JAIPUR ITINERARY: 2 NIGHTS

Weekend with Family in Jaipur

2 Nights is too short to cover a place as gorgeous and full of Heritage as JAIPUR but sometimes when you are travelling and wanting to cover a country as diverse and huge as India that is the maximum you can spend at one location. So here are some suggestions to make the most of your time.   

When travelling with the family, picking the right location to stay is very important. M.I. Road, Hathroi Fort, Bunny Park are a few areas that lie right at the heart of the city and very close to most of the sight-seeing. That said Raja Park and Moti Doongri area are very central too. Pick from one of the many hotels in these areas so sightseeing becomes very convenient.

For your packing needs, you may want to check my previous posts on this blog:

PACKING FOR JAIPUR VACATION

JAIPUR: THE WEATHER AND WHEN TO GO

SUGGESTED ITINERARY FOR 2 DAYS IN JAIPUR:

DAY1: Check into the hotel, Change and go around the hotel property to explore the hotel so you can decide what all parts of the hotel you would like to spend time in. Further go to the Walled City and see The HAWA MAHAL- it is the most recognizable monument of Jaipur and for many it has become the symbol of JAIPUR.  Post Hawa Mahal, visit The JANTAR MANTAR- an 18^th century Observatory. Please not both these monuments are open between 10:00 a.m. to 16:30 p.m.

HAWA MAHAL

Following this you can go to johri bazaar by a bicycle rickshaw or Auto rickshaw and have a traditional Rajasthani Lunch at LMB restaurant. Its nothing fancy and is a vegetarian restaurant but serves some nice rajasthani dishes. Try the world famous Ghewar when at LMB- mind you its extremely sweet and made with a lot of clarified butter. Diabetics, watch out!!!

THE WORLD FAMOUS GHEWAR of LMB

If you are not interested in a vegetarian Rajasthani meal then go to The PALACE CAFE at the City palace of Jaipur. This is a multi cuisine restaurant and you will get burgers and fries to pastas as well. I used to particularly love the Spaghetti Bolognese but its been over a year since I have gone to the palace cafe, so cannot comment much about the taste. Post Lunch if you still have some time in hand- try to see The City Palace and S.M.S II Museum. Opening Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. *CLOSED ON SUNDAYS. *Subject to change: Earlier it opened through the year and shut only on Holi and Diwali, but recently a few of my guests faced the issue on Sunday. Please check with City Palace Jaipur at: +91-141-2609196. or Email: ctpalace@sify.com

THE PALACE CAFE at THE CITY PALACE

Post lunch take a nap and then early evening (5:00 p.m.) leave for some retail therapy. Since most MARKETS ARE CLOSED ON SUNDAY- it is better to finish shopping on Saturday. Go to Bapu Bazar for knick-knacks, souvenirs, mojaries (the typical rajasthni footwear), quilts, bangles, cotton kurtis, cheap jewellery, puppets, handicraft items etc etc. Make sure you bargain to get the best deal!

The shops here are open till about 8:30p.m/ 9:00p.m. You can also find henna artistes sitting by the road and can get a tattoo done on one hand for approximately 100 Rupees.

If you want more shopping go to Saraogi Mansion at the entry of Bapu Bazar and you have the big Saree Emporiums- Nikhaar fashions, Pratapsons, Utsav and my favourite Parineeta. You can also find the Bnaraswala store here for exclusive hand weaves of bananras/ Varanasi. At the basement of Saraogi Mansion are many stores selling beautiful footwear, handbags, bangles and cosmetics.

Post Shopping, you can explore one of the many restaurants of M.I. Road for Dinner. Some of my personal favourites: Moti Mahal Deluxe, Dasaprakasa, Niros, Surya Mahal, Natraj, Handi and for the non experimental types we also have KFC & McDonalds at M.I. road. For fine dining, go to the end of M.I. road to Country Inn & Suites- and try one of the 4 restaurants there- Chinese/ Indian/ multicuisine coffee shop or The Lebanese Lounge.

DAY 2: Start early at the Amber Fort. Post Amber Fort go to Jaigarh Fort and Nahargarh Fort. Then a drive and photo session at Jal Mahal and from there proceed to The Albert hall- The Central Museum-Jaipur- open 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 pm. Post Albert Hall proceed to the famous LASSIWALA at M.I. Road have some Lassi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lassi) and then further for Lunch, choose from one of the many restaurants at M.I. road.  Post Lunch go and visit the Birla Mandir also known as the Laxmi Narayan temple. If too tired, after lunch retire to the hotel for a nap!

On your last evening in Jaipur, I recommend, you to go to the Light & Sound show at Amber. The show is an attempt to revive the pride of Amber, bring forth the traditions that moulded the lives of its people, the pomp and show that once existed in its fullest form. It brings forth The spirit of Amber. This musical extravaganza has highlighted the local legends, folklore, and a connoisseur of folk music that continues to give Rajasthan its unique identity. The show has been set in a very exotic location with the panoramic view of the Amber Fort & Palace Complex in the front, the rising Jaigarh on the left, the hills at the back and the gallery itself in the Kesar Kiyari Complex of Maota lake. The Show runs on daily basis at 6:30 pm (Hindi Language ) and  in English at 07:30 pm  This show is for 50 minutes. And approx Tariff for the Indian National is Rs.100  and  Foreign natioanls  Rs.200.

THE LIGHT & SOUND SHOW- AMBER FORT

Post The Light and Sound show you can have dinner at 1135 A.D., Expensive fine dining restaurant OR one my favourite restaurant- The Spice Court- Civil Lines, Veg & Non Veg Indian & Rajasthani Cuisine. For more details on of Spice court go to: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g304555-d1091582-r114380767-Spice_court-Jaipur_Rajasthan.html#REVIEWS

Another Great option for wonderful Rajasthani Food at a dhaba ambiance  (very non pretentious) is HANDI, Maya Mansion- M.I. road. For more about Handi, visit- 

http://www.tripadvisor.in/ShowUserReviews-g304555-d952616-r114296547-Handi-Jaipur_Rajasthan.html