Highland Asia

Magnificence of Rajasthan

20 Days 19 Nights Trip CodeINT91

Overview

Rajasthan has long been regarded as the real home of traditional Maharajas. Besides a land packed with Forts and Palaces of Maharajas, it is also home to a large population of tribal, out of which, the Bhils and Minas are the largest ones.

This tour has been so designed that you will experience the lifestyle of a Maharaja. You will experience the comfort of a palace turned to hotel, enjoy a ride on Camel’s back or elephants, dine the grand Rajasthani meals and enjoy the folk dance performances by Rajasthani belles in sand dunes. Discover a whole new world as you meander down the centuries, while you are on this amazing land.

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Outline Itinerary

Day 01-02~Explore the highlights of Old and New Delhi that includes the temples, the Red Fort, mosque, minarets and tombs.
Day 03~Visit the havelis and frescoes of Mandawa.
Day 04-05~Visit the havelis and frescoes of Nawalgarh and advance further to Bikaner where we visit the historic Junagarh fort and experience camel ride and also try camel milk.
Day 06-07~Visit the Citadel City of Jaisalmer and its Fort-the masterpiece of architectural grandeur.
Day 08-09~At Jodhpur, visit the Mehrangarh Fort-one of the largest Forts of India.
Day 10-11~Visit the temples of Rankapur and advance to Udaipur where we visit the lake palace and the temples.
Day 12-13~Visit Pushkar-the City of Bramha-the creator of the universe! Attend the camel festival if your travel date coincides with this festival.
Day 14-15~Explore the Pink City of Jaipur-the capital of Rajasthan. Experience elephant ride in Maharaja style, while we climb to Amer Fort.
Day 16-17~Visit Taj Mahal at Agra-a poem in the marble and the most extravagant monument ever built for love. Overnight train to the holy city of Varanasi.
Day 18~Visit the temples and ghats of holy city of Varanasi.
Day 19~Flight to New Delhi
Day 20~Tour concludes.

Itinerary

Day 01:Arrival in Delhi

Upon arrival, Highland Asia representative will receive you at the airport and transfer to hotel. Take rest for the recovery of jet lag. Accommodation in Hans Plaza **** or similar first class property

Day 02:In Delhi

In the morning take a city tour covering Laxmi Narayan Temple – The Place of Gods, India Gate - The memorial of martyrs, Parliament House – The Government headquarters. In the afternoon take a city tour of Old Delhi covering Jama Masjid - The largest mosque in Asia, Red Fort - The red stone magic, Gandhi memorial – The memoir of the Father of the Nation. Also enjoy the sound & light show in the evening. Overnight at hotel. Accommodation in Hans Plaza **** or similar first class property

Day 03: Drive from Delhi to Mandawa (169 miles / 06 Hrs)

Today, you will drive to Mandawa-a compact little town of Shekhavati region. After refreshment, visit havelis & beautiful frescoes. The medieval fort of Mandawa gradually rises on the horizon like a mirage. A painted arched gateway adorned with Lord Krishna and his cows leads to the bazaar. Accommodation in a former castle-Castle Mandawa.

Day 04: Drive from Mandawa to Bikaner (144miles / 05 Hrs)

In the morning drive to Nawalgarh – the town where the finest of the Shekhavati’s frescoes can be seen. Its havelis still bear witness to the rich & prosperous Marwari era of the 19th century. Worth visiting are the Aath Haveli complex, Anandilal Poddar haveli, Bansidhar Bhagat haveli & Chokhani haveli. Drive to Bikaner – Vale of Serenity, upon arrival check in into hotel. Evening free to relax. Accommodation in a luxury heritage hotel-Laxmi Nivas Palace of the former Maharaja Ganga Singh.

Day 05: Another day at Bikaner

Today, you will enjoy the city tour covering Junagadh Fort constructed between 1588 and 1593 by Raja Rai Singh, fort has a 3,235 ft long wall with 37 bastions & two entrances, Bhand Sagar Temple – The 16th century Jain temple, is the most important of this temple complex, Camel Breeding Farm – a unique experience where you can ride on a camel & have perhaps the first taste of camel’s milk. Enjoy another night of royal hospitality at Laxmi Nivas Palace.

Day 06: Drive from Bikaner to Jaisalmer (203 miles/ 6.5 hrs)

In the morning drive to Jaisalmer – The Citadel City, Arrive and check into hotel. Afternoon free to relax or enjoy the city atmosphere. Accommodation in a luxurious retreat of Gorbandh Palace.

Day 07: Explore Jaisalmer

Today, you will enjoy the city tour covering Jaisalmer Fort – built on the highest point of the Tricuta hill, Sun Gate. Outstanding features are Megh Durbar & various temples, Salim Singh-Ki-Haveli,Patwon–Ki-Haveli – some of the beautiful mansions with stone carving and lattice work of breath taking intricacy, Lodurva – A masterpiece of architectural grandeur. Overnight in Gorbandh Palace Hotel.

Day 08: Drive from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur (193 miles / 06 Hrs)

Today, you will drive to Jodhpur – The Desert enchantment. Check in hotel and take the rest for the day. Accommodation in a former palace heritage hotel-Taj Hari Mahal.

Day 09: Explore the forts and palaces of Jodhpur

You will enjoy the full day city tour covering Mehrangarh fort – unsurpassed in beauty & grandeur, it is one of the largest forts in India. Innumerable palaces in the fort, interspersed with sprawling courtyards, are intricately carved Jaswanthada – The 19th century royal cenotaph, a creation in white marble, Clock tower – The timely treasure of Jodhpur. Accommodation in a former palace heritage hotel-Taj Hari Mahal.

Day 10: Drive from Jodhpur to Udaipur (167 miles / 06 Hrs)

In the morning, drive to Udaipur, en route visiting Ranakpur temples – the pilgrimage centre of Rajasthan a few of the numerous temples are Chaturmukh temples. Arrive and check in into hotel. Accommodation in the luxurious heritage hotel-Shiv Nivas Hotel.

Day 11: Explore the City of Lakes

Today, you will enjoy the city tour covering Saheliyon–Ki–Bari–The garden for the maids of honor of the queen. Jagdish Temple–dedicated to Lord Vishnu & approachable by a broad flight of steps, the shrine is a rectangular platform on the lines of Indo-Aryan style of architecture, City Palace–located amidst Lake Pichola, Eklingji & Nagda Temples–built in white marble with a double storied porch.Enjoy another night of royal retreat at Shiv Nivas Palace Hotel.

Day 12: Drive from Udaipur to Pushkar (181 miles / 05 Hrs)

Today, drive to Pushkar – the city of Brahma. The only temple of Bramha-one of the major troika gods of Hindus, exits here. Rest of the day free to visit the Camel Market and admire the Largest Cattle Market anywhere in the World. Accommodation in Jagat Palace Hotel.

Day 13: Explore Pushkar and around.

In the morning, visit Jagat Pita Shri Brahma Temple and Apteshwar Mahadeo Temple -dedicated to Lord Shiva. If your trip date coincides with that of Pushakar Festival , it’s a unique opportunity to attend the massive gatherings, joyous festivities, cultural extravaganza and the cattle marketing of the famous Pushkar Fair. This fair is one of the major cultural reflectors of the state of Rajasthan and people from different parts of India gather on the fair ground to participate in the various entertaining events there. Accommodation in Jagat Nivas Palace.

Day 14: Drive from Pushkar to Jaipur (85 miles /03 hrs)

Morning head towards Jaipur, via sightseeing of Dargah of Sufi Saint Moinuddin Chishti, entered through a high gateway with silver doors. The grave of the saint is surrounded by a silver railing. Check in hotel and take rest for the day. Accommodation in Trident Jaipur.

Day 15: Explore the pink city of Jaipur

In the morning, visit Amer fort. From the base of the fort, you can take the elephant ride to the top. In the afternoon, take the city tour covering City Palace that occupies a large area divided into a series of courtyards, gardens & buildings and a perfect blend of Rajasthani & Mughal architecture, Royal Observatory -an observatory with some rare qualities to its credit, Nawab Sahab Ki Haveli – and the Bazaar etc. Accommodation in Tridant Jaipur Hotel

Day 16: Drive from Jaipur to Agra (163 miles / 06 Hrs)

Bid farewell to Rajasthan and proceed to Agra. En route, you will stop by Fatehpur Sikri, an abandoned City established by Emperor Akbar where you will visit Jama Masjid , the Buland Darwaza , Palace of Jodha Bai, Birbal Bhawan & Panch Mahal. Check in hotel and take rest for the day. Accommodation in Jaypee Palace.

Day 17: Visit Taj Mahal and take overnight train to Varanasi.

In the morning, you will visit the Taj Mahal – a poem in the marble and the most extravagant monument ever built for love, Red Fort- where took place so many of the events that lead to the construction of the Taj, Itmad-ud-daula’s Tomb – The tomb is of particular interest since many of its design elephants overshadow the Taj. In the evening, you will be transfered to railway station to connect train to Varanasi. This is an overnight train with air-conditioned cabin with sleeping births. You can opt to take flight as well on extra cost.(Hotel Check out time: 12 Noon). Overnight in air conditioned sleeping berth.

Day 18: Explore the holy city of Varanasi

Upon arrival in Varanasi, transfer to hotel. Later in the day, you will visit the highlights of Varanasi including Sarnath where Lord Buddha first preached his sermon after being enlightened. Other sites of interest are Tulsi Manas Temple, Alamgir Temple, Bharat Mata Temple, and Kashivishvanath Golden Temple. Accommodation in Radisson Hotel.

Day 19: Flight from Varanasi to New Delhi

Early Morning, you will take boating trip on River Ganges. Varanasi’s principal attraction is the string of bathing ghats, which line the western ghats of River Ganges. You will observe the vibrant activities that go along the array of ghats every day. Cremation services, holy bathing, shraddha rituals etc are the common sights that you get to see along the banks of the river. After breakfast, transfer to airport for flight to Delhi. Overnight hotel in Hans Plaza Hotel

Day 20:Delhi-Departure

Transfer to airport for your international flight back home.

Note: Hotel listed are suggestions only.

Trip Info

Cost Includes

Accommodation on twin sharing basis with daily buffet breakfast
Transportation by private car or coach
Sightseeing admission fees except for camera
Local English Speaking Guide
Elephant Ride at Amber Fort in Jaipur
All Applicable Taxes including 4.08 % Service Tax

Cost Does Not Include

Meals at hotels except those listed in above inclusions
Expenses of personal nature such as tipping, porters, laundry, telephones, etc
International and domestic airfares
Extra expenses caused due to nature and unforeseen events
Price excludes any supplement for Christmas & New Year Eve
Travel health, personal accident and trip cancellation insurance

Guaranteed departure with minimum 2 sign ups

We guarantee departures with sign-up of minimum two persons. Group of family and friends booking and traveling together are entitled good amount of saving. Sometime, there are early bird booking discounts and other offers are also available. Please, give us call to find out if there are any discounts available.

Trip Difficulty Level

This is basically motor vehicle based tour, suitable for travelers of all ages with normal health condition. Some monument, fort or castle visit might require climbing flight of stairs. Please, do not expect elevators or escalators! Subject to availability, we might experience elephant and canoe rides and trip to Udaipur may involve boating trip as well.

No strenuous hiking or climbing or any altitude issues on this trip. Although, no major preparation is necessary for this trip, it’s recommendable that you start a soft training program such as walking, jogging, cycling or aerobics about a month ahead of the trip to keep yourself optimally fit. About a month ahead of trip departure, we will mail you final trip dossier that includes the list of hotels and contacts, detailed pre-departure information including clothing recommendation, money matter and health and safety updates and some do’s and don’ts.

Life on the Trip

A sightseeing day, depending on the season, starts between 8.30 am to 9 am. We are picked up at our hotel by our guide and driver. We visit the sights and monuments or participate in activities and we will have lunch break around noon to 1 pm. After lunch, we again embark on the tour for 2 to 3 hours and we are brought back to our hotel late afternoon and our guide will generally leave us free. We will have time to take rest, write diaries or wander about ourselves. When we are moving from once city to another, we usually spend 4-5 hours on the road with occasional stops for photography and drinks and snacks. Some days can be longer.

We try our best to adhere to the itinerary but it should be taken as a general guideline or scope of activities rather than an inflexible series of events and depending on the local conditions or time factor; it can change from the exact sight to see to the exact city to stop. During the tour, we will have time enough for photography, interact with the locals or enjoy bargaining with the street vendors. Our guide and driver are flexible and will do their best to help you enjoy the trip the way you like. You may consider bringing some small gifts such as cigarettes for adults, candies or pencils for kids, in order to get along with them.

Indian Visa

You need to obtain Indian visa before hand as India does not grant visa upon arrival. Travisa Outsourcing handles all the India visa requests from inside the United States as a private contractor to the Indian Embassy and Consulates. For more information and application process, please follow the link below.

https://indiavisa.travisaoutsourcing.com/get-a-visa

Besides Indian visa, some areas of Ladakh, Himachal, Arunachal, Sikkim may require additional permits that we will take care of.
If you are traveling multiple countries and returning to India within 60 days after your previous visit, you will also need to request for re-entry permit.

Accommodation

Rajathan has choice of accommodation for every budget but our choice of accommodations is first class to deluxe properties with all modern amenities that includes private bathroom with hot and cold shower, central air-conditioning, phone, mini refrigerator, restaurant etc. Our accommodation in Rajasthan is usually in former castles or havelis turned hotels with Rajasthani architecture and hospitality.

Tour Guide

All our trips are lead by local guides who are university graduate, trained and certified by Indian tourism authorities. They are knowledgeable, friendly and flexible. They will show you the wonders of the areas that you would never discover on your own and share their knowledge on Indian history, culture and religion. Your guide carries necessary vouchers for the hotels and buys admission tickets where necessary. Tour guide and driver is not the same person.

Transportation

Depending on the group size, we use air-conditioned Sedan Cars, SUVs, Mini Van or coaches for all transfers and tour. Our drivers are friendly locals with years of experience in driving vehicle in tourism and hospitality industry. Driver may have limited English.

International and Internal Airfares

You can purchase your international airfare to India and return on your own. If you need any help on this, certainly feel free to contact us. We will take care of the internal airfares for you. Local airport taxes may or may not be included in the airfare.

Booking

When you are sure you are traveling, it advisable to initiate reservation as early as possible so that we can secure reservation in the preferred hotels and flight.A deposit of US$200 is requested along with complete trip application form and passport copies.
Balance payment is due 60 days prior to your departure. Depending on the number of applicants, we may set an early payment date. Credit card payment attracts additional fee.

Cancellation fee

90 days prior departure: Administrative fee US$ 50 per person.
60-89 day's prior departure: US$ 250 or 25% of the land cost whichever is higher.
45 days to 59 days prior departure: US$ 450 or 50% of the land cost whichever is higher.
30 days to 44 days prior departure: US$ 600 or 75% of the land cost whichever is higher.
Less than 30 days: 100%

Highland Asia Travel, Inc.

We are an active adventure travel company, based in Minneapolis, USA with destination management offices in Kathmandu, Thimphu and Lhasa. We are BBB accredited business and an active member of American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA). We have set the standard for adventure travel and have a strong reputation for excellence that we do everything we can to maintain. Our managers and guides have more than 15 years of experience in organizing and leading adventure trips in the highlands of Asia. For us travel is not just a business, but a way of life.

Travel Protection Plan

While we plan and do our best to make your trip smooth and seamless, there may be chances of unforeseen events and conditions such as illness, accident, inclement weather, and flight cancellation or missed connection or loss of baggage etc. that may cause interruption or delay or total cancellation of your trip putting your hard earned travel investment in jeopardy. It’s also possible that you may need medical assistance, emergency evacuation or medical transportation when you get ill or involve in an accident when you are traveling in remote areas. Highland Asia’s Tour cost does not cover any of these expenses or losses and so we strongly recommend you that you should protect yourself and your travel investment against those unfavorable conditions.

Trip Dates

This trip does not have any scheduled departure date. Please click on the button below to inquire for a private trip.

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Trip Snapshot

Difficulty LevelModerate: This is moderate trip !
RatingPopular
Destination(s)India
Group Size2-10 Person
Trip Price
US$ 2850 (2-3 pax)
US$ 2650 (4-6 pax)
US$ 2450 (7-9 pax)
US$ 750 Single Room Supplement
US$ 180 Varanasi Delhi airfare
Trip Start FromDelhi
Trip Ends atDelhi