Explore Udaipur – A Fascinating City
Udaipur the “City of Lakes” is one of the most romantic and most beautiful cities. The pictorial lakes, shimmering palaces, beautiful lush green gardens, lively workplaces and culture fascinates foreign and domestic travelers.
Udaipur’s marvelous architecture & beauty have earned it the title of a Heritage city.
Places to see:
Visit City Palace, located on the banks of Pichola Lake. City Palace is a blend of European, Medieval and Chinese styles of architecture that houses 11 magnificent palaces. This palace built by Maharana Udai Mirza Singh in the year 1559. Explore antiques and exclusive paintings inside.
Udaipur’s marvelous architecture & beauty have earned it the title of a Heritage city.
Places to see:
Visit City Palace, located on the banks of Pichola Lake. City Palace is a blend of European, Medieval and Chinese styles of architecture that houses 11 magnificent palaces. This palace built by Maharana Udai Mirza Singh in the year 1559. Explore antiques and exclusive paintings inside.
Entrance of City Palace - Udaipur. Photo by Travayegeur ( Sahil ) / C.C. BY 2.0
While entering the City Palace spare some time and explore nearby Pratap Museum that housed with old sculptures and inscriptions. Watch out antique paintings of Mewar, the turban of prince Khurram later on called Shahajahan, who built world fame Taj Mahal.
Visit Bagore Ki Haveli located near Pichola Lake to get a glimpse of the culture of Mewar. This massive building of unique style of construction built in 18th century by Amir Chand Badwa, Chief Minister at the Royal court of Mewar. In the year 1878, The Haveli became the residence of Maharaja Shakti Singh of Bagore so the name “Bagore Ki Haveli”.
Visit stunning Kumbhalgarh Fort standing formidably on 1180 m high ridge and protected by 13 mountain peaks of Aravali. Built by Maharaja Kumbha in the 15th century, the fort is the birthplace of the famous warrior and King of Mewar, Maharaja Pratap.
Visit the picturesque Lake Pichola surrounded by huge hills, magnificent palaces, temples and bathing ghats. Enjoy lovely views of the town while cruising in Lake Pichola, especially in the evenings.
On the east side of Lake Pichola is Gulab Bagh & Zoo. A spectacular rose Garden laid out by Maharaja Sajjan Singh, situated near the palace. Go through a library in the garden to see a rare collection of ancient handwritten manuscripts and books.
Visit Sajjangarh (Monsoon Palace) that offers a panoramic overview of the city’s lakes, palaces and surrounding countryside. Viewing sunset from here is thing to experience. The palace looks its best during the rainy season.
The palace is 100 ft high above the surrounding and 3100 ft from sea level, built by Maha Rana Sajjan Singh in 1884 with the aim of creating an observatory to know the arrival of monsoon as well as predict weather conditions.
Visit Jagdish Temple, a major monument raised on a tall terrace depicting Indo-Aryan architecture.
It attaches a double storeyed Mandapa (hall) to a double – storied, Saandhara (that having a covered ambulatory) sanctum. The mandapa has another storey tucked within its pyramidal Samavarna (bell-roof) while the hollow clustered spire over the sanctum contains two more, non-functional stories. Lanes taking off from many of the Sheharpanah (city wall) converge on the Jagdish Temple and walking leisurely through them brings you face with the many layers of the cultural palimpsest that Udaipur is.
Visit Dudh Talai, a beautiful laid out “Rock Garden” from where you can enjoy sunset view in Lake Pichola and panoramic view of old city. Music fountain is another attraction for the visitors.
Pay a visit to Pratap Smarak (Memorial). Atop the Moti Magri or Pearl Hill, overlooking the Fateh Sagar Lake is the memorial of the Rajput hero Maharana Pratap with a bronze statue of the Maharana astride his favorite horse “Chetak”
Visit Fateh Sagar, a beautiful lake overlooked by a number of hills on the three sides and the Pratap Memorial on the north. In the middle of the lake is Nehru Park – a lovely garden island with a boat shaped café accessible by an enjoyable boat ride.
Visit Sahelion-ki-Bari (Garden of the maids of honour): .This small ornamental garden was a popular relaxing spot where royal women came for a stroll and hence the name. The garden has many fountains in its four delightful pools, chiseled kiosks and the marble elephants.
Visit Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandal to explore an interesting collection of folk dresses, ornaments, puppets, masks, dolls folk musical instruments, folk deities and paintings.
3 km from Udaipur is Ahar Museum. Ahar boasts of a profusion of royal cenotaphs of the rulers of Mewar. A rare collection of antiquities like earthen pots, iron objects and other art items excavated in the region are displayed here.
Visit The Terracotta Museum, the museum of masks, folk and musical instruments. .
In the middle of Lake Pichola is the island palace Jag Mandir, where emperor Shahajahan, who built world fame Taj Mahal, sought refuse from his father emperor Jahangir.
In the mutiny of 1857 A.D., the Indian regiments stationed at neemach (M.P.) rebelled. English officers and women with their children had taken refuge in a village named Dungla. Later, Maharana Swaroop Singh brought them to Udaipur in safety and they were kept in comfort in Jag Mandir, until order restored.
3 km away from Udaipur is Shilpgram, an artisan’s village, set up by West Zone cultural centre. Shilpgram is a living ethnographic museum depicting life style, traditions, customs and folk arts of the rural and tribal people of the states of Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Daman etc.
There are several huts constructed in the traditional architectural style using mud and local building material to reflect the geographical and ethnic diversity of the different states of west zone of India.
Every year, more than a lakh visitors visit this village. Shiplgram spread out in an area of 55 acres, surrounded by Aravali Mountains.
Best time to visit Udaipur
Visit Udaipur between Novembers until February, which is a winter season. During this period, weather remains very pleasant with temperature hovers between 30 degrees Celsius max.and 12 degrees Celsius min. The annual Shilpgram Crafts Fair is also held during this period.
Alternatively, plan your Udaipur vacation, during July until Octobers, which is a monsoon season when the surrounding mountain range turns lush green and scenic. This is also an off-season in Udaipur, a perfect time for budget travelers to get good hotel and travel deals.
Where to stay in Udaipur:
To cater to the ever-rising tourist needs, Udaipur has all types of hotels & restaurants.
A large number of hotels in Udaipur were heritage havellis. The heritage hotels offer a chance to experience the true culture of the city.
Budget travelers can stay in hotels like Jagat Niwas Palace hotel having features like superb dining and offers wonderful views - starting from INR 1500.
Another one is Jaiwana Haveli comes with excellent service and wonderful views - starting from INR 2400
Spend some more and you will have mid scale hotels that offers you better comforts and luxury at cut-away prices. Try Trident Hotel Udaipur that offers great location, excellent service and tasty breakfast - starting from INR 5900.
Another ones are Sheraton Udaipur Palace Resorts & Spa offers wonderful views and excellent service starting from INR 5600 and Fateh Garh, which comes with superb dining, and offers wonderful views of surrounding area – starting from INR 7000
For Luxury travelers, there are star hotels like Taj Lake Palace and The Leela Palace Udaipur that offers wonderful views, excellent service available in the range of from INR16500 to INR 19500.
*Please note: hotel rates may change from time to time.
Food to taste:
Dal-Batti-Churma, Gatte-Ki-Sabji, Kachori and Mirch Bada are the main draw here. Meals are usually comprised of lentils, vegetables and very tasty spices. Lentil curries, yogurt soups with deep fried breads and chili fritters make the favorite feast. Orca, dried mango and Sangri (beans) go together with most of the meals.
Visit Natraj and Bawarchi restaurants that serve Rajasthani cuisine and Paratha Hut is famous for lip-smacking paraths.
Udaipur Shopping:
Shop for captivating collection of exquisite beauty dainty folk toys, brightly colored garments, hand printed textiles, batiks, silver jewellery, wooden toys, tie and dye saree and fabrics.
The main shopping places are Rajasthan Government Handicraft emporium – a shopper’s delight, Chetak Circle, Bapu Bazar, City Market, Hathipole and Lake Palace Road.
Udaipur Festivals:
The Mewar festival celebrated to welcome the advent of spring. It coincides with the festival of Gangaur in Udaipur, and has a unique charm about it.
The festival of Gangaur is very significant for women of Rajasthan when they dress up in best clothes and participate in the festival. They gather to dress the image of Isar and Gangaur and then carry them in ceremonial procession through different parts of the city. The procession winds its way to the Gangaur Ghat at Lake Pichola where the images transferred to special boats amidst much singing and festivity.
Teej: Celebrated mainly by the women folk of Rajasthan. Married women who idolize Parvati for her devotion to her husband Shiva celebrate Teej. It comes in the month of July-August. Young girls and women dressed in green clothes sing songs in celebration of the advent of the monsoon.
The Shiplgram Utsav organized every year from 23 December to January 1st, attracts massive crowd, creating a scene of rural market fair and festival with live performance of folk artists from different parts of the country.
The 10-day festival is a treat for the visitor to an array of exquisite art and craft.
How to go:
By Air: The International airport in Udaipur known as Maharana Pratap Airport (Dabok Airport) is 24 km from the city centre. Airlines like Jet Airways, Air India, Spice Jet, IndiGo, Go Air have daily flights to and from Udaipur from all major cities in India like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Jaipur
By Rail: Udaipur lies on a vast network of rail that connects it to major cities in India such as Jaipur, Delhi, Kolkata, Indore, Mumbai and Kota.
Some of the popular trains that run daily are Mewar Express, Gwalior-Udaipur Express, Bandra-Udaipur SF Express, Chetak Express and Annanya Express.
One of India’s most famous and luxurious trains, The Palace on Wheels, makes a scheduled stop at Udaipur.
By Road: A wide network of bus services link Udaipur with several destinations.
The paved roads reduce a significant time if you are using private vehicles to Udaipur via Chittorgarh, Kota, Ahmedabad, Surat and Mumbai.
For Local transportation, there are unmetered taxis, auto rickshaws, Tongas and city buses.
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