Rajasthan: Udaipur's Lake Palace, Jaipur's Pink City & India's Most Regal State

Rajasthan is India's most visually theatrical state — a landscape of rose-red desert, blue-walled medieval cities, and colossal hilltop fortresses that contain palaces of almost unimaginable grandeur. The Rajput kingdoms that ruled this region from the 7th century onwards were the wealthiest and most artistically sophisticated in the subcontinent; their palaces, many of which have been converted into luxury hotels, represent the apotheosis of Indian court architecture. A Rajasthan circuit — Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, and Udaipur — is among the great travel itineraries on earth.

Udaipur: The City of Lakes

Udaipur — built on the shores of Lake Pichola by Maharana Udai Singh II in 1559 — is widely considered the most romantic city in India. The city's characteristic white marble architecture, reflected in the still water of the lake, and the backdrop of the Aravalli Hills create a setting of extraordinary beauty. At the lake's centre, the Lake Palace Hotel (tajhotels.com/lake-palace-udaipur) — built as a royal summer retreat by Maharana Jagat Singh II in 1746, covering the entire 1.5-hectare Jag Niwas Island — is one of the most famous hotels in the world: a white marble fantasy appearing to float on the lake's surface. James Bond visited in Octopussy (1983). Rooms from $600/night, accessible only by hotel boat from the City Palace jetty.

The City Palace (udaipurcitysplace.gov.in) on the lakefront — an extraordinary complex of courtyards, galleries, towers, and pavilions built over four centuries — is the largest royal palace complex in Rajasthan and one of the finest in India. The Zenana Mahal paintings, the Moti Mahal mosaic work, and the Krishna Vilas miniature paintings are among the finest examples of Rajput court art.

Jaipur: The Pink City

Jaipur — the capital of Rajasthan — was built in 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II to a precise grid plan based on Vastu Shastra (Hindu sacred architecture principles), making it one of the earliest planned cities in the world. The entire old city was painted terracotta pink in 1876 to welcome the Prince of Wales — the colour has been maintained ever since, and the Pink City is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site (2019). The Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds) — a five-storey sandstone screen of 953 small windows through which the royal women could observe street life without being seen — is the city's most iconic building. The City Palace remains the residence of the former Maharaja of Jaipur; the public rooms contain some of the finest Rajput and Mughal art in India.

The Rambagh Palace (tajhotels.com/rambagh-palace) — the former residence of the Maharaja of Jaipur, converted to a hotel by the Taj Group — is the most magnificent hotel in Jaipur: 78 suites and chambers set in 47 acres of Mughal gardens, with a polo ground still used by the current Maharaja. Suites from $700/night.

Jodhpur: The Blue City

Jodhpur's old city is painted indigo blue — a tradition originally associated with the Brahmin caste's homes that spread across the entire mohalla — creating from the ramparts of Mehrangarh Fort (mehrangarh.org) a view of breathtaking visual strangeness: a blue sea of cubist rooftops below massive red sandstone walls. Mehrangarh itself is the greatest of all Rajput fortresses — 125 metres above the city on a sheer rock outcrop, its courtyards, apartments, and museums contain the most comprehensive collection of Rajput art, armour, and royal objects outside Delhi.

Raas Jodhpur (raasjodhpur.com) — a contemporary luxury hotel built into the fort's base with views of Mehrangarh from every room — is the finest hotel in Jodhpur. Rooms from $350/night.

Jaisalmer: The Golden City

Jaisalmer — deep in the Thar Desert, 280km west of Jodhpur — is built entirely from golden-yellow Jurassic sandstone that glows orange at sunset. The Jaisalmer Fort (one of the world's few living forts, with a permanent resident population inside its walls) and the extraordinary havelis (merchant mansions) of Patwon ki Haveli and Nathmalji ki Haveli — their facades covered in stone-lattice jali screens of extraordinary intricacy — represent the peak of Rajput desert architecture.

Getting There

Jaipur International Airport (JAI) is the primary gateway, served by direct flights from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and several Southeast Asian hubs, as well as frequent connections from Delhi (90 minutes) and Mumbai (90 minutes). IndiGo (goindigo.in) and Air India (airindia.in) offer the most comprehensive domestic connections.

Reference Links:

- Rajasthan Tourism: tourism.rajasthan.gov.in

- Taj Lake Palace Udaipur: tajhotels.com/lake-palace-udaipur

- Rambagh Palace Jaipur: tajhotels.com/rambagh-palace

- Mehrangarh Fort Museum Trust: mehrangarh.org

- Jaipur City Palace: jaipurcitypalace.gov.in

- Udaipur City Palace: udaipurcitysplace.gov.in

- Raas Jodhpur: raasjodhpur.com