TravelTips24 : Asia : South Asia : India : Western India : Rajasthan : Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur [1], also known as 'the Pink City,' is the capital of Rajasthan in India.
Culture and History
Jaipur is the largest city in Rajasthan and was built in the eighteenth century by Sawai Jai Singh as India's first planned city. Although Jaipur serves mainly as a stepping stone for travelers heading to the desert cities of Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, it is not without its own attractions, such as several massive Rajput forts. So, despite the chaos and dust, it is definitely worth pausing here for several days. Now Jaipur is growing fast and various development projects are being done by the government and private enterprises.
Jaipur is often called the Pink City in reference to its distinctly colored buildings, which were originally painted this color to imitate the red sandstone architecture of Mughal cities. The present earthy red color originates from repainting of the buildings undertaken for a visit by the Prince of Wales in 1876.
Travel to Jaipur & Visa Requirements
Flights and airtickets to Jaipur
Jaipur Airport (JAI/VIJP) is situated in the satellite town of Sanganer and offers sporadic (chartered) service to London and Dublin. Flights to Singapore and Bangkok are available via Delhi. Direct flights to Sharjah, Muscat and Dubai are also available.
Jaipur also has daily domestic air links with many Indian cities such as Jodhpur, Udaipur, Aurangabad, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Goa, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Mumbai and Indore.
One plus point for those flying out of Delhi is that the Delhi airport is close to the highway, so you could reach the airport without entering the city.
By train
Indian Railways[2] connects Jaipur from all over the country and is one of the cheapest options. A number of daily trains connect Jaipur to Delhi, Ahmedabad, Agra,Mumbai, Jodhpur, Kota, Alwar and Ajmer. Daily connections are also available for Udaipur, Chittaurgarh, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Kolkata, Jammu, Pathankot, Ludhiana, Kanpur, Roorkee, Haridwar, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur and Bhopal.
budgetary requirements. Long-distance trains arrive from many other major cities including Lucknow, Allahabad, Benaras, Vadodara, Surat, Nagpur, Bilaspur, Raipur, Patna, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Chennai, Bangalore, Mysore, Hyderabad, Goa, Mangalore, Kozhikode and Kochi.
However the most popular option from Delhi is the Shatabdi express which departs New Delhi station at 6:05AM and reaches Jaipur at 10:50AM.
There are three major railway stations Jaipur Junction (main station),Durgapura and Gandhinagar (Jaipur), which is not to be confused with Gandhinagar in Gujarat state. All trains stop at Jaipur Junction and a few trains stop at Durgapura and Gandhinagar stations also.
Buses to Jaipur
There is an excellent bus service between Jaipur to Delhi by Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation with buses approximately every half an hour both sides. There are several types of buses including Deluxe, AC and the superior AC Volvo buses. From Delhi you can board the bus from Bikaner House on Pandara Road next to India Gate. From Jaipur you can board the bus from Narayan Singh Circle or the main Sindhi Camp bus stand. You can also book tickets up to 6 days in advance from both these places.These buses typically take 6 hours (by Volvo) or 6-7 hours by other deluxe buses. There are also some private bus operators active in the city but you should avoid them as most of them do not have permits and drive rashly. Also note that if you plan to leave from Delhi airport, you can get off the bus at Dhaula Kuan and get an autorickshaw or perhaps a taxi from there. You do not need to enter congested Delhi.
Express buses to Ahmedabad and several cities amd towns within Rajasthan (such as Kota and Bundi) are also available.
By car
This is the most popular way of reaching from Delhi. The journey by car from Delhi to Jaipur takes less than 4hrs. National Highway no. 8 connects Delhi to Jaipur via the industrial township of Gurgaon. The road is excellent.
Tours & Getting around Jaipur
By autorickshaw
By and large, autorickshaw is the best way around the city. In order to hire an autorickshaw for a whole day (with a trip to Amber Fort) costs 250 INR (January 2008). Prepaid autos are available at the Jaipur railway station and the Sindhi Camp bus stand.
By cycle-rickshaw
Cycle-rickshaws are cheaper, but the amount of time it takes quickly makes the extra few rupees worth it. Walking in the bazaar is a treat, although side streets are a bit less welcoming and offer a sharper glimpse of poverty.
By taxi
The taxis in Jaipur are very convenient and comfortable. Most of the vehicles are Maruti Omni Vans or Tata Indica cars, which are much safer than Auto rickshaws, and the drivers are polite. If you are alone or going to an unknown destination, you are strongly advised to choose this option, even though the rates will be double that of an autorickshaw. you must call for a taxi, as it is nearly impossible to hail one unless you are at a major point like the airport. When you call, you should negotiate a fare (or agree on using the meter) and get the taxi's 'number'. The taxi will come pick you up, and call you when they are close. Taxis generally have yellow license plates with black letters. Some taxis are painted with yellow & black color scheme on their body which helps to uniquely identify from the private cars.
- Pinkcity Radio Taxi, +91 141 220-5000
- Shree Shyam Radio Taxi, +91 141 237-2222
- Jain Taxi Service, +91 141 229-2064
By car
Most travel agencies will provide cars for local hire
Jaipur attractions and sightseeing
- Statue circle
- Ramgarh
- B.M. Birla Auditorium and Convention Centre
Forts
- Amber Fort, (11 km from central Jaipur). This massive fort-palace complex built in hybrid Hindu-Muslim style dates back to Raja Man Singh and was the royal palace of the Kachwahas from c. 1600 to 1727. The name has nothing to do with the rather pretty pastel yellow colour; instead, the fort is named after the town of Amber, in turn named after the goddess Amba. The main sights within the fort include the Sheesh Mahal, adorned with thousands on thousands of mirror tiles on the walls and ceiling. The fort/palace grounds are sprawling and have no signage whatsoever in any language, so it's worth getting an audio guide or a real guide. It's a bit of a hike up from the town, and the touristy thing to do is to hitch an elephant ride to the top (in order to get an elephant it is better to to arrive there in the morning, otherwise at midday the elephants are over. But the road that elephans pass is not so long).Rs. 10/50 Indians/foreigners, plus optional Rs.25/100 for still/video camera, Rs.100 for audioguide.
Didn't find what you were looking for.
Ask for advice at the Jaipur travel forum
This page was last edited at 02:56, on 25 December 2008 by Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. Based on work by Marc Heiden, Aine Hickey, Ryan Holliday, Peter Fitzgerald and Codie, Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel and others.
Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license
