Last updated 29 September 2026
The Red Fort is open 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM and closed every Monday, which is the single thing most visitors get wrong. Allow an hour and a half to two hours. Foreign visitors pay around ₹600 and Indian citizens around ₹35.
Shah Jahan built it between 1639 and 1648 as the palace of his new capital, Shahjahanabad, when he moved the Mughal court from Agra. It was the seat of Mughal power for two centuries, and what you walk through today is a fraction of what stood here — which is its own part of the story.
Timings, closure day and tickets
The Monday closure catches out more visitors than anything else about the fort, partly because Akshardham, the Lotus Temple and the National Museum all close the same day. An unlucky Monday can empty a whole Delhi itinerary at once.
Buy online if you are visiting on a weekend or a public holiday. The counter queue at Lahori Gate on a Sunday is regularly the longest part of the visit, and it is entirely avoidable.
| Open | 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM |
| Closed | Every Monday |
| Entry, foreign visitor | around ₹600 |
| Entry, Indian citizen | around ₹35 |
| Time to allow | 1.5 – 2 hours |
| Nearest Metro | Lal Qila (Violet Line), or Chandni Chowk (Yellow Line) |
| Payment at the gate | Digital only — no cash |
What you are actually looking at
You enter through Lahori Gate into Chatta Chowk, a covered bazaar that ran as a market for the court and still sells to visitors today. Beyond it, the Naubat Khana housed the musicians who announced arrivals.
The Diwan-i-Aam, the hall of public audience, is where the emperor heard petitions from a marble throne under an inlaid canopy. Behind it the Diwan-i-Khas, the hall of private audience, held the Peacock Throne — carried off by Nadir Shah in 1739 along with the Koh-i-Noor. The Persian couplet inlaid there still reads that if there is a paradise on earth, it is this.
Then the Rang Mahal and the hammam, the private apartments and baths, and the Moti Masjid, a small pearl-white mosque added by Aurangzeb.
- Lahori Gate and Chatta Chowk — the covered bazaar you enter through
- Diwan-i-Aam — the hall of public audience, with its inlaid marble canopy
- Diwan-i-Khas — where the Peacock Throne stood until 1739
- Rang Mahal and the hammam — the private palace apartments
- Moti Masjid — Aurangzeb's small marble mosque
- The ramparts — where the Prime Minister addresses the country every 15 August
What is missing, and why
Roughly two-thirds of the fort's structures were demolished after the uprising of 1857. The British used the Red Fort as a garrison, cleared the palace buildings and gardens, and put barracks in their place — the long brick blocks you see on the way in are those barracks, not Mughal work.
It is worth knowing before you arrive, because a visitor expecting a complete palace can find the fort thin. What survives is the ceremonial spine — the audience halls, the private apartments, the mosque — set in a great deal of empty lawn where the rest of a city inside a wall used to be.
The fort is also where the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, held court in name only before he was tried and exiled, and where the Indian National Army trials were held in 1945. It is a building that keeps being at the centre of things.
Getting there, and when to go
Lal Qila station on the Violet Line puts you at the gate. Chandni Chowk on the Yellow Line is a ten-minute walk through the lanes and is the better choice if you are combining the fort with Old Delhi, which almost everyone should.
Go in the morning. The fort has very little shade, the lawns are exposed, and Old Delhi traffic getting in worsens sharply from late morning. A visit that starts at 9:30 when the gates open is a different experience from one that starts at noon.
The evening sound and light show runs on most days and is a separate ticket. It is pleasant rather than essential, and it does not run when the weather is poor.
Common questions
What are the Red Fort opening times?
9:30 AM to 4:30 PM, and closed every Monday. Allow an hour and a half to two hours inside. The Monday closure is worth planning around, because Akshardham, the Lotus Temple and the National Museum all close the same day — an unlucky Monday can take out most of a Delhi itinerary at once.
Is the Red Fort closed on Mondays?
Yes, every Monday, with no exceptions. If your only Delhi day is a Monday, build it around Jama Masjid and the Chandni Chowk lanes in the morning and Humayun's Tomb, Qutub Minar and Mehrauli in the afternoon — all of which stay open. It is a genuinely good day, and a quieter one.
How much is the Red Fort entry ticket?
Around ₹600 for foreign visitors and ₹35 for Indian citizens, though the Archaeological Survey revises fees without much notice — treat those as indicative. Buy online if you are going at a weekend, when the counter queue at Lahori Gate is often the longest part of the visit. The gates are digital-payment only, so cash alone is a problem.
How long do you need at the Red Fort?
An hour and a half to two hours covers it properly — Chatta Chowk, the two audience halls, the private apartments and the Moti Masjid, at a pace that lets a guide explain what you are looking at. An hour is enough if you are moving through, and the fort has little shade, so in summer the earlier slot matters more than the extra time.
Is the Red Fort worth visiting?
Yes, with one expectation set first. Around two-thirds of the fort was demolished after 1857 and replaced with British barracks, so what survives is the ceremonial spine rather than a complete palace. Visitors expecting something like Agra Fort sometimes find it thin. Understood as what a colonial garrison left of a Mughal capital, it is one of the most significant buildings in India.