What do you do if you are in the Pink city and only have 24hours to indulge??? You take it up as a challenge.
So I was in Jaipur for some work with my team and realised that we have one day to spare to explore the city. While this is not the perfect Jaipur itinerary, we did manage to explore the soul of the city in that one day.
The day started at 8AM at one of the most famous breakfast places in Jaipur. Tapri has been winning hearts with their delectable menu and lovely decor. Opening early at 7:30AM, Tapri attracts a huge crowd, especially on weekends. We visited their outlet opposite to Central Park and had to wait for 15mins for our table.
The first stop of the day is Amer Fort. Around 11kms away from the city and overlooking the Maota lake, Amer fort is today known as the oldest surviving palace in India. The fort is famous for its architectural brilliance representing an amalgamation of Mughal and Rajput art forms with red sandstone and marble construct, cobbled footpaths and huge gates – making a mesmerising view.
The fort is open from 10AM to 5PM for visitors. There are jeeps available that will drop you right at the main door of the fort. You can take elephant rides inside the fort. The light and sound show happens every evening in Hindi and English languages where they depict the history of Jaipur and the fort. Touring the entire fort took us more than 2hours.
Enroute the Amer Fort is the Jal mahal or the Water palace. It is built in the middle of the Man Sagar Lake and is not open to visitors. We clicked pictures from the viewpoint by the lake.
The Hawa Mahal, Jantar mantar and the city palace are just adjacent to one another.
The next stop for the day is the City Palace right at the centre of the old city. The palace complex is very vast with a mix of courtyards, gardens, buildings, galleries and restaurants. We spent almost an hour inside the palace complex admiring its history and grandeur. The palace opens from 9:30AM - 5PM for visitors.
Just adjacent to the City palace is the Jantar mantar known for its collection of 19 architectural astronomical instruments. It is a UNESCO Heritage Site and houses the world’s largest sundial. The instruments allow the observation of astronomical position with the naked eye. Visit this place in the evening in order to avoid getting a heatstroke.
Known for its 953 small windows or Jharokhas designed as the honeycomb of a beehive, Hawa Mahal is the most popular destination in Jaipur. Translated to Palace of Winds in English, the top of the palace offers stunning view of the City palace and the Jantar Mantar on one side along with the view of the bazaar on the other. The red and pink sandstone palace was built for the royal Rajput women to provide them a view of day to day events and royal processions occurring on the streets. We took a one-hour tour inside the palace and were fascinated by the intricate designs.
The Albert Hall museum functions as the state museum of Rajasthan and provides exclusive collection of artifacts, jewelries, objects, paintings and other art forms. The building is well known for its architectural brilliance. We did not visit inside the museum as we were short on time.
And the last stop of this whirlwind day is a visit to Chokhi Dhani, a resort village away from the city celebrating the Rajasthani culture comprising of village huts with decorative wall art and cow dung plasters. It is open only in the evening by 5PM till around 11PM for all days of the week. You can enjoy the traditional dance program, puppet shows, magic shows, animal rides, rope walking shows along with different types of restaurants serving local Rajasthani food. You can also shop at Kalagram which promotes local artisans who make handicrafts. There is a collection of home decors, paintings, handmade accessories, wall clocks and many other such items.
The entry fee is between Rs. 700 to Rs. 1100 for adults based on their dining service chosen and the entire experience can take around 3-4hours.
Post a very heavy dinner of Rajasthani cuisine, we finally made our way back to our hotel room after a long, tiring and eventful day.
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