Transport advice, Rajasthan, October

Sam From NZ

Hi all,

Thanks for making this such a great site! I'm hoping you will also be able to help me with some advice...

My girlfriend and I are travelling Rajasthan/Delhi/Agra in early October this year for 8 nights, 9 days as part of our first trip to India. Our itinerary looks like this:
-Day 1: Arrive Delhi, connect to Jodhpur by air, arriving Jodhur 1325
-Day 2: Jodhpur
-Day 3: Jeep to Jaisalmer
-Day 4: Camel safari, overnight in the desert
-Day 5: Back to Jaisalmer, jeep to Udaipur in the afternoon
-Day 6: Udaipur
-Day 7: Udaipur, then fly to Delhi in the afternoon/evening
-Day 8: Day visit to Agra
-Day 9: All day in Delhi before flying out to Bangkok

We'd really appreciate advice on any of the following questions:

1. We are arriving in Delhi on an international flight from Bhutan at 1015am. We are then planning to get through customs and immigration, get over to the domestic terminal and check in for a domestic flight to Jodhpur that leaves at 1205pm. Is 2 hours enough time to do all of that?
2. Is there a faster way to travel around in Rajasthan? For instance, would it save us much time to drive back to Jodhpur and then fly to Udaipur, rather than driving Jaisalmer-Udaipur? How much would this add to the cost? I've heard the Jaisalmer-Udaipur drive is about 6 hours, does that sound right?
3. How much would we pay to hire a driver for our whole time in Rajasthan vs. hiring a new driver each time? Is it easy to hire a new driver in each of those destinations?
4. I know SpiceJet fly out of Ahmedabad to Delhi, and this is a better option for us from a schedule and cost perspective (assuming it's easy to get to Ahmedabad...) What is the fastest way to get from Udaipur to Ahmedabad, how long does it take and how much would it cost? I'm trying to work out if we are better off taking SpiceJet out of Ahmedabad at 2025pm, or Indian Airlines out of Udaipur at 1640pm.
5. Any recommendations on the best/cheapest domestic flights would also be appreciated. Air Deccan seems to be cheaper than the others, but I've heard its planes are older. Any comments?

Thanks in advance!

BenV

Since you have such a tight schedule, I am not sure whether you want to waste time on Jodhpur. I reckon most of the IndiaMike dwellers will argue there definitely are more interesting place to see.
<edit>But then again, the Jodhpur airport probably is the civil airport closest to Jaisalmer!</edit>

We have more or less the same question. We will be arriving at Ghandi International Airport and wonder whether we will make it through customs over to the railway station near Connaught Place in two hours. We have heard/ read many disturbing stories about the fantastic bureaucracy so we reckon this is not possible..

Sam From NZ

Thanks for your advice!

LuAnnandJawahar

1. It COULD work but it is terribly tight. Usually it takes 2 hours but it depends on so so many factors.......
2. Jaisalmer to Udaipur is about 12 hours. Your day 5 will not work.
3. If you're traveling in a circuit it's better to get one car. If you are not making a circle trip then it's probably best to get a car only where you really need it. A car hired in Rajasthan will be cheaper than one hired from Delhi for several reasons.
4. Don't understand this question.
5. We've persnally never flown anything domestically but Indian Airlines, and whenever possible, Jet Airways so can't comment on Spice or Air Deccan. Jet Airways is consistently good service in our opinion but certainly not always the cheapest.

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Sam From NZ

Thank you for the advice!