Udaipur, formerly the capital of the Mewar Kingdom, is a city in the western Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded by Maharana Udai Singh II in 1559, it’s situated around a series of artificial lakes and is known for its lavish royal residences. Often referred to as the 'Venice of the East', the city of lakes Udaipur is located around azure water lakes and is hemmed in by lush green hills of Aravallis.
Best Time to Visit:
Winter (October to January) - Winter is the best season to explore Udaipur. The temperature remains comfortable and is apt for visiting the monuments and other places of interest in and around Udaipur. You can plan your trip during Diwali week when whole of the city is lit with millions of lights. During this time, much of the beauty of Udaipur comes from the warm glow of lights and lamps which adorn streets, homes, and shops.
Monsoon (July - September) - You can plan during the rainy season also when everything is lush green. Keep buffer days in your plan as 1-2 days of your trip may get spoiled due to rains. Udaipur during monsoon season feels pleasant and relatively less humid, given the relief it witnesses from the scorching heat of summers. Summer season is not at all advisable to visit.
How to Reach from Mumbai:
1. By Road:
Buses available from major providers (like SRS, Neeta, Gujrat Travels, etc) with 15 hours journey at a price of Rs.1600 (AC Sleeper)
2. By Train:
22901/Mumbai Bandra Terminus - Udaipur City SF Express with 17 hours journey which departs at 11.25 pm and reaches Udaipur by 4.20 pm next day at a price of Rs.1245 (3 AC)
3. By Air:
Multiple non-stop flights are available with just 1.5 hrs journey at a minimum price of Rs.3000
Where to stay in Udaipur:
The area around Old Udaipur city, a home to narrow alleys with traditional haveli houses, is a recommended area to stay, especially area near Lal Ghat, Jagdish Chowk and Chand Pole. These areas are rich in craft shops, budget hostels and rooftop eateries, giving you all the tourism vibes. All the majority attractions are easily accessible (walking distance) from the above mentioned area like Jagdish Temple, Laxi-Narayana Temple, City Palace, Lake Pichola, Ambrai Ghat, Dayaji Bridge, Bagore ki Haweli, Bada Bazar etc. Prefer non-AC rooms during winter as it will save your budget for shopping.
Few recommendations for budget hotels to stay nearby Chand Pole:
1. Mewar Avenue Guest House (Family/Couples)
2. Peacock Paying Guest House (Family/Couples)
3. Zostel (Bachelors Group)
4. Moustache (Bachelors Group)
Where to eat in Udaipur:
The Jagdish Temple to Chand Pole area is full of lake facing rooftop restaurants. The view and experience of all these restaurants will be somewhat similar and affordable within Rs. 1000 for two including one dish-one beer per head. Don't expect hard liquor in cafes as most of them serves beer only. A tip for the party animals, if you choose to stay nearby, you can easily head to room after roaming the city, freshen up, then leave by 8 pm to nearby cafes where you can enjoy till 12 pm.
Few recommendations for restaurant nearby Chand Pole:
1. Chirag Rooftop
2. Millets of Mewar (Rajasthan’s first dedicated health food restaurant)
3. Ambrai Restaurant (1-week prior reservation is recommended)
4. Jheel's Ginger Coffee Bar & Bake
5. Raas-Leela (Romantic and Lake Pichola/City Palace View)
Few recommendations for local eateries:
1. Shree Narayana Restaurant opposite to Jagdish Temple is a small and decent food outlet which is famous in locality for Dal-bati (Authentic Rajasthani Food Dish)
2. Paliwal Restaurant for Rajasthan special Kachori and Samosa near Jagdish Temple
3. Lassi and Tandoori Tea opposite to Saheliyon-ki-Bari
Top things to buy:
1. Umbrella
2. Attar
3. Diary
4. Home Decor
5. Rajasthani Jutti
Budget:
Total budget of the trip will be around Rs. 25,000 per head if you travelling as a couple. Rs. 3,000 less if you are travelling by AC train instead of flights. Detailed breakdown is as under:
Two-way flight tickets from Mumbai - Rs. 6,000
Local travel and entry tickets to attraction for 7 days - Rs. 5,000
Accommodation charges for 6 days (Non-AC rooms) - Rs. 4,000
Food and Beverages for 7 days (Food is costly) - Rs. 10,000
Summary of 7-day itinerary:
Day 1: Jagdish Temple, Lakshmi Narayana Temple, Ambrai Ghat, Daiji Bridge
Day 2: City Palace, Jag Mandir, Lake Pichola, Karni Mata Temple
Day 3: Car Museuem, Tibetan Market, Monsoon palace, Hathi Pole Market, Bada Bazar
Day 4: Kumbhalgarh Fort, Ranakpur Temple, Haldighati
Day 5: Chittorgarh
Day 6: Saheliyon-ki-Bari, Moti Magri, Fatesagar lake
Day 7: Lal Ghat, Bagore ki Haweli
Day 1 - Familiarization with the city:
Itinerary for Day 1 depends on the mode of travel and what time you reach Udaipur. By any mode of travel, you will be reaching mostly by afternoon at your hotel / guest house. You can relax for few hours or have a lunch in hotel cafe and then head out in the evening at around 5.30 pm. Old city has narrow roads and I suggest taking a walk in the city instead of hiring auto / taxi. Beware of firecrackers if you are visiting the place during Diwali festival.
Start the day with visiting Jagdish Temple and Lakshmi Narayana Temple. Both are in proximity with each other. This area is full of tourist market shops. Talk to the shopkeepers around Jagdish temple as they are the oldest shops, some of them running from the last 100 years. These are the right people from whom you can get better insights about the city and their culture which you won't be able to find anywhere on Google.
Later at 8 pm you can walk towards Ambrai Ghat via Daiji Bridge, from where you can get a full view of the lightened City Palace. There will be many more shops on the way to Ambrai Ghat. Bargaining is very much required in each and every shop. Everyone will look promising but don't buy things until and unless you cross verify the price in other adjacent shops. No need to shop on the very first day of your trip. Explore the market during the initial time so that you get the fair understanding of the pricing and then one or two day before leaving from Udaipur, buy your checklist.
After exploring the market which starts shutting down by 10.30 pm, you can visit the Raas-Leela - a lake side luxury boutique resort for a romantic candle-night dinner.
Day 2 - The day where you are going to see the beauty of Udaipur:
Have a heavy breakfast in your hotel or outside and try to reach City Palace by 9 am to beat the rush. Gates for palace opens at 9.30 am but it will take atleast 15 min to get the tickets from the counter. City Palace has two entrances, one from Jagdish Temple side and another from Karni Mata Temple side. Palace is divided into three parts, one part is museum which is open to public, second one is the hotel and third one is the residential haweli for the current Maharana (King). Entrance fee for the palace is Rs. 300. Guides are available to walk you through the history at a reasonable cost of Rs. 250-300. It will at least take 2 hrs to explore the whole palace. There are many photogenic places but you need to be the first in the palace to avoid the photo-bombing by the crowd in your pic of the day.
Hold on to your lunch thoughts for a beautiful restaurant till you reach Jag Mandir. After exploring the palace, you have to go to Boat Club which is within the City Palace to catch a ferry to Jag Mandir. Ferry will cost you Rs. 450 per head (including return trip) before 2 pm and after that, it will cost you Rs. 800. Ferry will drop you at Jag Mandir via Lake Pichola, where you can get scenic view of all major construction in the city like including City Palace, Taj Lake Palace, Ambrai Ghat, Amer Haweli, Bagore ki Haweli, Leela palace, Udai Vilas Palace and Jag Mandir.
Nowadays, Jag Mandir is one of the topmost romantic places of Udaipur where you should spend more time. It has two parts, one is garden open to all and another one is restaurant / hotel with a mini palace. You can spend time till evening with some snacks and couple of beers. Pick a table close to lake from where you can have a clear view of the City Palace and wait till dusk for a splendid view. Restaurant is costly and will cost you more than 1000 rs per head depending on what you order. Wind up your visit by 6 pm and get on the return ferry for a mind blowing scenic ride.
Last spot for the day is Karni Mata Temple. Take a rikshaw from City Palace to ropeway ticket counter or to the start of stairs. Temple is located on the Machla Magra Hills and is accessible from both the stairs (total 500 stairs - min. 1 hour time) and ropeway (Ticket - Rs. 110 - 1 hr waiting time). If you are going after dusk, then ropeway should be your first choice, which is operational till 8 pm. It is recommended to visit the temple after sunset as the view of the lightened city is mesmerizing.
Day 3: Visit to hill-top palace and Exploring the market
You can start a little late for the day. After finishing your light breakfast, you can reach Vintage and Classic Car Museum by 11 pm. If you are an auto geek this is a must visit place. The Vintage and Classic Car Museum has around 20 antique cars, including 4 Rolls-Royce's, 2 Cadillacs, one MG-TC convertible, one Ford-A Convertible, one Vauxhall-12 and several other exhibits like solar powered rikshaws and many more. It will take around one-hour to cover everything. There is a Tibetan Market near to car museum which you can explore only if you want to buy something. Otherwise, it is very much similar to what they have in other cities.
After the museum visit, have your lunch at any of the lake side cafe. After lunch take a cab to Monsoon Palace / Sajjan Garh by 2.30 pm. Cab will drop you till Sajjan Garh Biological Park entry gate. You need to collect your entry tickets from here. You can take your own vehicles to the top. If travelling by cab, then you need to wait in queue for forest department vehicle which is chargeable. There is only one cafe at the top to satiate your hunger. The palace is famous for its mesmerizing Sunset view. So, grab your seat as early as possible and enjoy the cool breeze till sunset. You can't get a lightened city view from the top unless you have your own vehicle to return.
It is difficult to get cab while returning back due to rush. If auto-rickshaw agrees to the amount shown on Uber / Ola app, then suggest you go ahead rather than waiting for the cab. By 7 pm, reach Hathi Pole Market / Bada Bazar and shop till 9 pm. Both the mentioned places are daily needs market in Udaipur (600 m away from each other) selling everything and anything you can imagine. If you wish to visit only the tourist market, then Jagdish Temple is the area you are looking for.
Day 4 - The day for Kumbhalgarh Fort
Start the day as early as possible by 6 - 7 am. Pre-book a taxi for Kumbhalgarh Fort with help from your hotel owner. AC Car will cost you around 2400 rs for a day. It is 100 km from Udaipur city and will take around 2.5 hours to reach the fort. Fort gates opens at 9 am and if you reach by that time you will get parking near to the ticket counter, else every hour delay will add 1 km walk to the ticket counter. Kumbhalgarh fort is a massive fort and will take entire day for detailed visit, but you can restrict it to few parts of the fort and finish it in 4 hours. Fort is the birthplace for Maharan Pratap and also it has the longest perimeter wall (32 km) after the Great Wall of China.
Leave the fort by 12 pm and start towards Ranakpur Jain Temple. It will take 2 hours (indulging lunch break on the way) to reach temple. It is a massive temple made up of light colored marble. Half an hour is sufficient to explore the temple. Half pants are not allowed in the temple so dress accordingly for the day.
After the temple visit, start by 3 pm and take a detour of 40 km for Haldighati. This mountain pass is a significant historical location and famous for the Battle of Haldighati. Maharana Pratap National Memorial is the attraction to look for. After finishing all the three places reach Udaipur by 8 pm and go for a rooftop cafe dinner enjoying the well-lit city.
Day 5: Mewar ki Shaan - Chittor
Chittorgarh does not need any introduction. Even the name itself is enough to bring out the goosebumps. The famous Rani Padmavati and her story still lives here in the fort. Chittorgarh is 124 km away from Udaipur and the best way to reach here is by train.
Udaipur to Chittor: 12991 Udz Jp Exp - 6 am to 8 am
Chittor to Udaipur: 12992 Jp Udz Exp - 7.25 pm to 9.30 pm
With the above trains, you will almost get 8 hours to explore the Chittorgarh. This fort has only one entry and one exit. Once you reach the entry gate you will see lot of auto-rickshaw and guide to take you for 2-4 hour tour and will charge around Rs. 600-800. Sometimes there is a heavy traffic at the fort and you end up spending close to an hour in vehicle only. I strongly suggest that you walk around the fort (total distance to cover 15 km) and take your own time at each spot. Lots of people still stay on fort and their houses are hundreds of years old. Talk to such people and discover the history on your own. If you are fond of the Custard Apple (Sitafal) fruit, Chittor fort have a lot of farms with these and you can buy at the cheapest price you can ever imagine.
Must see places to cover at the fort: View point, Kumbh Palace, Meera Palace, Museum (must visit to know the history of all the Mewar kings), Ratan Singh Palace, Jain Temple, Meera Temple, Victory Tower, Jauhar Spot (Near Victory Tower), Shadev Temple, Gaumukh Kund and Temple, Fatah Haweli, Kalika Temple, Padmini Palace, Jal Mahal, Padmini Lake, Kirti Stambh (Sunset Point).
When you visit the fort, everybody is fascinated to find the Jauhar Spot. As per history, there is no such single spot. Even the old pictures and stories tells that it has happened three times during the Mewar kingdom and that too at multiple locations in the fort. Though, every year Maharana does the pooja at Jauhar Kund which can be found near the Victory Tower (board is available).
Day 6 - A visit to other part of the city:
You can start a little late on this day. After a late brunch you can reach Sahelion Ki Bari at around 3 pm, which is famous for numerous fountains. You need to spent hardly half an hour here and then move to Moti Magri. Prefer to walk towards status of Mahanran Pratap at hill-top from the base. You will get one museum there which is worth stopping by. Watch the sunset at Moti Magri and then have a romantic evening walk alongside Fatesagar Lake. While returning you can have a dinner date.
Day 7 - Last day of the trip:
Itinerary depends on the checkout time of the hotel and your return journey. The only remaining attraction to cover is Lal Ghat and Bagore ki Haweli. Both are adjacent to each other and will take maximum two hours to cover. After that you can sit back and relax in any one of the cafes and conclude the trip.
Places not included in the itinerary:
1. Light & Music Show at City Palace / Bagore Ki Haweli / Kumbhalgarh / Moti Magri - If you a tech savvy guy and already aware of the history of Mewar kings then it will not fantasize you.
2. Eklingji Temple - 20+ km away from Udaipur and solo attraction in the area
3. Jaisamand Lake - 45+ km away from Udaipur and solo attraction in the area
4. Gulabh Bagh and Zoo - Not worth a visit
5. Shilpgram - Ideal to visit only during Shilpgram Festival during December
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