☰Charminar

The four-minaret arch that gives Hyderabad its defining silhouette, built in 1591 by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah to mark the founding of his new city — and, local legend has it, to give thanks for the end of a plague. Each minaret is 56 metres tall, with spiral staircases (often closed) leading to an upper gallery. The small mosque on the top floor is the oldest in the city. The surrounding streets — Laad Bazaar, Mecca Masjid, Chowmahalla — make this the obvious starting point for a morning in the Old City.