers.
Chowk and Nakhhas are markets in the old Lucknow area where one can get a feel of traditional Lucknow. Some other important shopping centres are Alambagh, Kapoorthala, Indiranagar, Mahanagar, and Nishatganj.
The Hazratganj area is an upscale shopping market with colonial style buildings. Interestingly, a popular pastime among the locals is window-shopping in the Hazratganj market. It is popularly referred to in Hinglish as Ganjing. The Janpath market, Rovers, Lovers Lane, Mayfair building, Kwality, and Universal book store are some popular landmarks of the area.
Lucknowites are also experiencing the new waves of shopping malls and multiplex culture in India. The first shopping mall-cum-multiplex to open in Lucknow was the East End Mall in Gomti Nagar. Now Lucknow has 3 other operational Mall-cum-multiplex, viz., Saharaganj (With PVR Cinemas), Fun Republic (Fun Cinemas) & Riverside (Inox theatre).
From mouthwatering kababs to beautiful chikan embroidery, Lucknow is known as the city of Nawabs. One place which is definitely worth a stroll giving you a glimpse through this ancient city while recapturing the old -worldly charm.
