Day 1 / Arrival Delhi
Arrive Delhi, meet assist at the airport and transfer to hotel.
Night stay in Delhi.
Day
2 / Delhi
After breakfast proceed for sightseeing tour of Old & New
Delhi:
OLD DELHI - A sight-seeing tour of Old Delhi would entail visiting
the Raj Ghat - the memorial site where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated;
Jama Masjid - the largest mosque in India .
NEW DELHI - An extensive sight-seeing tour of New Delhi would
include a visit to the Humayun's Tomb, the Qutub Minar, a drive
along the ceremonial avenue - Rajpath, past the imposing India
Gate, Parliament House, the President's Residence and would
end with a drive through the Diplomatic Enclave. 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.
Later visit Saheliyon ki Bari- the Garden of Royal Ladies .Saheliyon
ki Bari lies just beneath the Fateh Sagar Lake. Maharana Sangram
Singh II designed this garden in the early 18th century purely
as a pleasure garden and a summer palace for the 48 young maids
that formed a part of the prince’s dowry. It is also said
that the garden was presented as a peace offering from the Emperor
of Delhi. Inside the garden is a reservoir surrounded by four
black marbled cenotaphs in its four corners and one white marbled
one in the centre. The terraces of these cenotaphs have water
fountains shaped like birds from whose beaks water gushes out
in thin sprays like the singing rain – producing a wonderful
sight. The Maharanas entertained themselves around the four
ornamental pools and the five fountains. These fountains were
imported from England in 1889. Maharana Bhopal Singh specially
was very fond of this place and built a rain fountain, so that
it looked like rain dancing on the dancing maids. Also visit
Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandir (Folk art museum) and the Pratap Memorial.
Rest of the day at leisure. Night stay in Udaipur.
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.