Bikaner, worth the time?

Hello, anyone has been in Bikaner?
me and my friends are thinking spend one day or two there. we are looking for a desert town but not so turisitic as Jaisalmer, Do you think that Bikaner worth the time?
We have hear also that you can do good excursions riding camel, anyone has done one?

Ola FB. I was in Bikaner about four years ago for the Camel Fair in January. Loved it.

Bikaner is not on the same tourist trail as other places in Rajasthan, even though I also loved Jaisalmer too. There are many camel safaris from Bikaner, though I didn't take one (camels are not my thing)

I think the camel safaris were supposed to be cheaper and sometimes better out of Bikaner than Jaisalmer, but we should see if someone out there has personal experience

Hi FB, Bikanaer is a great little city, not a lot of tourists, but an intersting old city with some lovely havellis, the fort is a pearler, one of the finest and best preserved in Rajasthan. The rat temple at Deshnok about 20 kms out of town is a great freak out. We have visited there three times now and have enjoyed the feel of the place. Last time we did a walk through the old town with a guide called Gouri, he also has a guest house but I can't locate his contact details, he was a nice guy, good english and (Ithink), sincere. The camel farm was interesting too, and the sweets in Bikaner are reputed to be the best in Rj, and I wouldn't argue that! Enjoy.

I definitely liked Bikaner and think it is worth the time. Great to take a camel tour as it is cheaper than in Jaisalmer. Also the camel farm is great to see and of course there is the Deshnok temple.

Yeah! All the above is true - and - I (and our driver) got a haircut there for 50Rp. We enjoyed Bikaneer.

We stayed there last March for a couple of days and also liked the town.

An unusual attraction in Bikaner is the Rat Temple, where rats are fed and worshipped. It is considered very good luck if one touches you. You will have to take off your shoes (standard temple practice) so do wear heavy socks.

When in Bikaner don't stay in hotel Joshi, it's a dive and overpriced.

Bikaner ----i love it most
Bikaner is my native palace where i lived in,it is most peaceful,silent city that has a vivid shades of its cultural heritage,its temple,Junagarh fort,Lallgarh palace,Laxmi niwas mahal,mansions and Havelis that around one thousand in number approximately allure the tourist great,
Shimmering sand dunes its beauty and desert ship camel and its camel breeding farm are most point of interest.
a holy palace of saint kapil at kapilmuni dham at kolayat and Inter national temple of rats of Goddess Karni mata has its uniqueness in world map,thousand of tourist of foreign country visited and come again and again to witness its cultural heritage.The festival of RAJASTHAN ARE BEING CELEBRATED WITH ZEST AND ZEAL AND GAIETY,i will submit my photographs to speak out itself and make your mind to visit my city.Another one more thing Bikaner is much more cheap to other city of Rajasthan

I know gouri he is nice guy and run a guest house which is old city you can google Shanti House then you can find lot information about him.

Do it!! Go.

I am in love with Bikaner.Was hands down my favorite stop.My regret is I didn't stay longer.What a refreshing friendly stop on my travels.
I stayed at Harasar Haveli for 500 rupees in a basic room with a ceiling fan.Bilal who runs the front desk is so nice,professional,happy to help and very good at his job.The food there is also very good.
My first day I hired an auto rickshaw for the day to go to Deshnok to see the Karni mata rat temple.It is 30 km from town,then I went to the Camel farm.

The Rat temple is incredible,I thought I would squeal if a Rat touched me,but when one jumped of the ledge on the bottom of the wall and bounced off the side of my leg,or when one ran over the top of my foot..I wasn't the least bit worried ;P people in the temple were very pleased to see me there,very proud of their temple and a nice family sat with me outside the temple after and bought me some sugarcane juice.

I spent the next day wandering the streets,it was just before Holi last year.I stumbled upon a big celebration of singing and dancing in the street,there were men dressed as women dancing in the middle of the cheering crowd,and 2 t.v cameras taping the event.
When thet saw me approach everyone was clapping and cheering and hands grabbed me from all over and pulled me into the crowd,I was crammed in like a sardine,I was motioned to raise my arms and dance with the men dressed as women
So I went with the flow,then a man came and was pulling me out of the crowd as the crowd was trying to pull me back in...
The man was a tv news reporter who wanted to do an interview with me.
On the same day there was a wedding party going thru the streets and I was pulled in to join them as well.I met a really nice guy who took me to see where they do all the silk screening,hand dying and hand embriodered materials,he showed me a family making poppadoms,took me all over showed me old buildings,fancy hotels,bought me lunch and wanted and asked for nothing.I dont even remember being bothered by a tout or a beggar once.
The nicest people I met on my journey was in Bikaner.

Listen to me trying to sell you on Bikaner
So the answer to your question is...YES! It is worth the stop.
I loved it so much I am going back on my next trip to India this comming January. I want to try the camel safari I never went on.

I also found it cheap for shopping like Jodphur as well.

I agree, Bikaner is definitely worth a visit. Junagarh Fort is exquisite. The camel research institute was very interesting, and shopping was great. I really enjoyed my time in Bikaner.