2 days · October to March

Pink sandstone, stepwells and a fort skyline that does half the work for you.

2 days · September to March

Lake water, white marble and the softest evening light in Rajasthan.

2 days · October to February

The blue city under Mehrangarh, best shot from the air.

2 days · November to February

Golden fort, open dunes and a night sky you can actually photograph.

1 day · October to March

Ghats, white temples and desert scrub, all within a short walk.

1 day · November to February

Junagarh detail work and quiet dunes without the crowds.

1 day · October to March

Rajasthan's only hill station, marble temples and a lake at the top.

3 days · May to September

Nothing on this list looks like Ladakh. High desert, monasteries and impossible blue.

3 days · June to September

Key Monastery, river braids and a road that photographs better than most venues.

2 days · March to June, October to January

Pine, snow line and river beds within twenty minutes of your hotel.

2 days · December to March

Snow slopes with Nanda Devi standing behind you in every frame.

1 day · September to April

The Ganga, suspension bridges and river light through morning mist.

1 day · March to June, September to November

Colonial ridges, deodar forest and valley fog rolling in on cue.

1 day · March to June, September to November

A lake in a bowl of hills, boats and old town roofs.

3 days · April to June, December to February

Chinar, shikaras and snow meadows, depending which month you pick.

2 days · October to December, March to May

Tea gardens, the toy train and Kanchenjunga if the sky cooperates.

2 days · October to April

Pine hills, waterfalls and cloud that arrives inside a shot and leaves again.

2 days · October to April

Living root bridges and gorges that swallow a drone shot whole.

1 day · October to March

Ghats at first light. There is no set in India with more atmosphere.

1 day · October to March

The Taj from Mehtab Bagh, and Agra Fort when you want something less obvious.

2 days · October to March

Empty temple towns where you can shoot for an hour without a crowd.

2 days · November to February

White salt to the horizon and a full moon night that looks like nothing else.

2 days · October to March

The second longest wall in the world with almost nobody on it.

2 days · November to March

Empty north beaches at sunrise, Latin quarter walls in the afternoon.

1 day · October to March

A two hour escape from Mumbai with sea forts and quiet sand.

1 day · November to February

Art deco, sea link and a city that shoots well at six in the morning.

2 days · October to February

Cliff paths, half moon beaches and almost no crowd on a weekday.

2 days · October to February

Boulder fields, ruins and a landscape nowhere else in the country looks like.

2 days · October to March

Coffee estates, mist between the rows and rain forest edges.

2 days · September to March

Tea terrace geometry from the air is one of the best aerial shots in India.

2 days · September to March

Houseboat, paddy fields below sea level and water everywhere.

2 days · October to March

Nilgiri tea slopes and the mountain railway through the eucalyptus.

2 days · November to February

Shore temples, long empty beaches and the East Coast Road.

1 day · October to March

French quarter walls, bougainvillea and a promenade at first light.

3 days · November to March

Desert dunes in the morning, a skyline at night, all in one trip.

2 days · November to March

The Grand Mosque at blue hour, and the Empty Quarter an hour out.

3 days · April to October

Rice terraces, cliff temples and water that photographs like glass.

3 days · November to April

Sandbanks, overwater villas and the cleanest aerial colour on earth.

3 days · May to September, December to February

Alpine lakes, birch forest and snow, close enough to be affordable.