Golconda

After sunset, there is an hour-long light and sound show telling you the story of the Golconda Fort which is worth seeing, though it could be a little boring. The English show runs Nov-Feb 6:30PM daily and Mar-Oct until 7PM daily. Hindi and Telugu shows are run afterwards on certain days. Afterwards, have a wander through the tiny streets and shops surrounding the fort. The beautiful scruffy old shops and houses will sell you everything from naan bread to bangles, and the fading and gaudy old painted gates and houses are a delight, as are the friendly locals.

The tombs of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, also called the Seven Tombs. It consists of seven complete tombs of respective Golconda Sultans, and an incomplete one for Abul Hasan Qutb Shah, who was buried in a modest grave at Khuldabad in present-day Maharashtra instead, as Mughal emperor Auragnzeb imprisoned him in Daulatabad till death. Other than the Golconda Sultans, there are tombs of Hayat Bakshi Begum, Fatima Sultana and Kulsum Begum. Hayat Bakshi was the sole daughter of Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth sultan, who married to Muhammed Qutb Shah, the sixth sultan. She gave birth to Abdullah Qutb Shah, the seventh sultan. Fatima Sultana was the sister of Muhammad Qutb Shah, while Kulsum Begum was his granddaughter. Outside the House of Golconda, there are tombs of two hakeems (unani practitioners) of Abdullah Qutb Shah, Nizamuddin Ahmed Gilani and Abdul Jabbar Gilani, both built in 1651.

This African Baobab (Adansonia digitata) tree is 400+ years old and happens to be the oldest tree in Hyderabad. The tree originates from Madagascar and was planted by wandering friars during their stay at Golconda. The circumference of the trunk measures 25 meters and is irregular in shape and roughly represents an elephant and hence the name Hatiyan Jhod (Elephant Tree). The huge trunk is hollow and covers a huge space. According to legend the space provided shelter for 40 thieves during the Qutab Shahi rule. They used it as a shelter during the day and committed the crime during the night.

The once-controversial golf course, now open to public.

Built to honour the royal poet of the Qutb Shahi court.

A 16th-century mosque built during the reign of Ibrahim Quli Qutb Shah as a congregational mosque for a new city west of the Golconda Fort. However, the plan for the new city was abandoned due to the lack of a sustainable water source, leading his successor Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah to establish the present-day Old City of Hyderabad further east in 1591, and thus Mecca Masjid as the architectural successor of the Premamati Mosque.

A large green space opposite the Qutb Shahi Tombs.