Ravishing, Royal Rajasthan!!!

Kesariya Balam aawo ni padharo mhare des ni Kesariya Balam aawo sa padharo mhare des...
[O Beloved with the saffron coloured turban, I heartily welcome you to my country..]

In 2013, we decided to go to Rajasthan for our Annual Vacation.  Rajasthan – The Land of Royals, The Land of Palaces. The land which is dry and arid but colourful and vibrant in its own special way.

So dates were discussed (16^th Nov – 24 Nov 2013), umpteen links on hotels and locations were sent back and forth, many phonecalls were made, an itinerary evolved and most bookings made. In fact this was possibly the most meticulously planned trip we've ever made.

Rajasthan was going to be a total touristy deal, with places to see and stuff to do in each city, and with our ambitious schedule - Jaipur-Ajmer-Pushkar-Jodhpur-Jaisalmer-Udaipur-in 9 days we had to plan inter-city transfers and everything to the last detail. We did the booking related to travel and hotels 3 months in advance. We were 4 adults and 1 kid - Me, my husband, Nikhil, my friend Pramod, his wife Preeti and their daughter Tarushi.

I have written this travelogue in 9 phases, covering each day of the trip in each phase.

We started our trip from the ‘Pink City’ – #Jaipur, to Darga Sharif – #Ajmer, to the only Brahma Temple – #Pushkar, to the ‘Blue City’ – #Jodhpur, followed by the ‘Golden City’ – #Jaisalmer and finally the ‘Lake City’ – #Udaipur.

Chand Baori - Jaipur - Ajmer - Pushkar - Jodhpur - Jaisalmer - Udaipur

Our detailed itinerary for Rajasthan Trip is as follows:

	Place	Night Stay At	Details
Day 1	Mumbai to Jaipur	Jaipur	Upon Arrival, check in the hotel. Proceed to visit: 1. Chand Baori, Abhaneri - 100 kms 2. Harshad Mehta ka Temple 3. Chokhi Dhani for dinner
Day 2	Jaipur	Jaipur	After breakfast proceed to visit: 1. Man Sagar Lake (On way to Amber Fort) 2. Amber Fort 3. Jaigarh Fort (1 km from Amber Fort) 4. Nahargarh Fort 5. Gaitore (Foothills of Nahargarh Fort) 6. City Palace 7. Jantar Mantar 8. Hawa Mahal
Day 3	Jaipur to  Ajmer – Pushkar	Pushkar	After breakfast, check out of hotel and proceed to Ajmer. At Ajmer visit: 1. Dargah Sharif 2. Dhai din ka Jhopra 3. Taragarh Fort 4. Ana Sagar Lake Proceed to Pushkar: 1. The Brahma Temple & take a holy dip at at the Pushkar Lake. 2. The Pushkar Fair
Day 4	Pushkar to  Jodhpur	Jodhpur	After breakfast, check out of hotel and proceed to Jodhpur. Check in the hotel, then proceed to visit: 1. Mehrangarh Fort 2. Jaswant Thada (close to the fort) 3. Umaid Bhawan Palace (Museum)
Day 5	Jodhpur to Jaisalmer	Jaisalmer	After breakfast, check out of hotel and proceed to Jaisalmer. Check in the hotel & relax. In the evening visit drive about 40 km away from Jaisalmer to Sam Dunes/Khuri.
Day 6	Jaisalmer	Jaisalmer	After breakfast, proceed to visit: 1. Jaisalmer Fort incl. Jain Temple & Tazia Tower 2. Patwaon ki Haveli 3. Nathmal ji ki Haveli 4. Salim Singh ki Haveli 5. Gadisagar Lake
Day 7	Jaisalmer to Udaipur	Udaipur	After breakfast, check out & proceed to Udaipur
Day 8	Udaipur	Udaipur	After breakfast, proceed to visit: 1. City Palace 2. Jagdish Temple 3. Boat ride at Lake Pichola 4. Dharohar - Classical Rajasthani Dance show at Bagore ki Haveli at 7 pm
Day 9	Udaipur to Mumbai	Home sweet home	After Breakfast: 1. Sahelion ki Bari 2. Fateh Sagar Lake 3. Dudh Talai (Near Lake Pichola) Catch the evening flight to Mumbai

To give you an idea of my trip I am uploading few pictures:

Chand Baori - Abhaneri

Gaitore - Jaipur

Mehrangarh Fort - Jodhpur

Patwaon Ki Haveli - Jaisalmer

Lake Pichola - Udaipur

Detailed description of the trip to be followed......