Kolkata tour in private car with guide & lunch for immersive cultural experience

We will start at the Mausoleum of Job Charnock the founder of modern Kolkata. In 1690 Charnock bought the villages of Sutanuti, Gobindapur and Kalikata from Bengal Subedar Azim Usman and over time Kokata became the capital of East India Company. A recent High Court ruling has discredited him as the founder of Kolkata after looking at evidence of the existence of the city in earlier times!

We will visit St John’s Church which was built in 1787 by architect James Agg. This majestic stone and brick structure became the principal Cathedral of Calcutta in 1815. A highlight of his Church is the “Last Supper” painting on its walls.

Our next destination is the iconic Writers Building which had a very humble beginning. Built in 1777, it was meant for the lower bureaucracy of East India Company. Today this Greco-Roman masterpiece is the seat of the West Bengal state government. Our guide will narrate to you all the landmark events which took place in India’s freedom struggle with the Writers Building as the backdrop. We will see this building from outside.

The Governor’s House is a remarkable building which was built for Marquess of Wellesley who came to Kolkata as the Governor General of East India Company in 1798 and found his rented accommodation unsuitable! Built in 1803 by the famous English architect Charles Wyatt, the Governor’s House follows a Neoclassical style with distinct Baroque overtones. The building became the residence of the Viceroy of India after the Crown took over the reins of India from East India Company. Today it serves as the office and residence of the Governor of the state of West Bengal and hence we will see it from outside.

Originally it was called the Ochterlony Monument and was built to honour Major General Sir David Ochterlony’s triumph against the Gurkhas in the Anglo-Nepalese War of 1825. Today this monument commemorates the sacrifice of Indian freedom fighters.

We visit India’s largest and oldest Museum. The Indian Museum was built by the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1814 with Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish botanist as the founder curator. It has a magnificent collection of relics, ornaments, fossils, skeletons, antiques, armors and paintings of different eras.

After lunch, we visit the legendary Victoria Memorial built by George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston and Viceroy of India. Dedicated to Queen Victoria, this architectural gem built in marble is a great place to experience the essence of Victorian-era set in the middle of the hustle and bustle of modern Kolkata.

We take a boat ride over the holy River Ganges and over the next 30 minutes we explore the City of Joy from its waters. We pass through the iconic Howrah Bridge before this magnificent experience of Kolkata comes to an end. 8PM- Drop back to hotel