North India · City
Pink-walled planned city of astronomers, jewellers and Rajput kings
Photo: Chainwit. · CC BY-SA 4.0
Best: Oct–Mar
Jaipur was laid out in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II with his Bengali architect Vidyadhar Bhattacharya, a nine-square grid drawn from the Shilpa Shastras that still governs how the walled city breathes. The famous pink came later, in 1876, when the whole town was washed in terracotta for the visit of Prince Albert Edward, and the colour has been law ever since. Mornings begin at Amber Fort, eleven kilometres north, where the Sheesh Mahal's mirror mosaics catch the first sun and the Maota Lake below is still.
Back in town, Jantar Mantar's Samrat Yantra, a 27-metre sundial accurate to two seconds, sits beside the City Palace, whose Pritam Niwas Chowk has four gates painted for the four seasons. Hawa Mahal's 953 jharokhas were built in 1799 so that palace women could watch processions unseen; the best view is from the rooftop cafes across the street at sunrise. Afternoons belong to Johari Bazaar and Bapu Bazaar, for gemstones, block-printed cotton, lac bangles and jootis, and to a chilled lassi in a clay kulhad at Lassiwala on MI Road.
Climb to Nahargarh for sunset over the old city, then eat dal baati churma or laal maas in a haveli courtyard. UNESCO listed the walled city in 2019, and it is still where almost every Rajasthan journey starts.
Best Oct–Mar
October to March, when days are warm and evenings cool; avoid the May and June heat.
Give Jaipur 3 days and it repays the time; with fewer you are choosing between Amber Fort and its Sheesh Mahal at opening time and Hawa Mahal's 953 jharokhas from a rooftop opposite. We build the hours around the weather — early starts when it is hot, long afternoons when it is not.
On the ground
The days we would actually plan for you, in the order that suits the light.
At the table
VegetarianRajasthan
Rajasthan on one thali: hard wheat baatis baked in embers until they crack, drowned in ghee, eaten with panchmel dal of five lentils and churma crushed with jaggery. You break the baati by hand, spoon dal over it, then finish sweet. Eat it at a Jaipur haveli lunch or a Jodhpur family kitchen.
Non-vegRajasthan
A Rajput hunting-camp curry of mutton simmered with fistfuls of Mathania red chillies, yoghurt and browned garlic until the gravy runs deep red. It is fierce rather than sour, and is mopped up with bajra roti. Jodhpur and Udaipur kitchens still finish it with a live coal doused in ghee for smoke.
Street foodRajasthan
A flaky fried disc packed with spiced onion, gram flour and fennel, cracked open at the top and flooded with tamarind and mint chutney. It is a mid-morning habit in Jaipur, eaten standing at Rawat Misthan Bhandar near Sindhi Camp, and in Jodhpur outside the clock tower with a glass of masala chai.
Getting there
Jaipur International Airport (JAI) is 12 km from the city; Jaipur Junction has trains from Delhi in about 4.5 hours; Delhi is 270 km by NH48.
Airport pickups, station transfers and the driver for the days here are all part of what we arrange — including the hour you should leave, which is usually earlier than you think.
Next door
Places that join Jaipur without a long drive — the way a real week is built.
HeritageRajasthan
Sufi city of the Chishti dargah, Ana Sagar and Chauhan forts
TempleRajasthan
Brahma's lake town of ghats, malpua and the camel fair
WildlifeRajasthan
Tiger country of dry forest, lakes and a tenth-century fort
HeritageRajasthan
Open-air gallery of frescoed Marwari havelis in the Thar
WildlifeRajasthan
Aravalli tiger reserve with hill forts, lakes and a cursed ruin
HeritageUttar Pradesh
The Taj at dawn, and a city that outlives it
3 journeys
6 days · 5 nightsEasy · Best Oct–Mar
Delhi's tombs, Agra's marble and Jaipur's pink grid in six days
Route: Delhi → Agra → Fatehpur Sikri → Jaipur
10 days · 9 nightsEasy · Best Oct–Mar
Ten days from Jaipur's bazaars to the dunes and back to Lake Pichola
Route: Jaipur → Pushkar → Jodhpur → Jaisalmer +3 more
21 days · 20 nightsModerate · Best Nov–Feb
Three weeks down the whole length of India, Delhi to Chennai
Route: Delhi → Agra → Jaipur → Udaipur +6 more
From the journal
· Guide · 6 min
DEVGAMAN is based in Jaipur, so this is the guide we give friends: the order to do the forts in, which bazaar sells what, the kachori and lassi worth queueing for, and the half-day drives most visitors never hear about.
· Tips · 6 min
Everything we tell first-time travellers before they land: how many places to attempt, what a SIM card and a day of cash actually cost, how to eat street food safely, what to wear into a temple, and the four scams worth recognising.
· Itinerary · 5 min
A day-by-day plan for Delhi, Agra and Jaipur that fixes the two mistakes most first trips make: too little time in Delhi and too much time on the Agra to Jaipur road. Includes ticket prices, closing days and drive times.
Before you ask
Photograph of Jaipur: Chainwit. · CC BY-SA 4.0
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