Agra: Tourists will be enjoying the full moonlight on only four of the stipulated five nights this month at the iconic Taj Mahal in Uttar Pradesh's Agra, owing to the weekly closure on Friday. The local authorities have stipulated five days every month for tourists to enjoy the full moon nights at one of the seven wonders of the world.
The full moon viewing time begins two days before the full moon and ends within the next three days. However, this month, one of the five allotted full moon nights falls on Friday, September 9, which is a weekly closure at the Taj Mahal. Therefore, the tourists will get a chance to view only four full moon nights instead of five this month.
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On Wednesday, 200 tickets were booked for the moonlight viewing at the Taj Mahal on Thursday night. Visitors are required to book the tickets in advance from the office of ASI located on Mall Road. The time of moonlight has been fixed by ASI from 8:30 pm to 12:30 am every night. The ASI has fixed eight slots of 30 minutes each for the full moon viewing with a permissible limit of 50 tourists in each slot.
Tourists first reach Shilpgram to see the Taj Mahal in the moonlight and thereafter reach East Gate by battery bus or golf cart. The ticket cost for Indian tourists for the moonlight viewing is Rs 510 and for foreign tourists Rs 750. There is a special rebate of Rs 10 for children aged 3-15 years, and free entry free or children below three years.
To book the tickets, the visitors will have to carry an identity card. For more information related to ticket booking, visitors can call on phone numbers 0562-2227261, 2227262.
