Experience the best of Shimla

Shimla stretches along a ridge at about 2,200 metres in the foothills of the Himalaya and from 1864 served as the summer capital of British India. Colonial buildings in stone and timber still line its slopes: Christ Church, a pale yellow neo-Gothic church overlooking the open space of the Ridge, the Gaiety Theatre, and the Viceregal Lodge, a grey stone mansion in Elizabethan style that is now an institute for advanced study.

Mall Road, a pedestrian street, runs between shops, cafés and bookshops, and the Lakkar Bazaar sells wooden crafts. The Kalka–Shimla narrow-gauge railway, a UNESCO-listed mountain line, climbs to the town through tunnels and over arched viaducts. Jakhu Temple, dedicated to Hanuman, stands on the highest hill among monkeys, and Kufri, a short way off, has pine slopes for winter walks and snow.

Siddu, a steamed bread stuffed with poppy seeds or walnuts and served with ghee, is a Himachali speciality, joined by momos and Tibetan soups, and apples grown in orchards across the state. Summers are mild, monsoon rains from July to September wrap the town in mist, and winter brings snow in some years.