Wow! Hate to barge in on all this, but I need suggestions!

I am leaving in 4 days for India with my son (24). We only have 14 days (his vacation limit), and I want him to see the Taj. After that, I had planned to go to Rajasthan because it seemed so colorful ( I did the Delhi, Agra, Jaipur thing in '90). I'm starting to wonder if I should maybe do the Varanasi thing instead? I know this is an opinion based question, but thats what I'm looking for. Is Varanasi better (in your opinion), than Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Udaipur?

Also, my original question was, should I hire a car, or try the trains? The car I had in '90 was great! I saw a lot of country, and still had transportation around town. I gather most of the people here take the train, but I think it's because they have much more time, and maybe not as much cash. I don't want to throw my money away, but I do have the luxury of being able to afford a car if I want ( I'm guessing $40 -45 pr. day?). On the other hand, what about a combination? I could I do a train to somewhere and then hire a car/driver there? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated - and I won't complain about comments on my short stay - I just don't have any other choice.
Thanks for any comments!
Rob

Robv,
In 14 days you can do both I think. If you do only Agra and Varanasi then its too much of time to spend there I think.

Spend 5 days for Agra & Varanasi - take train from Agra to Varanasi and get back to Delhi by night train from Vrs.

Rest of the days spread it across Rajasthan. Take a train to Jaisalmer from Delhi Sarai Rohila Station, Spend 4 days in Jas - 2 days city tour and 2 days camel safari, take train from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur. In Jaisalmer, stay in the fort area.

My personal opinion: Jaisalmer is highly underrated while Jodhpur was grossly overated! Jodhpur - just 2 days is fine - two things to see there Fort, Umaid Bhawan.

From Jodhpur u need to get to Udaipur. This u can do by bus or cab. There is no direct rail link. Search the forum as I rem people have asked how to get to Udaipur by train from Jodhpur.

From Udaipur u can take train to Delhi. Cab is fine for Delhi to Jaipur or Delhi to Agra but beyond that it becomes very tiring. These days you can hire SUVs like Toyota Qualis or new Innova for long journeys. But its gets so hot in Rajasthan, u need a really cool cab if ur taking one!

all the best,

Agree with SoulStation -- you can easily do both Agra-Varanasi and Rajasthan. Travelling just by car for such long distances would be quite tiring so I'd recommend doing it just with train or combining both modes if you like the freedom of having a car.

Anybody else have any opinions/recommendations/ideas?

I thought it sounded interesting, but my son is not too keen on it. Anybody else have thoughts on it?
Thanks!

To have a real cool time would suggest - to cover Delhi - Agra- Jaipur- Jodhpur- Jaisalmer - Udaipur- Delhi which would wrap around to about 2500km.

And with the summer vacations at the nearest, ticket availability needs to be checked out, based on which an option would be to travel by train to one of the destinations and rest can be covered by hiring out a car

Rajasthan is mainly famous for its forts & Palaces,Mystical Desert
Jaipur - Capital city of Rajasthan "Pink City" is about 250 km from Delhi, and your starting point for Rajasthan, is famous for Amber Fort, jantar mantar, hawa mahal, city palace & Sisodia Rani Ka Bagh. Also for the textile block prints, semi precious jewelry, handicraft items.
Jodhpur - 250 km from Jaipur, "Blue City" is second city of Rajasthan is famous for Mehrangarh Fort, Umed Bhawan Palace, museum and handicrafts.
Jaisalmer - 275 Kms from Jodhpur, "Golden City" famous for the Jaisalmer Fort, Patwon-ki-haveli, sand dunes, and ideal for camel rides and safaris.
Udaipur
420 km from Jaipur on Jaipur-Mumbai highway also called "City of Lakes" Also called "Venice of East" is famous for lakes, palaces (Lake Palace Hotel), city palace, puppet museum, miniature paintings.

You could also checkout Mount Abu - 190 Kms from Udaipur & 27 Km from Abu, is the only hill resort of Rajasthan famous for Dilwara Temples, Guru Shikar, and Nakki Lake.

And wrt to camel rides, can check it out in Jaisalmer - would be worth for a day with the night spent in the deserts.

And as for Varnasi as its mainly a pilgrimage place, if interested can go for a visit to see the ganges, the pilgrims, and the temples.

Enjoy the best of all,
dibbi

Personally, I'd encourage you to try to fit Varanasi in if you can. It's going to be hot there, but Agra and Rajasthan will only be hotter. It's proably a bit late to consider visiting a hill station, but a place like Shimla or Dharamsala might give a pleasant contrast to hotter-than-hell heat you'll be enjoying in the plains. The himalayas are rather dramatic mountains, much more so than our Cascades.