Our three biggest questions on any day:
Where should we eat? How do we get there? And where are the green parks?
Traveling with kids means a lot of planning. Even a day of ‘wandering’ requires some planning. Mobile data (on our iphones) and the Internet has changed a lot of the stress of the big unknowns but for any parent who knows, when your kids are hungry or tired, you can’t really pop our your phone and do your research. You need to have done that before any meltdown stage! So for us, we planned things generally, but not so locked down that we couldn’t get that wandering around feeling.
We tried to limit ourselves to one activity per day; the kids get tired otherwise. However, with great friends in the city and a family network and a research and work mission with Upsari.com, we did have some long days. A bag of chips, mango juice and oranges work wonders for these long days with both the young kids and the adults!
So with all this in mind, we compiled a list of our highlights.
The big highlights for us in this city are:
Activities
- Hauz Khas Village
- Deer Park
- Lodi Garden
- Lodi Garden Restaurant
- Qutab Minar and Mehrauli Garden
- India Gate and Rajpath
- The food! Everywhere the food.
- Riding the Metro
- Mehar Chand Market
- Santushti MarketREGRETS: We did not see the Train museum
Could SKIP: We could totally skip but did it anyway: coffee at Connaught Place.
Lodi Garden and Lodi Garden Restaurant
Lodi Garden is a shady haven with gorgeous lawns and ponds. We got several requests from the kids to return here after we left. In the centre of the garden are beautiful ruin, including Muhammad Shah’s tomb: a beautiful example of early but simple 15th century Mughal style architecture. It has been called the Central Park of India by the New York Times. Folks are jogging, picnicking, dancing, loving, touring and just hanging out. We spend the day looking at plants and also birds we never get to see in Canadian parks like the green parakeets swooping out of the trees. Inevitably we need to stop for lunch and just because Delhi has been a little tough with the crowds and pollution, we decide to treat ourselves at the nearby high-end, chic Lodi Garden Restaurant. But one could easily bring a packed lunch and blanket and enjoy the park scene for longer. For us, Lodi Garden Restaurant was an oasis. Once we sit down on the comfortable couch in the quiet restaurant garden, we could not leave. We found ourselves sitting there for far too long, well into the late afternoon. What a glorious and luxurious afternoon. We sample Indian white wine and lovely spiced chicken (for the adults), and broccoli soDecemberup and fish fingers and fries for the kids. The weather cooperates and we get a little sun (peeking through all the smog) and we feel the warmth in Delhi’s cool December. Perfect day.
Deer Park and Hauz Khas Village
My mother tells me that she brought us regularly to Deer Park as kids and I think I do have some memories of this but I think much has changed since those days. Hauz Khas today is hoping and gets busier as the evening progresses. We start early because we want time in the green Deer Park to walk around and wander. The scene in the park is great: everyone is enjoying the greenery, walking around and chatting. The nearby ruins add so much charm. There are even actual deer inside Deer Park. But of course, as usual, we get hungry and we need to stop for dinner soon. So before any hunger based meltdowns we leave the gorgeous park and head into to the delightful village full of amazing shops displaying independent fusion crafts and clothing and jewellery. One shop is dedicated to eco and recycled goods, another is full of bags designed with old images of India. We decide to stop for South Indian food: one night it is traditional dosas which the kids love and the other it is hipster vibes at Coast, a great restaurant which serves Kaffir lime martinis and nouveau Keralite cuisine.
India Gate
Qutab Minar
The Food
Because we had a flat with a kitchen, we had a lot of breakfasts and lunches at home. We almost always ate dinner out – because the restaurants are so tempting. For homesick moments and for great organic food choices, visit Khan market. Get anything you need here: Gouda cheese, Italian pastas, whole grain breads, organic eggs. Also, a slice of pizza once in a while helped smooth things over with the culture shock for the kids.
- Taste of Little Italy (Pizza and Pasta in Mehru Chand Market)
- Momogoto: pan Asian fun food (Khan Market): a little overpriced for what it was — basically Asian comfort food: AKA: rice and noodle bowls but the atmosphere is easy and they really welcome kids.
- Diva (upscale ‘Italian’ – actually more like Thai – but absolutely delicious; locations all over but we went to Mehar Chand)
- Coast Cafe (Kafir leaf martinis! And a nouveau twist on Keralite food): 2nd & 3rd Floor, above OGAAN,H2 Hauz Khas, New Delhi, Delhi 110016
- Naivedyam (South Indian Dosas): #1 Hauz Khas Village 011 269 60426
- Lodi Garden Restaurant
Some travel tips:
Getting around
We used taxis and the metro. But after too many hours of sitting in traffic, even our three year old said, ‘let’s take the train.’ We did use the Metro with great success. Try to limit the metro use to the hours of 11-3pm, otherwise you will hit massive crowds which can be stressful on your own, let alone with kids!
Get a SIM card for an unlocked phone at the airport wherever you land. Kiosks in town have a different system and require residency and photo requirements. If you can get a SIM card and a phone with data, download the Uber, Ola and Meru apps to get yourself access to a network of city taxis with GPS – this works especially well if your Hindi is not up to par. Everything requires data and an app in India – so do get yourself hooked up.
We didn’t try them but have heard the hop-on hop-off buses are good for the Delhi sights.
Sleeping – location
We decided to stay in South Delhi where its greener and perhaps a little hipper. We wanted to access the conscious living movement – both in clothing and in food and we wanted to be close to any ‘scenes’ we could find. We happily found this in the upscale markets around us; Haus Kauz, Mehar Chand Market, Khan Market. We were also close to our favourite park: Lodhi Gardens. We found our 2 bedroom flat through Airbnb. We love traveling in this way; it gives us an instant home with a kitchen and usually a personal connection through a host. In our case we lucked out: our host was amazing and her flat was in good condition with plenty of room for us and the kitchen was stocked with a welcome kit of milk, fruit, tea, oatmeal, cereal and bread when we arrived. If you want more info, leave a note and we will send you specifics.
Taking the Kids 