The Heritage Rajasthan (18 N/19 D)
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The Heritage Rajasthan
Day 01 / Arrive Delhi
Arrive Delhi , Meet assist at the airport & transfer to
hotel. Night stay in Delhi.
Day 02 / Delhi
After a leisurely breakfast sightseeing tour of New Delhi
where ornate buildings recall the days when India was the
Jewel in the crown of the British empire. Visit the 11th
century Qutab Minar ,India Gate and the grand government
buildings, the President’s House , Red fort , Mahatama
Gandhi Memorial , Also visit Laxmi Narayan temple popularly
known as Birla Temple. Night stay in Delhi.
Day 3 / Delhi - Agra ( By road )
Morning drive to Agra, on arrival transfer to hotel. Later
proceed for city sight seeing tour visiting the world famous
Taj Mahal, built by the Mughal Emperor Shahjehan in 1630 for
his queen Mumtaz Mahal to enshrine her mortal remains. Also
visit Agra Fort, containing the Pearl Mosque - the rusty and
majestic red- sandstone fort of Agra stands on the banks of
the river Yamuna and the construction was started by Emperor
Akbar in 1566. At the Diwan-I-Khas (hall of private
audience) where marble pavilions with floral inlays lend an
ethereal ambience, the Emperor sat on his gem-studded
peacock Throne and met foreign ambassadors and rulers of
friendly kingdoms. Also visit Itmad-up-Dau’s tomb, built by
Noorjehan in memory of her father. Night stay in Agra.
Day 4 /
Agra – Ranthambhore ( By road )
Morning drive to Ranthambhore-famous for the wildlife
sanctuary which is said to have the India’s friendliest
Tigers and also considered to be the best place in the world
to photograph the tiger in its natural habitat, also a
wonderful place for bird watching enroute visiting Fatehpur
Sikri-a perfectly preserved red sandstone “ghost town” which
was the estranged capital of mughal emperor Akbar, built in
1569 and deserted when its water supply failed. Arrive
Ranthambhore & transfer to hotel. Night stay in Ranthambhore.
Day 5 / Ranthambhore
Early morning 3 hrs Jungle safari in a Canter (a vehicle
which is open on the top) enjoy the game viewing in the
national park and back to the hotel. After lunch second
visit to jungle and enjoy the game viewing. Night stay in
Ranthambhore.
Day 6 /
Ranthambhore - Jaipur ( By road )
Early morning visit the jungle in search of tiger. Later
after breakfast drive to Jaipur.
On arrival transfer to hotel. Evening free to explore the
city. Night stay in Jaipur.
Day 7 /
Jaipur
Morning excursion to Amber Fort. Elephant ride ascent to the
fort.
AMBER FORT PALACE - Amber is the classic romantic Rajasthani
fort palace. Its construction was started by Man Singh I in
1592, and completed by his descendent Jai Singh I. Its
forbidding exterior belies an inner paradise where a
beautiful fusion of Mughal and Hindu styles finds it's
ultimate expression.
Continue sight-seeing.
CITY PALACE - A delightful blend of Mughal and traditional
Rajasthani architecture, the City Palace sprawls over
one-seventh of the area in the walled city. It houses the
Chandra Mahal, Shri Govind Dev Temple and the City Palace
Museum.
JANTAR MANTAR - This is the largest and the best preserved
of the five observatories built by Jai Singh II in different
parts of the country. This observatory consisting of
outsized astronomical instruments is still in use.
HAWA MAHAL - The ornamental facade of this "Palace of Winds"
is a prominent landmark in Jaipur. Their five-storey
structures of sandstone plastered pink encrusted with fine
trelliswork and elaborate balconies. The palace has 953
niches and windows. Built in 1799 by Pratap Singh, the Mahal
was a royal grandstand for the palace women.
Night stay in Jaipur.
Day 8 /
Jaipur - Pushkar ( By road )
After breakfast drive to Pushkar, Pushkar boasts temples,
though few are as ancient as you might expect at such an
important pilgrimage site, since many were deserted by
Aurangzeb and subsequently rebuilt. The most famous is the
Brahma Temple, said to be one of the few temples in the
world dedicated to this deity. It's marked by red spire, and
over the entrance gateway is the hans, or goose symbol, of
Brahma, who is said to have personally chosen Pushkar as its
site. Night stay in Pushkar.
Day 9 /
Pushkar - Udaipur ( By Road )
Morning drive to Udaipur- an oasis in the desert state of
Rajasthan. Arrive Udaipur and transfer to hotel. Night stay
in Udaipur.
Day 10
/ Udaipur
Morning city sight seeing tour of Udaipur. The city is built
in 1559 A.D. by Maharaja Udai Singh and has been described
as the most romantic spot on the continent of India by Col.
James Todd. Visit the City Palace museum. The City Palace,
one of the largest palaces in the world, can be approached
through the Bari Pol or the Great Gate (1600) with the royal
drums and then onto the Tripolia Gate (1725). The Tripolia
is a triple gate made of marble arches. Between these two
gates are eight carved toranas or archways under which the
maharanas were weighed against gold and silver which was
later distributed to the poor subjects. Popular
entertainment like elephant fights took place in the court
beyond the Tripolia Gate. Also visit Jagdish temple.
Maharana Jagat Singh built this temple between 1628-1653 at
a whopping cost of Rs 1.5 million. The temple, dedicated to
Lord Jagannath, is at a great height and can be approached
by a long flight of stairs. The interior of the temple has
exquisite carvings and is supplemented with prominent
friezes. The temple has several smaller shrines in four
corners of it that are dedicated to Lord Ganesh, Shiva, the
Sun God and Goddess Shakti. A Sanskrit inscription in the
porch written by Krishna Bhatt in the year 1651gives a
detailed history of the reign of Maharana Jagat Singh.
Day 11
/ Udaipur – Mount Abu ( By road )
After breakfast drive to Mt. Abu enroute visiting the Jain
temples at Ranakpur, superbly preserved in a near-perfect
condition for over 500 years. The most attractive features
are the 29 halls of the temple, which have 1444 pillars of
which no two are like. On arrival transfer to hotel. Night
stay in Mount Abu.
Day 12
/ Mount Abu
Morning visit world famous Dilwara Jain Temple, Nikki Lake,
Brahmin Kumari Ashram etc.
Dilwara Temple:
These remarkable Jain temples are Mount Abu's main
attraction and among the finest examples includes two
temples in which the art of carving marble reached
unsurpassed heights. The older of the temples is the ' Vimal
Vasahi ', built in 1031 and dedicated to the first
tirthankar, Adinath. In the front of the temple stands the
' House of Elephants ', with figures of elephants marching
in procession to the temple entrance. The later ' Tejpal
temple ' is dedicated to Neminath, the 22nd tirthankar, and
was built in 1230 by the brothers Tejpal and Vastupal. The
carving is so fine that, in places, the marble becomes
almost transparent.
Nakki Lake:
Nakki Lake is virtually in the heart of Mount Abu and is a
big attraction with tourists. The lake takes its name from
the legend that it was scooped out by a god, using only his
nails, or nakh. It's a pleasant stroll around the lake -
look for the strange rock formations. On the lake there is a
dilapidated concrete boat-shaped snack bar.
Night stay in Mount Abu.
Day 13 / Mount Abu – Jodhpur ( By Road )
After breakfast drive to Jodhpur. On arrival transfer to
hotel. Night stay in Jodhpur.
Day 14 /
Jodhpur
After a relaxed breakfast proceed for city sight seeing tour
of Jodhpur. Jodhpur - the stronghold of the fierce Rathore
clan, was founded in 1459 by Prince Jodha. Visit the
Mehrangarh Fort, situated on a low sandstone hill. Within
the fort, visit Moti Mahal and Phool Mahal. Also visit
Jaswant Thada, an imposing marble cenotaph, built in memory
of Maharaja Jaswant singh II around 1899 and Umaid Public
gardens. Night stay in Jodhpur.
Day 15
/ Jodhpur - Jaisalmer ( By road )
Morning drive to Jaisalmer, on arrival transfer to hotel.
Evening at leisure. Night stay in Jaisalmer.
Day 16
/ Jaisalmer
Morning city sightseeing tour of Jaisalmer. Throbbing in the
heart of the Thar, the burnished sandstone, is an
intricately molded wonderland in place of a barren land,
today stands a city of gilded magic. The origins of
Jaisalmer go back to the 12th century, when Rawal Jaisal
abandoned his old fort at Ludarwa and laid the foundation of
a new city. Visit the magnificient fort, the Patwon Ki
Haveli ( Mansion) and Salim singh Ki Haveli, with their
carved balconies and brackets which are supreme examples of
the art. Evening camel ride to visit Sam Dunes. Night stay
in Jaisalmer.
Day 17
/ Jaisalmer - Bikaner ( By road )
Morning drive to Bikaner. On arrival transfer to the hotel.
Later city sight seeing tour. Bikaner is named after its
founder Rao Bikaji in 1488. But long before this, the city
was trade center on the caravan routes from Africa and West
Asia. Bikaner’s dominant features are rippling sands and
abundant sunshine. The city stands on an elevation, enclosed
by a 7 Kms wall, which can be entered from 5 gate. Bikaner
City is bolstered by imposing walls and has a 16th century
fort housing old palaces, temples and mosque. Founded by
Raja Rai Singh the fort is distinguished by its long range
of 37 pavilions, a line of balconies and aerial windows of
varying designs. Also visit Lallgarh Palace, the museum,
Bhanda Sagar Jain and Deshnoke Rat temple. Night stay in
Bikaner.
Day 18 /
Bikaner - Mandawa ( By road )
Morning drive to Mandawa, on arrival transfer to the hotel.
Later visit Mandawa, founded 1755 by Thakur Nawal Singh and
still the home of his descendants, has beautiful frescoes,
havelis and mansions. Mandawa castle one of the finest
castles of Rajasthan, is now a hotel and house of collection
of armories, costumes of ancestors, canons from 1820 ancient
coins, numismatic collection and many other interesting
items, preserved in a museum. Night stay in Mandawa.
Day 19
/ Mandawa - Delhi - Departure
Morning drive to Delhi and transfer to airport for onward
journey.