Jodhpur Travel Guide: Mehrangarh, the Blue City and a Two-Day Plan

Jodhpur's sights fall into three groups: the fort and its neighbours on and below the hill, the old city's markets and stepwell, and a ring of gardens, lakes and temples around the edge. Start with the fort, early in the day.

Mehrangarh Fort

Mehrangarh rises from a hill 125 metres above Jodhpur's skyline, and Rajasthan Tourism notes that its second gate still carries the marks of cannonballs fired by Jaipur's armies. Rao Jodha, who gave Jodhpur its name, began the fort in 1459. The museum inside has seven period rooms, among them the Sheesh Mahal, Phool Mahal and Moti Mahal, and six galleries of howdahs, palanquins, textiles, paintings and arms. It is open every day from 9 am to 5 pm, and a one-way lift and an audio guide are available. Our Mehrangarh Fort tour allows two to three hours with a government-approved guide, and a vehicle takes you up to the entrance.

Jaswant Thada

A short drive from the fort, Jaswant Thada is a white marble memorial, often called the Taj Mahal of Marwar, built for Maharaja Jaswant Singh II by his son Sardar Singh. Its main hall is built like a temple, and puja is still performed there. A small museum of portraits explains the Marwar rulers, and the grounds host morning concerts during the Rajasthan International Folk Festival and the World Sacred Spirit Festival. The Mehrangarh Museum Trust looks after the memorial, which is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm. Our fort tour offers it as an add-on.

Umaid Bhawan Palace

Maharaja Umaid Singh built the palace in 1929, and Rajasthan Tourism says the project was meant to counter a famine that had hit the state. HV Lanchester designed it in sandstone and marble, blending Indo-Saracenic, Classical Revival and Art Deco styles, and it took 16 years to finish. It is one of the largest private homes in the world, and part of it is now a luxury hotel, so check what is open to visitors before you go.

Ghanta Ghar and Sardar Market

The Clock Tower stands at the heart of the old city, built by Maharaja Sardar Singh, from whom the adjacent Sardar Market takes its name. Rajasthan Tourism says the market is popular for spices, traditional clothes and jewellery, and that the tower is the start and end point of a heritage walk through the blue city. Incredible India names Ghantaghar Market, also called Clock Tower Road, and Tripolia Bazar as the best places for street food, so this is a good place to spend the evening. On both of our Rajasthan circuits, the first evening in Jodhpur goes to the Clock Tower and Sardar Market.

The blue old city

Houses across the old city below the fort are painted in vivid shades of blue, which is why Rajasthan Tourism calls Jodhpur the Blue City. Incredible India repeats a legend that the Brahmins, the priestly class, painted their houses blue to mark their caste and to keep them cool in summer. Its labyrinthine lanes are best explored on foot, with the fort walls always overhead. Allow an hour or two for wandering, and look up as well as ahead.

Toorji Ka Jhalra

This stepwell in the north of the city is believed to date from the 1740s, in the reign of Maharaja Abhay Singh, and served the desert city as a water source. Its symmetrical steps and carved walls make it one of Jodhpur's most photogenic corners, according to Incredible India. Our Royal Rajasthan Circuit and Rajasthan Grand Tour both include the restored stepwell, on an afternoon or late in the day.

Mandore

Mandore, about 15 km from the city, was the Rathore capital before Rao Jodha founded Jodhpur in 1459 and moved to the stronger site of Mehrangarh. Its garden holds the dewals, cenotaphs of Jodhpur's former rulers built along the lines of Hindu temples rather than in the usual umbrella shape. There are also a museum, a temple and an art gallery, and Rajasthan Tourism lists an evening light and sound show. The Mahamandir temple on Mandore road, with 84 pillars carved with yoga postures, is a short drive away.

Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park and Chokhelao Bagh

The park was created in 2006 to restore the natural ecology of 70 hectares of rocky wasteland beside the fort. You can enter from the Visitors Centre, 800 metres from the main fort gate, or walk in from other points, and a naturalist can lead you round. Below the fort, Chokhelao Bagh is a garden more than two hundred years old, now a botanical museum run by the Mehrangarh Museum Trust. Its lower terrace, the Mehtab Bagh, is planted with white flowers for night viewing.

Kaylana Lake and Machiya Safari Park

On the Jaisalmer road, Kaylana Lake is a small artificial lake and picnic spot with boating. Machiya Safari Park is about a kilometre further on, with a bird-watching point and animals such as deer, desert foxes, blue bulls and monitor lizards. Balsamand Lake, 5 km out on the Mandore road, is another picnic spot, with a summer palace on its shore. Together they make a half-day outside the old town.

Two nights suit Jodhpur: our Royal Rajasthan Circuit and Rajasthan Grand Tour both stay two nights, and the fort and museum alone take two to three hours with a guide. A short trip can manage one night, as our 14-day North India Classic does, but it leaves out Mandore and the stepwell.

Day 1: Mehrangarh Fort when it opens at 9 am, Jaswant Thada, then the Clock Tower and Sardar Market, ending with street food at Ghantaghar.

Day 2: Toorji Ka Jhalra, Mandore and its gardens, the Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park or a Bishnoi village safari, and the Flying Fox if you like heights.

The city sits between Pushkar and Jaisalmer on the classic loop: see our Rajasthan travel guide and the guides to Jaisalmer and Pushkar. Private tours of the city are on our Jodhpur tour packages page.