Udaipur - A place with Palaces, lakes, cafes, and of historical significance!!!

Mesmerizing Udaipur

We were contemplating if we should visit Udaipur or not as on one hand there have been amazing reviews about the place, and on the other some of my friends who had just visited in the recent past did not enjoy much and told that it is just another city.

We started our trip with City Palace, which is the most sought after palace in Udaipur. It would need at least two hours to complete the palace visit from inside and another one hour for an outside tour.

The entrance to the Palace is great with three gates. It feels royal as we enter the Palace.

Like every palace, there is a Deewane-e-aam and Deewane-e-khas sections where the king used to have conversations with the public and his ministers, respectively.

These colourful glass windows were made for the Queens and Princesses so that they can watch the proceedings but no one else can watch them. That is why, we can see them in most of the Palaces as it gives privacy to the royal ladies of the kingdom.

There was a room which had Gold plated Sun Temple. It is said that the king used to believe a lot on Sun God and if there was no sun, they used to pray to this picture before starting the day.

There was a cafeteria inside the Palace. We enjoyed the ice cream and Dal Bati Churma which was offered at reasonable rates.

The interesting thing is that one can also go to Jag Mandir from this palace, which is a nice boat ride. The boat took an entire ride of the lake and we could see the famous Taj Palace, before we landed at Jag Mandir. It is a palace where the king used to stay during summers as it is quite pleasant during that time.

Jag Mandir

Bagore ki Haveli - The place has a nice show in the evening called Dharohar. It is a folk dance and music show which runs for one hour after sunset time. During the day time, the museum is open for visit. Lots of famous movies have been shot here Dhadak, Goliyon ki raaslila, and so on.

Dharohar Show in Progress

The show is divided into various sections such as music, puppet show, singing, traditional folk dance, and also some activities performed by artists which are a pleasure to watch. I personally feel that it is a must watch show.

Just next to the Bagore ki Haveli, is the Gangaur Ghat. This is the place where lot of bollywood movies have been shot like Dhadak and can be easily recognized. There is no entry ticket and is easily accessible at all times be in early morning, during the day, and even during evenings.

Just 500 metres towards the City Palace from Bagore ki Haveli, lies the famous Jagdish Temple. It is lord Vishnu temple. This beautiful temple is open from 5:30 am in the morning till 10:00 pm in the night. It is best to visit the temple in the evening and also during morning hours for two reasons - most of the other sight seeing places are closed during that time and visiting late or early in the day can ensure a blissful visit to the temple and if lucky can attend the aarti during these hours. Since childhood, I used to hear "Om jai jagdish hare" but this was the first time I visited Lord Jagdish temple. I also happened to attend morning aarti at 5;30 am which was extremely peaceful and gave me satisfaction.

Temple Entrance

Lord Vishnu Garuda

There are two entrances to the temple, the first one looks beautiful but has around 100+ steps. The other one has lesser steps and can be accessed while coming from Bagore ki Haweli towards City Palace.

There is shops near the temple selling Poha, which is a must try. This is different from the usual Poha as it is served with some "boondi" and "sev" and is slightly sweet. It costs merely Rs 20 and is a must try in the morning. I could find a lot of parents getting the tiffin for their children to get filled from the shop as well.

Saheliyon ki Bari is a garden created by the former king for its queen. The queen used to enjoy time her with her friends. It is a nice plae to spend time for around 30 minutes to 1 hour. A stroll in the garden and some fountains give a clean air and freshens the body. It does not feel hot even on a sunny day when in this park due the greenery and fountains, which makes the place a must visit at least once. There is also a famous tea shop just outside this park which serves more than 20 varieties of tea.

Boating at Lake Pichola

Doodh Talai is the starting Jetty for a boat ride in Lake Pichola. We took a 10 - passenger boat. The queue was less and the boat was specious. It look us for a 30-minute ride in Lake Pichola. We could see the sun set, the Palace, Hotel Oberoi, Hotel Taj Lake Palace, Jag Mandir, Gangaur Ghat, and a few other ghat sections. It is a must do when in Udaipur. I would recommend a sun-set cruise around 5;30 pm to have the best views of the lake and the city.

Not to be missed - Eating out in Udaipur

Fateh Sagar Lake is a nice place for boating. It also has a dam and an aquarium. There is also a food stall place and Maharana Pratap Smarak.

Maharana Pratap Gaurav Kendra is an interesting place to visit. It would take at least 2 -3 hours. It has a robotics show, in addition to the gallery, and beautiful statues.

This Gaurav Kendra has been set up near Udaipur. It has a story-teller and also has the history being told using robotics. The place is great to learn about our glorious past and the sacrifices made by our ancestors so that we can live in free India. There are heroic instances not only by the kings but also the queens and their maids to protect the future leaders.

Badi Lake

Just before Bahubali hills is this lake called Badi lake. This lake is huge and is spread around the mountains. The same lake can be seen from the top of Bahubali hills and gives a peaceful and scenic view as it surrounds the hills.

Bahubali Hills

I could not trek to Bahubali hills as it was hot and the road to the top was not that well build. But here is a picture to the view that can be expected after the trek. It is best to go to Bahubali hills either early in the morning to avoid extreme heat. There are numerous maggi hawkers selling varieties of maggie.

Haldi Ghati Sight Seeing

Maharana Pratap Museum has been an interesting place to visit.

Statue of Belief - Nathdwara Sight Seeing

Beautiful images of Lord Shiva during the laser show which took place in the evening at around 7:30 pm and lasted for 20 minutes.

Kumbhalgarh Sight Seeing - Great wall of India (just after Great Wall of China)

Karni Mata Mandir

During the last day of our stay, we visited Karni Mata Mandir. We can reach there by cable car. Usually it takes at least 30 minutes to take the ticket and get to the cable car. As per locals, all the wishes get fulfilled here. We were even lucky as there was lunch being offered at the temple premises. The entire city can be viewed once on the top of the hill.