One day is enough for Unnao. Spend the morning at the Nawabganj bird sanctuary, then head back for the town and a Ganges ghat at Shuklaganj. Add a second day if you want the Mughal-era gateway at Badarka or the riverside temples at Pariyar and Baksar.

Unnao is about 15 km from Kanpur, just across the Ganges. Shuklaganj, also called Gangaghat, sits on the Unnao bank right next to the bridge into Kanpur. Local trains on the Kanpur–Lucknow line and frequent buses link the two cities every day.

Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary is on the Kanpur–Lucknow highway, about 18 km from Unnao and roughly 50 km from Lucknow. Now officially named after Chandrashekhar Azad, it protects a lake with boating, watchtowers and a small deer park, and migratory ducks arrive in winter.