Hauz Khas Complex

The tank was dug in the late thirteenth century to supply Siri, the second city of Delhi, and Firoz Shah Tughlaq later built a madrasa along two sides of it, an L of arcaded halls and pavilions stepping down to the water, with his own tomb at the junction. Students and teachers were buried in the surrounding pavilions. The reservoir survives as a lake in a deer park, and the medieval village behind the complex, Hauz Khas Village, filled from the 1980s with galleries, boutiques, restaurants and bars, so the ruins and the nightlife share the same lane.

What you actually see

• The madrasa arcades - halls and pavilions stepping down to the water.
• Firoz Shah's tomb - the sultan's domed chamber at the corner.
• The reservoir - the medieval tank surviving as a lake with a deer park.
• The village lanes - galleries, shops and bars in the streets behind.

When to go

October to March; sunset over the lake from the madrasa terrace is the classic time, and the ruins close around then while the village stays open into the night.

Honest expectations

The monument and the bar district are jarringly adjacent, which some enjoy and others do not. Ruins close before dark. The village lanes are narrow, crowded at night and parking is impossible.

Nearby

Deer Park adjoins the lake; Qutb Minar lies south.