Anuroopa's Jaipur Travel Blog: WEEKEND GETAWAY: RANTHAMBORE

Dec 18, 2013

WEEKEND GETAWAY: RANTHAMBORE

I have been to Ranthambore thrice and the recent was the last weekend of November. We were a group of 3 couples and one of us have 2 little kids. We started from Jaipur at 8 in the morning and reached Ranthambore at around 12:30 p.m.with one tea break for about 30 minutes and a Loo break for 10 minutes.
The road was fairly fine however from Kothun till Laal Sot (4KM) patch its is really bad. We managed it coz we were in a Fortuner. If you are in a SUV then this route is fine. However, if you are taking a sedan or a smaller car then take the Dausa route.
The route doesnt have much to offer in terms of clean eating so we had packed parathas & sandwiches for the way and stopped at tiny little dhaba (roadside rural eatery) for Tea and ate our packed food with the tea.

: On way to Ranthambore

: The Dhaba- where we stooped for Tea

: The Tea Stop

: The tea Dhaba- This is as clean as it gets here!!!

: Kachori being fried at the Dhaba- If you aren't carrying food then this is all you got & some sweets....

: The Loo stop was here

We had pre-booked The Ranthambore Regency Hotel and checked in at 12:30. The hotel was nice. Green lawan, a nice poolside & Pool, A wonderful restaurant serving buffets and A la carte for Room service and neat and nicely appointed rooms with big bathroom and all the toiletries, Hair dyer, Fresh towels, hot water, an Aircon & a Room heater for the chilli nights. The best part was the food. We had a full meal package and every buffet meal was special in terms of taste and service.

: The Hotel

: The Exterior- Ranthambore Regency Hotel

: The Exterior- Ranthambore Regency Hotel

: The Exterior- Ranthambore Regency Hotel

: The Reception

: The Lobby

: Around the hotel

: Around the hotel

: The lawns

: Our Room

After checking and a bit of wandering across the hotel, we had the lunch. It was a mix of Indian & continental, was elaborate and tasted great! Post lunch we had to rush for the 2:00 p.m. safari. We were picked up from the Hotel. The Rathambore Tiger Reserve remains close from June till August and booking a safari is apparently really difficult. We were lucky that one of our friends are well connected to a lot of influential people in the Tourism dept. of Rajasthan and hence we had a VIP gypsy that could go to any zone- Lucky us!!! Thanks KK!

: Our VIP gypsy

Do you notice the other vehicle just behind our jeep?? That is the kind of vehicle that most of the tourists get to hire/ book when they visit the safari! There is the Rajasthan govt. site on which you may book in advance and the earlier you book the better. Look for prices etc there on the site and if you cannot book one through the site then ask your hotel to book one for you. Please ensure you negotiate enough!

: Entering the Reserve

: The Ranthambore tiger reserve

We took a 3 hr safari & spotted everything possible including 3 tigers!! It couldn't be better than this! However if you do not spot tigers on day one take another safari the next morning or one next afternoon. Isuggest you plan this trip in such a manner that you have the scope of taking 3 safaris- morning- noon- evening. That way your chances of spotting a tiger increases. If you spot the tiger on the first one call the booking agency and cancel the others that is what we did.

: we spotted this

: we spotted this as well

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: inside The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: inside The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: inside The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: inside The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: oh yeah, even those are there at the Ranthambore Reserve

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: Finally

: We spotted a tiger...

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve- a great experience!

: This the second one that came from across the road opp the river

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve- a great experience!

: what a show

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve- a great experience!

: The Ranthambore Tiger Reserve- a great experience!

Post this we rushed to exit as the gates close around 5:30 and its illegal to stay in after that. We spent the night at the hotel and had a great buffet dinner and spent some wonderful time with friends! We slept by 11:30 p.m.

DAY 2: The next morning we woke up and explored the hotel for a bit, had our buffet breakfast & checked-out. Post this we went on an excursion to the Ranthambore Fort and the famous Ganesh Temple.

The fort is on a hill and in ruins. You have to trek up approximately 300 steps but its very easy and not tiring at all. Read more about the Fort on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranthambore_Fort
Just a few meters ahead of the fort is the legendary Ganesh temple!
Pratham Ganesha means Trinetra Ganesha of Ranthambhore. Hindus across the world worship lord Ganesha first before any auspicious ceremony or new venture. It is believed from the ancient times that Trinetra Ganesha Of Ranthambhore is the Pratham Ganesha. Lord Ganesh is God of Good Fortune , Education, knowledge, wisdom and wealth located in Ranthambhore fort, about 12 KMs from Sawai Madhopur ,Rajasthan. The origin of this temple dates back to the year 1299 when a war broke out between King Hameer and Ala-ud-din-Khilji at the Ranthambore Fort. In 1300 AD King Hammer built a temple of Lord Ganesh and placed Riddhi Siddhi, his wife and two sons Shub Labh along with the idol of Ganesh. His vehicle mushak (mouse) is also placed there. This is the only temple in the world where we have entire LORD GANESH FAMILY.
Read more about the Ganesh temple: http://temple.onlineprasad.com/trinetra-ganesh-temple-ranthambore-rajasthan/