Jaisalmer

Overview

Tourist attractions

Getting there

Festivals

Overview

Summarise the city :
Gateway to the Desert Heritage Capital

Experiences :
Desert Safari on camel Back

City calling code :
+91-02992

Recommended no. of days for a tourist :
2 full days are good

Best buys :
Stone carved statues, tie-dye work,handicrafts

Essentials to be carried along
Sun block, Sun Glasses, light cotton clothes,

All about the city :
A city as magical as Jaisalmer at the first sight appears to be a magnificent sand ship approaching towards you as you enter its rising city.

Crenellated Sandstone walls and narrow streets lined with exquisitely carved buildings through which camel carts trundle leisurely - That is Jaisalmer for you.

Founded by the prince Jaisal in 1156, this city gradually grew to a strong trade route across the forbidding Thar desert from India to the west. The merchants prospered and invested a part of their wealth in beautifying the city by building temples and beautiful houses with the local sandstone.

Many of the settlements close to the city have become well used to tourists, so it's worth venturing a little further out to get an idea of life in the desert.

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Tourist attractions

Name (suggested time required to see the place)	Description	Entrance charges (if any) for Foreigner	Close Day (if any)	Open / Close time
Jaisalmer Fort	On the roughly triangular shaped Trikuta Hill, the fort stands 76 meters above the town, enclosed by a 9 km wall and 99 bastions. The outer gate has bands of decoration which imitate local textile designs. Often called the Golden Fort due to the sandstone color….it dominates the town. A walk through the narrow streets within the fort often blocked by the odd goat and cow, even today about a 1,000 of the town's people live in the tiny houses within the fort………… A caution………… it is easy to get lost as most of these houses have carvings and on the doors and balconies and look similar. Sunset Point- north of the fort is best for the view of Jaisalmer.
Fort Palace Museum and Heritage centre	The entire palace has been recently renovated, interesting displays have been established including the sculpture, weapon, paintings besides a well presented cultural information. The view from the roof is exquisite- highest point inside the fort, The Zenana block (Female block) has false jail work as opposed to the mardana block(Men's block) that has highly detailed murals and mirror decoration.	Rs. 10 - Indian Rs. 70 - Foreigner		0800 - 1800 Sum 0900 - 1800 Win
Jain Temples	Whilst the Rajputs were devout Hindus, they permitted Jainism to be practiced. The Parsvanatha, Rishabnatha, Shantinatha, Ashtapadi, Mahavir temple , The Sambhavanatha - tell their own distinctive story, each built at a different time, by different ruler and the architecture worth a thousand praises.	DO	Leather shoes not allowed in the temple	0700-1200
Havelis	There are many exceptional havelis (Mansions of rich merchants) both in the fort and the walled town. Many have beautifully carved facades, jail screens, the ground floor is raised above the dusty streets and each has an inner courtyard surrounded by richly decorated apartments. Not to be missed are the Badal Mahal, Salim Singh Ki haveli, Nathumal Ki Haveli and Patwon Ki Haveli which stand very different from one another due to their own architecture and decorative style.
Desert Cultural Centre	Established in 1997 with the aim of preserving the culture of the desert, the museum contains a varied display of Fossila, Paintings, instruments, costumes and textiles which give an interesting glimpse in to the desert life. A lovely puppet show is conducted twice everyday…	Rs. 10		1000-1700
Gadi Sagar Tank	Situated Southeast of the the city walls, this was the oasis which led Prince Jaisal to settle here. Now connected by the Indira Gandhi canal, it has water all year.It attracts migratory birds and has many small shrines around it - well worth visiting, especially in the late afternoon. Boats are available for trips around the lake.	Rs. 50 for half hour
Thar Desert National park	The park primarily was created to protect the 3,000 Sq km of the Thar desert which inhabitats the drought resistant, endangered rare species which have adjusted to the unique and inhospitable conditions. Undulating sand dunes, vast expanses of flat land where the tress are leafless, thorny and have long roots. Fascinating for bird watching, this is one of the few places of India where The Great India Bustard and the migratory Houbra Bustard proliferates. Five species of Vultures, six of eage, Indian sand grouse, Falcons, Flocks of Larks at Susadri, Chinkaras ….. just the place to see the desert fauna in its abundance.	Rs. 200 per person	Permission to enter the national park is needed from the collector and the director

Getting there

Air	Rail	Road
The nearest Airport is at jodhpur, which is about 275 kms away from Jaisalmer. Daily flight from New Delhi operates.	Jaisalmer - Jodhpur Express is the best rail connectivity which takes 7 Hrs to reach Jaisalmer from Jodhpur station.	Jaisalmer has good connectivity of state roadways buses and other tourist centres that provide the bus services. It is 330 Kms from Bikaner, 638 Km from Jaipur, 285 km from Jodhpur, 663 Km from Udaipur.

Festivals

Name of festival

Dates / Months

Festival details with link for more information

3 day Desert festival at Sam Dunes

February

Amidst the sand Dunes at Sam, Folk Dancing, Puppet shows and Camel races, camel polo and Camel acrobatics, Mr. Desert competition, Craftsmen at work - are some of the major highlights of this festival.

Read Packages and Details

Thar Festival at Barmer

March

Mainly highlights the desert culture and Handicrafts

Excursions

Excursion (distance in kms)	Description
Abhaneri (95 kms towards Agra )	En route the Golden Triangle, lie Rajasthan's yet another amazing piece of architecture in the form of a step-well, named Chand Baori, at Abhaneri. 20 m deep with 11 levels of zigzag steps and diving platforms of the Maharaja Chand who built it. It reflects the heavenly moon during full moon nights when it passes over it, hence the name Chand ('Moon') Baori ('Stepwell'), as say some guide. A dilapidated ancient Harshat Mata temple is situated next to it. The piles of stone-work and idols around the temple are the reminiscent of act of vandalism in quest of religious supremacy and are worth a 'dekko'
Samode (50 kms)	50 kms North of the Jaipur into the rural settings the small village of Samode rewards you with a view of an old palace that still retains its charm. Medieval architecture is displayed in its exquisite marble work, antiques, mirror work, paintings and interiors esp. in the Diwan-e-khas.
Sanganer [16 kms]	Sanganer near Jaipur is famous for the finest hand-block printing and design, dyeing and ornamentation. The local craftsmen are experts at crinkling, tie-dye, lahariya, mothra, quilting and multitudinous skills of braiding, plaiting and trimming.

Suggested Holidays

Holiday Name	No. Of days	Destinations Covered
Best of Rajasthan	15 days -14 nights	Jaipur - Mandawa - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Khimsar - Jodhpur - Udaipur - Bundi - Ranthambore - Jaipur
Culture and Family tour of Rajasthan	14 Days - 13 nights	Delhi - Agra - Jaipur - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Udaipur - Chittorgarh - Pushkar - Ranthambore - Jaipur
Heritage tour of Rajasthan	14 days 13 nights	Neemrana - Jaipur - Devigarh - Udaipur - Udaipur - Rohet - Pokhran - Jaisalmer - Gajner - Kuchaman - Alsisar - Delhi
Rajasthan Desert Tour	8 days - 7 nights	Jaipur - Mandawa - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur
Rajasthan Forts and Palace Tour	15 days - 14 nights	Jaipur - Mandawa - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Udaipur - Chittorgarh - Pushkar - Kota - Ranthambore -Jaipur
Rajasthan with Taj Mahal	14 days 13 nights	Delhi - Agra - Jaipur - Pushkar - Udaipur - Jodhpur - Jaisalmer - Bikaner - Mandawa - Delhi
Royal Rajasthan Tour	9 days 8 nights	Delhi - Jaipur - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Udaipur

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