Desert Architecture of Rajasthan

HIGHLIGHTS

Mumbai – Udaipur – Ranakpur & Kumbhalgarh – Chittorgarh – Jodhpur – Gajner – Bikaner – Nagaur – Chittorgarh – Mandawa – Jaipur

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Day 01 - To Mumbai

Depart from Home country for Mumbai.

Day 02 - To Udaipur

Arrive in Mumbai, India, in the morning and having cleared customs and immigration, connect on a domestic flight to Udaipur in Rajasthan. You will be met on arrival and transfer by air-conditioned coach to check in to your hotel, the Fateh Garh Palace. Built with recycled stone and wood, this dramatic heritage resort is on the edge of Udaipur and has 360-degree views of the city and Aravalli Hills.

Day 03 - Udaipur

After breakfast at the hotel, a full day sightseeing programme of Udaipur, known as ‘the City of Lakes’. This terribly romantic city is built on the shores of Lake Picchola, with some structures on other inter-connected lakes. Almost every building of the old city looks out onto the water and the Lake Palace, made famous in the James Bond film Octopussy.

A significant highlight of the sightseeing programme is the City Palace complex, a sprawling series of structures built over a period of 400 years from 1533. The home of the Mewar ruling dynasty, and exhibiting a fusion of local Rajasthani and Mughal styles, you will learn about the different architectural features, the functions of different religious and secular buildings, and the lives of the royal family, courtiers, and servants who lived here.

During the day you will also have time to visit the centrally located Jagdish Temple, built in 1651; walk along the bustling narrow lanes and busy ghats along the lake side; and to shop for handicrafts and other souvenirs in Udaipur’s lively market.

Day 04 - To Chittorgarh

Today you will take a day trip to Chittorgarh, one of the largest fortresses in India. Like Kumbhalgarh, Chittorgarh (garh meaning fortress) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and there has been a fortified structure here since at least the 7th century. The sprawling site covers 280 ha, and it includes palaces, temples, towers, gateways, and walls. Nearly all of these are well preserved.

Day 05 - To Kumbalgarh via Ranakpur

Leaving Udaipur this morning, you will drive through Rajasthan’s ever-changing countryside, spotting old and new buildings, and small shrines and villages, jostling for space along the way. You will stop for lunch at Ranakpur, famed for its 15th century Jain temple.

Lunch will be served in Ranakpur in a local Restaurant.

You will continue on to Kumbhalgarh, arriving in the early afternoon. This will allow ample time to explore the 15th century fortress — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — during daylight hours. You will have dinner at your hotel, Hotel Aodhi, and then return to the fortress after dark for a dramatic son et lumiere show.

Day 06 - To Jodhpur

After breakfast, drive from Chittorgarh to Jodhpur, Rajasthan’s Blue City. Jodhpur’s skyline is dominated by the Mehrangarh, the palace fortress of the Marwar rulers of the Rathore warrior clan, and you will see it looming long before you arrive. It has featured in numerous films, including blockbusters The Dark Knight Rises and Darjeeling Limited.

In Jodhpur you will stay at the Ajit Bhawan Palace, one of India’s first heritage hotels. This exceptional hotel feels more like a museum, and it offers guests unmatched insight into the lives of India’s aristocrats and maharajas in the last years before India’s independence in 1947.

Day 07 - Jodhpur

Today is a full day of sightseeing in Jodhpur and its environs. In addition to the core city sites — notably Mehrangarh, Ummaid Bhawan Palace, and Jaswant Thada Mausoleum — you will also drive a short distance out into the desert to the Arna Jharna Folk Museum. You will know the most important characteristic of the village’s desert architecture, and you will also be treated to an atmospheric open-air concert by folk musicians from Rajasthan’s famous Langa and Manganiyar communities. Traditional Rajasthani dinner will be served here.

You will return to the Ajit Bhawan Palace after dinner for the night.

Day 08 - To Gajner via Phalodi

After breakfast you will depart from Jodhpur and drive to Gajner on the outskirts of the desert-city of Bikaner. En-route stop ay Phalodi for lunch at Lal Niwas. After lunch continue drive to Gajner. You will stay in the lakeside palace, which has been sensitively converted into a heritage hotel, replete with numerous original features. This desert jewel was built by HH Maharaja Sir Ganga Singh of Bikaner as a hunting lodge, and its grounds extend for some 6,000 acres. In the afternoon we recommend you take time to walk around, admire the landscapes and bird life, and take tea outside on the lawn.

Day 09 - To Bikaner

Bikaner is an extraordinary city surrounded by the Thar Desert. It was once an important stage on the old trade and travel routes traversing India. The former capital of the Bikaner Princely state, it has developed into the fourth largest city in Rajasthan.

After breakfast you will leave Gajner Palace on your sightseeing tour. Highlights of your programme will include the grandiose Junagarh Fort; the impressive Laxmi Niwas Palace, a magnificent structure dating from 1902 and built from red sandstone; and the Karni Mata Temple, also known as the Temple of Rats. 25,000 black rats live here and they are revered by devotees as reincarnations of the people from the bardic Charan community to which Bikaner’s ruling deity – the goddess Karni Mata, belonged. If you are lucky, you will see one of the shrine’s few white rats. The temple’s current buildings date from the early 20th century but are in the Mughal style, with an elaborate marble facade, decorative panels, and silver gates.

You will return to Gajner in the late afternoon.

Day 10 - To Nagaur

Leaving Gajner after breakfast, you will drive through the Thar Desert to Nagaur, mid way between Bikaner and Jodhpur. Nagaur is a place of great historical significance, thanks to its strategic location, and it was fought over by a succession of Rajput and Muslim rulers. It is also a site of religious importance: the shrine of the early Sufi saint Sultan Tarkin is here, and Nagaur was also visited by Hazrat Hamiduddin, a disciple of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, of the Chishti Sufi order.

Tonight or tomorrow night, you will be privy to a special private puppet show, not one created for tourists but an authentic, traditional performance which links the Fort of Nagaur with the ballad of Prince Amar Singh Rathore, a royal prince and one-time heir-apparent of Jodhpur.

Day 11 - Nagaur

Nagaur has a wealth of monuments and other cultural sites to explore during your full day sightseeing programme. You will be guided around Nagaur Fort, a fine example of Rajput-Mughal architecture, the earliest parts of which date from the 12th century. You will also see the 10th century Jain temples of Ladnun, which is a centre for religious learning, near Nagaur.

Day 12 - To Mandawa

From Nagaur your journey continues on to Mandawa in Shekhawati, a semi-arid region of Rajasthan famed for the stunningly decorated painted town havelis (mansions) built by wealthy Marwari merchants between the 18th and 19th centuries. Overnight stay is at Castle Mandawa.

Your tour will begin at Mandawa Fort, which is also your hotel. Built in 1755 on the traditional mini-fort cum chieftain’s palace pattern, the fort’s gateway is adorned with paintings of Lord Krishna and his cows, and the interiors are decorated with exquisite murals, wood and stone carvings, and mirror work.

After seeing the fort, we embark on a walking tour of the town, which is in essence an open air museum. You will see a series of beautiful historic havelis, many of which are painted with frescoes of the gods, maharajas, or with erotic scenes. The Sewaram Saraf Haveli in particular has been the set for a number of Bollywood films.

Day 13 - To Jaipur

Jaipur — Rajasthan’s Pink City — is one corner of India’s Golden Triangle, and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. Quite rightly so. Your drive here from Mandawa will be a leisurely one, as you will break the journey to visit the painted Morarka Haveli in Nawalgarh and to have lunch at Nawalgarh.

In Jaipur you will stay at Samode Haveli, an urban oasis within the historic walled city. This award winning property was built more than 175 years ago and retains many of its original features, including intricately painted interiors, stained glass, and royal apartments.

Day 14 - Jaipur

Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan, a bustling modern city built around an equally busy Old Town. Jaipur was one of India’s first planned cities, laid out by town planning enthusiast Jai Singh II, Raja of Amer, in the early 18th century. He built the city in clearly defined blocks, two of which were for palaces and state buildings, and the other seven for use by ordinary people. The controversy whether the city was originally ‘pink’ (its more a rusty rose, or sienna colour actually), or whether the colour scheme was introduced in 1876 when Jaipur was decorated in readiness for the visit of the Prince of Wales, continues to generate debate.

Your guided Jaipur tour will include two UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the Amer Fort, and the Jantar Mantar Observatory. You will also visit the Hawa Mahal (Palace of the Winds) and the City Palace.

Day 15 - Jaipur

You will have Day 15 at leisure to further explore the city, or to relax. The choice is yours. If you do decide to venture out, we highly recommend shopping in the Old Town, visiting the Birla Mandir with its sculptures of important figures from all world faiths, and taking in a polo match at the famous Jaipur Polo Club.

Day 16 - Departure to Home Country

After breakfast on your final morning you will transfer to Jaipur Airport to fly to home country.

Each of our programs can be customised to our client’s desires.

Accommodation

Luxury Hotels.
Accommodation with private facilities as mentioned in the itinerary.

Tour Inclusions

Internal flights inclusive all taxes in economy class.
A transfers and sightseeing arrangements by an air-conditioned chauffer driven private coach.
Entrance fee to all monuments and places of interest.
Services of a local English-speaking guide.
Complimentary mineral water while driving and on sightseeing.

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