Amazing Rajasthan Cities that Will Make You Feel Royal

Doesn’t Rajasthan just sound like a place that’s royal? Before I even went there I just kept envisioning the scene in Aladdin (yes, I know that’s not where it was based) where he’s parading through the desert and up to the palace with elephants, camels, and peacocks. Well, even if it’s not really where Aladdin is based, everything else I thought I’d see was, which completely fulfilled my life-long dream of feeling like Jasmine, even if just for a few days.

That’s because Rajasthan is known as the land of the Royals in India, and the area is officially considered a State, which lies just west of Agra and the Taj Mahal, and consists of several different main cities. My plan was to travel from New Delhi, down to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, then across Rajasthan before heading South to Mumbai, and looking back at it now, I seriously wish I had more time to spend there!

Rajasthan was a completely different world than the one I experienced first in New Delhi, and I remember it being like night and day when I got to the first city there called Jaipur. Everything just felt so authentic and majestic, and it really made me wonder why more people don’t try to go there! So if you’re into seeing (and even staying in!) palaces and forts, and walking amongst areas where real-life maharajas and maharanas still live today, and perhaps riding a camel across smooth desert sand dunes, definitely check out these four Rajasthan cities that will make you feel royal!

1. Jaipur (Rajasthan, India)

Jaipur is known as the “Pink City”, and its main attractions are the Amber Fort (definitely worth seeing), the Water Palace, the Wind Palace, and the City Palace. It’s about a 4 hour train ride from Agra, and the train there alone will make you know that you’re about to head into a nicer area. Business Class seats are actually spacious and comfortable, and you’re served about four different snacks, meals, and tea-times over the course of the ride.

I booked a really cute hotel on Booking.com last minute from the train called Sunder Palace Guesthouse, and they responded immediately offering a train station pick-up, even late at night. The hotel also helped advice how to avoid scams with rickshaw drivers and tours, and also helped us book our bus tickets to the next location when we left. One thing I also immediately noticed about Jaipur was how proud the locals are, and how excited they were for me to see everything.

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I also found Jaipur very clean, green, and like a breath of fresh cultural air. It wasn’t far from Agra at all (only a 2 hour train ride), so it could definitely be done as a day trip, although I’d highly recommend staying there a night or two!

Best things to see: Amber Fort, Wind Palace, City Palace

Token Thing to Buy: Glass bangles (find them in the market place near the City Palace), Silver

Where I Stayed: Sunder Palace Guesthouse

2. Pushkar (Rajasthan, India)

Pushkar is known for its holy Brahma Lake, which is also the center of the entire city which surrounds it. It’s not exactly the most popular place to visit, and definitely not a huge tourist attraction, but I think that authenticity is what gave it its charm. Pushkar does have a large marketplace area that of course is very obviously only for tourists, but what’s cool about it is how colorful and cheap it is, and how many cows you see walking in the streets!

For me the main highlight of Pushkar was doing a camel safari through the sand dunes. We did the sunset tour which was basically a 45-minute walk with the camels, then hanging out on a dune with other visitors for sunset before riding back. I didn’t really like the way the camels were treated, and due to many things I read prior to going, I was extremely cautious about the tour guides; there are reports of them inappropriately touching women while riding behind them, which I could totally see judging by the close proximity mine sat at one point, along with the awkward saddle riding motion.

This is easy to avoid though; simply tell them you want your own camel. Also, once you get to the sunset point, you’ll be offered alcoholic drinks for purchase, which is fine, just make sure you bring some cash (I obv just brought my own bottle of wine). Oh by the way, there aren’t any restaurants or bars that serve alcohol in Pushkar because it’s illegal, but you can sneakily ask to buy a beer at some hotels. I also found a tiny wine shop near my hotel that for some reason sold “government approved Western beer and wine”, so yeah, that’s an option.

Again I did a last minute booking and chose a place just outside of the main area that was a bit cheaper, but to my extreme surprise, a lot nicer. In fact…it was an old palace converted into a hotel. It’s called Gulaab Niuuas Palace, and it was pretty nice for the price even though the wifi and hot water were a bit questionable.

Best things to see: Camel safari at sunset, Gondola up to temple, local marketplace

Token Thing to Buy: Camel leather shoes

Where I Stayed: Gulaab Niwsas Palace

3. Jodhpur (Rajasthan, India)

If you see any photo of Jodhpur, you will easily be able to guess why its nickname is, “The Blue City”. A view from the massive Mehrangarh Fort will show a city filled with little blue houses and buildings, which according to locals, is an ancient technique used to distinguish the homes of the Brahmans. I was also told that houses were painted blue because it has a cooling effect on the houses, which would make sense since Jodhpur is hot AF.

Take a stroll through the Blue City and make your way to the Clock Tower, not because it’s super exciting to see or anything, but because that’s where the cheapest sarees are that I found my entire month in India! Even if you never plan on wearing one, for 100 rupees (less than $1) you can get 6 yards of beautiful fabric with hand-stitched designs and embellishments!

Another main attraction of Jodhpur is the Umaid Bhawan Palace, which is the actual palace that the current Royal Family of Jodhpur lives in, and also TripAdvisor’s “Best Hotel in the World”! I got the opportunity to actually stay there and can 100% say that it made me feel like a real-life Cinderella! …or maybe Jasmine from Aladdin.

Best things to see: View of the Blue City from Mehrangarh Fort, Clock Tower marketplace, Umaid Bhawan Palace

Token Thing to Buy: Cheap sarees, red-orange-yellow-blue scarves

Where I Stayed: Umaid Bhawan Palace

4. Udaipur (Rajasthan, India)

Udaipur is another Rajasthan city that is just dripping in royalty, but with an equal mixture of local/tourist marketplaces as well. Since Udaipur is known as the “Lake City” (as you can probably guess, it has a lot of lakes), the main attraction is the massive Lake Pichola, which can be seen by boat, by land (from the City Palace), or even from the top of a mountain that you can take a gondola up to.

The main highlight of Lake Pichola is a stunning white palace that sits on its own island right in the middle of the lake, and just behind the City Palace. This lake palace was built as the “summer palace” for a late maharana, who would spend his summers there even though the City Palace is just a short boat ride away. Now, the mini island castle is a hotel called the Taj Lake Palace, where the Royal Family sometimes still goes for vacation, and where visitors can book a stay and feel like royalty themselves.

You can only go inside of the Taj Lake Palace if you are a guest, so if a secluded island palace is your dream come true, I’d definitely recommend staying there. Every single one of the rooms at the Taj Lake Palace is different, unique, and downright GORGEOUS, and the amenities are out of this world as well. For starters, the palace hotel arranges special private dinners that may include a candle lit terrace, and massages on a special old-fashioned ship-turned-spa where you can relax in a jacuzzi of rose petals on the top deck after a massage.

Best Things to See: Taj Lake Palace, Lake Pichola, City Palace

Token Thing to Buy: Hand painted postcards

Where I Stayed: Taj Lake Palace

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