I was born in Hyderabad and spent my first eighteen years here. Although I have lived in several cities now, Hyderabad is what I still call home. Here's an attempt to capture some of the experiences that define this city.

60+ Things To Do in Hyderabad

1. Discover the acoustics of Golconda fort
2. Feel the four hundred years of Charminar
3. Count the seven Qutub Shahi tombs from a roof top in the western suburbs or from the Hyderabad Golf Course
4. Climb the steps of Maula Ali and enjoy the view
5. Spend a day at Salar Jung Museum. Don't miss the Nizam's jewelry collection - it's bound to make heads spin
6. Listen to the silence of Mecca Masjid in a congregation of hundred thousand
7. Eat ice cream and corn on Necklace road
8. Enjoy the cityscape from Birla temple
9. Explore the Osmania University, the vast campus are green-lungs of the city
10. Discover the Paigah tombs
11. Visit the Hyderabad Public School, a school campus fit to be a palace
12. Drive through the Makkai Darwaza, a Qutub Shahi era gate in the walls of Golconda fort that is still manned by army jawans
13. Stroll through the Public Garden and see the Archaeology Museum, Jubilee Hall and Bal Bhavan
14. Visit the Ramoji Film City. Hyderabad churns out more Tollywood films than Bollywood every year
15. Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar were once retreats outside the city. With rapid urbanization, find remnants of yesteryear holiday spots caught in between new development and ring-roads
16. Drive through Hi-Tec City - an IT hub that could have been so much more - till you find the Durgam Cheruvu
17. Trace the Shaikhpet Sarai built by the Qutub Shahi kings
18. Go for a swim in the Mir Alam Tank
19. Circumcircle the roller coaster roads around KBR National Park, home to the Chiran Palace
20. Look for the statues of Telugu literature trio Nannayya, Thikkana and Errana on the Tankbund
21. Walk the bridges across Moosi - Purana Pul, Muslim Jun Pul, Naya Pul, Salar Jung Pul, Chaderghat Pul
22. Trace the palaces of Nizams - Chowmahalla Palace (being restored by the grand daughter-in-law and great grandson of Nizam VII), Purani Haveli, King Kothi (now a hospital), Falaknuma Palace (being converted into a Taj hotel), Mahboob Mansion, Chiran Palace (now under Forest Dept), Hill Fort Palace (now Ritz Hotel), Bella Vista (now Administrative Staff College), Basheer Bagh Palace (now dismantled); the palace of Salar Jungs - Dewan Devdi (now houses GHMC); the palaces of Paigah nobles - Paigah Palace (now houses US Embassy; earlier HUDA), Asman Garh Palace (now an archaeology museum) and numerous others
23. Listen to qawwali at Yousufain dargah, walk the almost magical streets around it and taste Chakna at a cheap restaurant
24. Buy Laak ki Choodiyaan in Laad Bazaar
25. Get lost in a black sea of burqhas while shopping at Madina on Chaand Raat (eve of Eid-ul-Fitr)
26. Admire the stone buildings of Patherghatti and haggle for some fine pearls by kilo in Char Kaman, Gulzar House
27. Catch a cultural program or two at Ravindra Bharti
28. Admire the Nizam era architecture - the High Court, Osmania Hospital, Unani Hospital, City College, City Library, Assembly Building, Jubilee Hall, Osmania Medical College, Osmania Arts College, Moazamjahi Market, Pathergatti
29. Go boating (sailing if you are a pro) in Hussain Sagar lake and catch a glimpse of largest monolith statue of Buddha
30. Walk through the Mahboobia school, Nizam college to All Saints school - educational institutions that are 100 to 150 years old
31. Hunt for books (used) in Abids' roadside book bazaar on Sundays
32. Walk through some neighborhoods - Red Hills has some fading art deco buildings, Humayun Nagar had some decent bunglows and villas now giving way to commercial projects, Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills houses the city's elite
33. Exchange old cut notes and buy attar in the vintage Moazamjahi Market and while you are there, give the kulfi (Rs. 7 only) at Famous Ice Cream a try
34. Discover kahwa, suleimani, harees and football in the Little Arabia of Barkas - erstwhile colony of Nizam's army and a corruption of the word 'barracks'
35. Count mosques and tombs as you pass through the main street in Karwan
36. Walk the bylanes of Hussaini Alam to discover oddities like Deccan Button Factory, surprises like Jamia Nizamia and shockers like Khursheed Jah Palace
37. Drive down to mango farms in Kandi on Bombay Highway in summer for some great mango varieties - Benishaan, Rasaal, Malika, Langda, Dusseri, Shakkar Gutli, Himayat. Enjoy the arid boulders of Deccan plateau of your return drive
38. Get yourself a Sherwani stitched at Silver Jubilee, Abids. The master tailor may be a little fussy but what else do you expect from a guy who's doing Sherwanis for several decades now?
39. Shop for some fine silks at Handloom House, Nampally
40. Catch a movie at Santosh Sapna - a 70mm-35mm combo theatre - before it is torn down to build a multiplex
41. Walk through British era markets - General Bazaar and Tobacco Bazaar - now wholesale cloth markets
42. Meet the city's rich and young on a pub crawl - Ahala, Liquids, Touch, Poison, Dublin, 10D - where the party doesn't stop at 11p
43. Understand the Khada Dupatta, Sharara, Gharara, Laancha and other wedding dresses
44. Climb up to the roof of a 300 year old mosque and listen to five adhaans at a time in the muslim quarters of old city
45. Discover a whole world of spices, herbs and dry fruits in the yellow drawers of Dawasaaz stores
46. Attend a Hyderabadi Muslim wedding and listen to the teen-maar of a marfa band
47. Enjoy Irani chai, Osmania biscuit and Onion samosa in a street-side cafe with bent-wood chairs, marble table tops and open shutters
48. Hog Biryani at Paradise (Paradise Circle); Mandar, Banne Nawab (Salarjung Colony); Nayaab, Shadaab (Madina). Nayaab and Shadaab may have more atmosphere of old city but the taste is as good as it gets at other places too
49. Understand Hyderabad's naan (oval and square shaped). They sell it hot from the earth ovens on most street corners in old city. Uzbeki Naan of ITC Hotels comes closest in bread family to the Hyderabadi Naan
50. Feast on some spicy Boti Kababs from the grill and hot Rumaali Roti tossed directly in your plate
51. Wake up early for some steamy greasy Paaya Nahari and Kulche
52. Enjoy the road side Pani Puri (or Gup Chup as it is sometimes called)
53. Buy dry fruit biscuits at Karachi bakery
54. Savour the fiery Andhra meals (full/plate) and tiffins
55. Find the spicy and tangy Mirchi ke Pakode on roadsides
56. Fill up yourself with the Chicken 65 cooked in red color and seasoned with fried curry leaves. Usually served in brown melamine bowls on roadside Chinese eateries.
57. Indulge yourself with the delicious Hyderabadi cuisine - Biryani, Bagare Baigan, Luqmi, Haleem, Dalcha, Pasinde, Pathar ka Ghost, Khubaani ka Meetha
58. Eat Haleem and Dahi bade from shacks on street corners during the month of Ramadan
59. Offer Eid-ul-Fitr / Eid-uz-Zuha prayers in an eidgah
60. Catch a film festival at the Lalitha Kala Toranam
61. Watch world cinema at Hyderabad Film Club, Sarathi Studios
62. Listen to the city's literati at the annual Urdu Academy mushaira in Numaaish grounds
63. Enjoy the Deccani Urdu. There are fine nuances which make it structurally more similar to Telugu than to Lucknowi Urdu. But what the heck, enjoy "naan ki roti khao ji" and "paani nahane jaaroon"