Jaipur Travel Guide: Forts, Bazaars and How to Plan Your Days

Jaipur's sights sit in two clusters: the forts in the Aravalli hills above the city, Amber, Jaigarh and Nahargarh, and the walled old city, where the City Palace, Jantar Mantar and Hawa Mahal stand close together. Plan a day for each.

Amber Fort (Amer)

Amber, pronounced Amer, was the seat of the Kachwaha rulers before they moved their capital down to Jaipur. Raja Man Singh I began the palace in 1592, and UNESCO lists it among the six hill forts of Rajasthan. Courtyards lead from the Diwan-e-Aam, the hall of public audience, to the mirror-work Sheesh Mahal, and restored tunnels run up to Jaigarh. It is about 11 km from the city: on foot you enter by the Suraj Pol, by car through the Chand Pol, and both open into the Jaleb Chowk courtyard. Our guided Amber Fort visit is timed to beat the coach groups.

City Palace

Sawai Jai Singh II, Jaipur's founder, began the City Palace, and later rulers added to it. Most of the complex is the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum, with galleries of royal dress, arms and paintings around a run of courtyards entered through the Virendra Pol. A separate Royal Tour, sold only at the ticket counter, goes into parts of the seven-storey Chandra Mahal, which is still the former royal family's home. The palace gives Badi Chaupar as its nearest metro station.

Hawa Mahal

The Hawa Mahal, or Palace of Winds, was built in 1799 by Sawai Pratap Singh so that women of the royal household could watch life on the street without being seen. Its five-storey pink sandstone front is a screen of small latticed windows, and the classic view is from across the road. Go inside too: the entrance is at the back, ramps rather than stairs lead up, and the top floors look down the bazaar. Rajasthan's archaeology department runs it, with a museum in the courtyard.

Jantar Mantar

Beside the City Palace, Jantar Mantar is the observatory Sawai Jai Singh II completed in 1734, the largest of the five he built, according to Rajasthan Tourism, and a World Heritage Site since 2010. Its giant masonry instruments measure time and track the sun, stars and planets; the 27-metre Samrat Yantra is a sundial accurate to about two seconds. The shapes mean little without an explanation, so hire a guide or take the audio guide, and start at the interpretation centre.

Albert Hall Museum

Jaipur's Government Central Museum fills the Albert Hall in Ram Niwas Garden, an Indo-Saracenic building designed by Samuel Swinton Jacob; the Prince of Wales laid its foundation stone in 1876. The collection runs from miniature paintings of the Bundi, Kota, Kishangarh, Udaipur and Jaipur schools to carpets, arms, metalwork and an Egyptian mummy. The building is lit up after dark and the museum stays open into the evening, which makes it a good last stop after a day in the old city.

Nahargarh Fort

Nahargarh runs along the Aravalli ridge that forms the city's northern backdrop. Built in 1734 under Sawai Jai Singh II and enlarged in 1868, it holds the Madhavendra Bhawan, a palace of matching queens' suites joined by painted corridors, and a contemporary sculpture park. Its ramparts overlook the whole city, and the fort is floodlit at night. It is about 20 km by road from the railway station, with no public transport up, so go by taxi or car, and check the closing time for your date, as official listings differ.

Jaigarh Fort

Jaigarh stands on the Cheel ka Teela ridge, about 15 km from Jaipur, and was built in the early 18th century to guard Amber Fort below; its walls run for more than 3 km. It served as the Kachwahas' cannon foundry, and the Jaivana, a huge cannon on wheels made for Jai Singh II, is still on show. The views take in Amber Fort and Maota Lake, and restored tunnels link the two forts, so they are easily seen in one morning.

Jal Mahal

The Jal Mahal rises from the middle of Man Sagar Lake, framed by the hills behind. What you see is only its top storey; the lower floors are under the water. The palace is not open to visitors, so this is a stop on the lakeside, where food stalls gather in the evening. A few minutes on the bank are enough for the photograph.

Galtaji

Galtaji is an old pilgrimage site in the low hills on the edge of the city: temples and pavilions built around natural springs that fill seven holy tanks, or kunds. The resident troop of monkeys gives it the name Monkey Temple, and the small Surya Mandir on the hilltop above can be seen from across Jaipur. Pilgrims come in large numbers at Makar Sankranti in January to bathe in the tanks.

Birla Mandir and Moti Doongri

At the foot of Moti Doongri hill, the white-marble Birla Mandir, or Lakshmi Narayan temple, was built by the Birla family in 1988 and is lit up at night. Also at the foot of the hill, the Moti Doongri Ganesh temple dates from the early 18th century and is, in Rajasthan Tourism's words, the city's most important temple; above it stands a palace modelled on a Scottish castle that still belongs to the royal family. Birla Mandir closes in the middle of the day: Incredible India gives 8 am to noon and 4 to 8 pm.

The bazaars of the walled city

The old city's market streets are part of the sightseeing. Johari Bazaar sells jewellery and textiles; Bapu Bazaar mojaris, camel-leather shoes and textiles; Tripolia Bazaar bangles, fabrics and carpets; and Chandpole Bazaar carved marble. Rajasthali, the state government's showroom on MI Road, sells crafts from across Rajasthan. Most markets close on Sundays. Our Jaipur city tour leaves the afternoon or evening for the bazaars, with a government-approved guide for the day.

Chand Baori, Abhaneri

About 90 km from Jaipur on the Agra road, the village of Abhaneri has the Chand Baori, a 9th-century stepwell whose 3,500 narrow steps descend three of its sides in a precise geometric pattern, with a three-storey pavilion of carved balconies on the fourth. The 9th–10th-century Harshat Mata temple stands beside it. Because it lies off the road between Jaipur and Agra, it breaks that drive well.

Look for leopards at Jhalana, a 1,978-hectare forest on the city's south-eastern edge where safaris also turn up striped hyenas, golden jackals and desert foxes. Cook a Rajasthani thali: our Jaipur cooking class is a hands-on session making dal baati churma, gatte ki sabzi and, for meat eaters, laal maas with a local host, and you eat everything you make; it runs all year, indoors.

In the evening, watch the sound-and-light show at Amber Fort, in English or Hindi; walk round the floodlit Albert Hall; eat from the street-food stalls of Masala Chowk in Ram Niwas Bagh, busiest after dark; or see a Hindi film at the Raj Mandir, a single-screen cinema opened in 1976 just off MI Road.

For crafts, the Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing in a restored haveli in Amber explains the block printing Jaipur is known for, from Sanganeri and Bagru prints to Dabu. Jawahar Kala Kendra has exhibitions, theatre and music, and hot-air balloon flights take off over the city. To eat, try kachori, mirchi bada, ker sangri, laal maas and ghevar, a sweet made for festivals; our guide to what to eat in Rajasthan has more. Guided versions of much of this are on our Jaipur tours and experiences page.

Two full days see the main sights; a third leaves time for a day trip or a slower pace.

Day 1, the hills: Amber Fort first thing, before the coach groups, then Jaigarh above it, Jal Mahal on the way back and Nahargarh late in the day.

Day 2, the old city: the City Palace and Jantar Mantar in the morning, Hawa Mahal and the bazaars after lunch, and Albert Hall in the evening.

Day 3: Galtaji and the Moti Doongri temples, a leopard safari at Jhalana, the cooking class, or a day out to Abhaneri's stepwell or Sambhar Lake, an inland salt lake about 70 km away where flamingos gather.

Several of our Rajasthan routes begin here: see our private Jaipur tour packages, or plan onward with our Rajasthan travel guide and the guides to Pushkar and Ranthambore.

Jaipur Metro's single line runs from Mansarovar through the Railway Station and Sindhi Camp stops to Chandpole, then underground beneath the walled city to Chhoti Chaupar and Badi Chaupar. Auto-rickshaws, taxis and city buses cover the rest: buses to Amber leave from Ajmeri Gate and MI Road and take about 40 minutes, but Nahargarh has no public transport. On our tour packages, a private car and driver are part of the trip.

Stay in or near the walled city if you want the City Palace, Hawa Mahal and the bazaars within walking distance. If you would like to sleep in an old haveli or palace, Rajasthan Tourism publishes a list of certified heritage properties. Temples expect covered shoulders and knees, and shoes come off at the door, so wear a pair that slips off easily.