Hotels near India Gate and the Rajpath (Kartavya Path)

India Gate is a 42-metre arch designed by Edwin Lutyens and completed in 1931, carrying the names of more than 13,000 soldiers of the British Indian Army who died between 1914 and 1921. The National War Memorial behind it opened in 2019 and commemorates those killed since independence. The avenue running west, renamed Kartavya Path from Rajpath in 2022, ends at Rashtrapati Bhavan 2.3 km away.

The 2022 redevelopment added lawns, canals with boating, granite walkways and food kiosks along both flanks, so the promenade now functions as a public park in the evening rather than a monument you tick off in five minutes. Access is free and the arch is floodlit after dark. Rashtrapati Bhavan and its Amrit Udyan gardens require separate online booking and open only in set seasons. State food stalls near the eastern end sell regional snacks cheaply.

Pro Tip: Come after 7 pm. The arch is lit, the temperature drops several degrees, and Delhi families fill the lawns. Park on Man Singh Road and walk in rather than circling the hexagon, which gridlocks on weekend evenings.