Hazratganj is the colonial-era main street of Lucknow — a long, mostly low-rise boulevard with arcades, paan stalls, sari shops, bookstores, ice-cream parlours, and the city's most reliable bookshops. It was laid out by the British in the 1860s and rebuilt several times since; the latest restoration in the 2010s gave it a uniform cream-and-green palette and pedestrianised sections that have made it walkable again.
Come in the evening: the Ganj is at its best when the heat has gone, the lights come on, and Lucknowis of every generation are out for the Ganjing ritual — strolling up and down looking at each other and stopping for chaat, kulfi, or paan. The main street runs from Hazratganj Chauraha to Sikander Bagh and is about a kilometre and a half end to end.