Rajasthan 5 weeks 2 adults + child itinerary (mach 1) suggstions and comments please

kristinm

We are 2 adults and 12 year old child, first timers on a budget of $200 AUD/day (about 6000 rupees for all of us including buying things using a conservative exchange rate) We arrive in Mumbai 30th December and leave Mumbai on 5th Feb.

I've decided to make a circle beginning and ending in Udaipur (just because it looks nice...) so..

Day 1 O'night Mumbai
Day 2 NY EVE!!! fly to Udaipur - (booked) 4 nights accom Haveli on the Lake (booked) settle in, buy some clothes, get organised and acclimatised).
Day 4: Udaipur to Ghanerao - bus or car? stay one night, see Ranakpur and Kumbalargh
Day 5 Ghanerao - Jodhpur - bus, train, car???
3 nights Jodhpur
Jodhpur - Phalodi 1 night accom - car or bus?
Phalodi - Jaisalmer (car or bus or train???) 3 nights in Jaisalmer

Next is the bit in the middle I'm not sure about so I'll post the specific question in another thread, but we want to end up in

Shekhawati for 2 nights - car and driver.
Shekhawati - Delhi 2 nights in Delhi or straight to Amritsar...
Delhi - Amritsar by train 2 or 3 nights in Amritsar?
Another 2 or 3 nights in Delhi depending on how we cope!
Agra 1 night
Alwar - 1 night
Jaipur 3 nights (too many?)
Bundi - 3 nights
Bundi - Udaipur via Chittorgarh
Udaipur 1 or 2 nights
Mumbai by plane - 3 or 4 nights in Mumbai to finish.


We want to be flexible - but as its peak season I feel I do need to be well organised I already found it difficult to book in Udaipur for the first week. I'm also trying to put in a few nights outside the major areas in one or two of the palace or fort hotels - such as the one in Ghanerao and maybe Neemrana Fort Palace, Castle Bijaipur or similar? We want some train and bus travel but not days on a bus, and happy to use car and driver where there are good things to stop and see along the way.

Any suggestions for getting between places, and good stops or diversions welcome - in fact any suggestions welcome!!!!! Thanks

Marco Polo

Hi Kristin,
I think that the itinerary is quite ok, but I would stay less days in Jaipur, which is a high hassle and dirty city and if you read stories in Indian Mike you'll realize it's better to skip Jaipur or just stop there for 1 day. It could also be a good idea to stop between Delhi and Amritsar to see Chandigarh or Mussoorie.

From Jodhpur to Jaisalmer the best option is to go by night train and to return on a train, which leaves Jaisalmer at 16:00 and arrives in Jodhpur at 21:50. Good places to stay are: Jaisal: Fifu's Guest House, Jodhpur: Haveli Guesthouse or Devi Bhawan.

From Jodhpur to Ghanerao, Ranakpur and Kumbalgarh and later on to Udaipur is probably best by private car.

Instead of Castle Bijaipur, Bassi fort might be an option. At least I think of it when were going to Rajasthan this summer.

Good luck!!!

kristinm

Hey thanks! The only change I've really considered is to go to Haridwar in the middle bit, so that would mean just one night in Shekhawati on the way from Jaisalmer to Delhi, and then train to Haridawar, back to Delhi, and then Amritsar and back to Delhi.. unless one can get between Haridwar and Amritsar in a more interesting way.. So then we will probably cut Jaipur down if we don't like it.

I was looking at Bassi Fort too - maybe we could have a night in each! I really want to stay in some of those Forts and Palaces places outside the big towns.

The nice thing is we have flexibility time wise, the problem is that as its peak season you do have to book ahead more - so that cuts your flexibility!

I'm still confused about Jaisalmer - Delhi, it seems a long way... and we should break it up. Shekhawati is one option (although that's a long way from Jaisalmer too!).. Maybe Phalodi should be in this leg rather than the Jodhpur - Jaisalmer leg?

Anybody got any other ideas?

When are you going Marco Polo?

Marco Polo

Hi Kristin,
I read your thread again and I realized that you're interested of going from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer (and not the opposite), so the night train leaving Jodhpur at 23:30 and arriving at Jaisalmer at 05:20 is surely the best option. Afterwards I would skip Phalodi and directly go by night bus (7 hours) from Jaisalmer to Bikaner, or go by day to Nagaur. Unfortunately there's no train to Bikaner. Bikaner isn't very interesting, but it could be a stop on the way to Shekhawati. Also there seem to be nicer camel safaris from Bikaner than from Jaisalmer, and Shekhawati is very near.

Jaisalmer-Jodhpur-Jaipur-Shekhawati doesn't make sense and you'll lose a lot of time.

Cheers,
Marco

P.S.: We're going to India in August.

Mickey S

Don't skip Phalodi! It's a lovely, laid-back little town with beautiful old havelis in various states of disrepair and a little fort. Lal Niwas is a great place to stay (but get a room at the back of the haveli, because the road outside can be quite noisy late into the night). The town of Khichan, just outside Phalodi, is the winter home to thousands of migratory birds and it's an awesome sight to see them all coming down to feed at sunrise. You can then have breakfast and pick up the Delhi-Jaisalmer express from Phalodi (at about 9.30am, I think).

There is a new railway line from Phalodi to Bikaner, which will make travelling from Jaisalmer to Bikaner very easy (there'll be through trains). The line was completed at the end of 2006 and will probably be in operation by the end of this year.

3 nights in Amritsar is probably too many. It's a grubby, unappealing place. If you stay two nights then you could do the Golden Temple in the morning and go to the Pakistani border for the evening ceremony.

Spend more time in Agra. There's a lot to see besides the Taj Mahal. And don't forget the Taj is closed on Fridays.

kristinm

Thanks, I think you're right about Amritsar, two nights would mean a morning and evening viewing of the temple and the border ceremony on the next evening. I will stop in Phalodi, but the next bit is still up in the air.

So far - in between Jaisalmer and Delhi I want to get to Amritsar and then to Haridwar (A new addition) and then Delhi and just a day around Shekhawati.

I posted another thread about whether to take the Nh15 from Bikaner to Amritsar, or whether to go another way from Jaisalmer to Amritsar - via Skekhawati? Via Delhi? .... Hmmmmm

Mickey S

Here's an alternative itinerary to consider.

From Jodhpur take morning train to Barmer and then (after lunch there) bus through desert to Jaisalmer.
Jaisalmer - Phalodi by train.
Phalodi - Bikaner by train.
Bikaner - Shekhawati - Jaipur with car and driver.
Jaipur - Amritsar by train (there's a convenient overnight express)
Amritsar - Delhi - Agra - Ranthambore National Park - Bundi by train

This avoids retracing your steps. And instead of spending yet more time in Udaipur at the end of the trip you might consider going to Pushkar for a couple of days' relaxation (the Seventh Heaven guest house is the best place to stay) before returning to Mumbai. There are a couple of convenient overnight trains from Ajmer (nearest railway station to Pushkar) to Mumbai.

Aishah

I would plan to stay a night in the Shekawati region - maybe at Mandawa, to see this area you need some walking around the towns with the murals and you can't really see in a day and move on to Delhi the same night. You have plenty of time. Also you might find it easier if you are going Jaisalmer - Phalodi - Shekawati to take a car. A car is a must around the Shekawati region - very difficult by local transport unless you have plenty of time, the roads are also not the best and quite slow going. By public transport I think you would have to change trains at Pokoran for Phalodi, not sure that the train goes through it en route to Jodhpur and haven't my book with me to check this out. Perhaps one of the train experts can help out here. The same would go for buses , personally I think a bit of a hassle and easier with a car. Also with your budget you would have the means to do this, and save a lot of waiting about for transport at this stage. The other way would be bus to Bikaner, skipping Phalodi, (Fort and Palace here) and direct Bikaner by car to Shekawati. Incidentally, there is also a day bus to Bikaner from Jaisalmer. Actually, with your time scale I wouldn't worry too much about the fine tuning of your itinerary because much of this can be done as you go- the trains are the only things for pre-booking around New Year, Jaisalmer - Jodhpur, gets booked up in the good classes for much of January so sort out when you need this one. Buses are always available, no worries there. And you can hire a car at any time so no need to pre-book this.