Places to visit in Jaipur

- This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure.

Jaipur’s fairytale forts, temples, palaces and observatories evoke a magical aura. Known as Rajasthan’s Pink City, Jaipur is a delight to the senses. There are plenty of things to do and places to visit in Jaipur. 

if you love history, you’ll find Jaipur especially appealing, with its legacy of the British Raj. Jaipur’s treasures are a contrast to the many wonderful natural landmarks in India

Jaipur

Places to visit in Jaipur

1- The vantage point at the corner of Chandpol and Kibhanpol Bazaars

jaipur back in time 10

Be sure to pack your best camera as Jaipur’s vivid colours are a photographer’s heaven.

ADVERTISEMENT

One of the best vantage points is at the corner of Chandpol and Kibhanpol Bazaars, where you will find a small temple with a rooftop platform that looks down upon the most colourful and busiest intersection in Jaipur.

Wiry merchants balance enormous baskets of fruit, vegetables, noodles and nuts as they stride among the trishaws, elephants, camel-pulled carts and glittering wedding horses.

Alluring women in blindingly bright colours sashay through the chaotic bazaars while men in multicoloured turbans and curly moustaches guard the halls of Jaipur’s monumental forts.

2- Jaipur City Palace

jaipur back in time 2

At the top of the list of tourist places in Jaipur is the City Palace, which has been converted into a museum.

Elegant arches sit upon slender columns and lattice marble screens; galleries that were once full of delicate wall paintings are linked by a maze-like complex of interconnecting courtyards and pavilions.

Audience halls, sitting rooms, dining rooms, banqueting chambers and offices that once bustled with official activity now are now filled with tourists.

It’s not hard to picture a time when queens, princesses and concubines schemed in the zenana, or private women’s quarters, while Jaipur’s dashing warrior princes held court.

Adding to the mystique of the City Palace is the fact that Sawai Bhawani Singh, the man who would be Maharaja, had history taken a different course, continues to live in a section of the complex.

3- Jaipur’s Bazaars

jaipur back in time 4

Jaipur’s bazaars are vibrant and utterly fascinating. The main markets are Johari Bazaar, Bapu Bazaar, Nehru Bazaar, Tripolia Bazaar and M.I. Road.

Even if you aren’t much of a shopper, it’s worth wandering around to catch glimpses of daily life. You’ll see stone masons, woodcarvers and brass workers chiselling away.

Keen shoppers will find themselves in a shopping nirvana. There are shops specialising in precious and semi-precious stones, ornaments and jewellery, artisans making enamel bracelets and colourful stalls that sell anything from shoes to carpets.

Jaipur is one place where you won’t have trouble filling up your suitcase. Here are the top 15 souvenirs to pick in Jaipur.

Don’t forget to haggle for the best price before your journey.

4- Palace of the Wind

places to visit jaipur

One of Jaipur’s most recognizable places to visit is the Hawa Mahal, or the Palace of Wind. Built by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh in 1799 A.D, this architectural marvel is a pyramid-shaped structure with thousands of tiny windows, domes and spires.

Although the façade has the appearance of a grand palace, that is all it is – a façade with no building.

The royal women used to stand on platforms behind this façade so that they could watch the parades on the road below without being seen.

5- Amber Fort

classic jaipur 3

Ride an elephant (Rs 400 return) or a jeep (Rs 120 return) up to the top of Amber Fort, the ancient capital of Jaipur’s Kachhawah rulers. Amber Fort is one of the places to see in Jaipur that will take your breath away.

There is an imposing stairway that leads to the Diwan – I – Am, or Hall of Public Audience, with its double row of columns and latticed galleries.

The Jai Mandir, or Hall of Victory, has glittering mirror ceilings and walls. From the 16th century right up until the 1980s, a goat used to be sacrificed each day at the Kali Temple.

The maharaja’s apartments are situated on the higher terrace and are linked to the zenana or women’s apartments.

6- Jaipur’s Elephant festival

places to visit jaipur 3

Join in the fun at Jaipur’s Elephant Festival where elephants dressed up in royal finery parade for the crowds, run races, play polo and tug-of-war.

For centuries, the elephant has been a symbol of strength and wealth for the Rajput kings. The festival is usually held around March each year to coincide with India’s Holi Festival.

7- Rambagh Palace

places to visit jaipur 9

Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II was one of the first Rajasthan nobles to convert his family palaces into a five-star luxury palace hotel.

In 1958, the family moved out of their principal residence – the Rambagh Palace in Jaipur – and handed over the reins to the Taj Group to run it as a hotel.

In years to come, the families other palaces suffered the same fate.

Rambagh Palace Hotel has a string of royal suites that reflect the opulent living of past eras, there are restaurants where turbaned and moustachioed retainers are at your beck and call and wide marbled patios where guests can soak in the regal atmosphere.

Rooms start from US$380 per night, the Grand Presidential Suite costs from US$4500 per night.

The concept of living like a Maharaja has such powerful market appeal that it has also inspired the Indian-managed Oberoi Group to design and construct from scratch, a string of brand new luxury hotels which capture the romance of Rajasthan’s opulent heritage.

8- Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar

places to visit jaipur

In 1724 Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II created a complex of astronomical instruments which were chiselled out of stone.

The amazing thing is that, to this day, most of these instruments continue to provide accurate measurements.

Although, as a keen astronomer, he built a string of observatories around the region, Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar is the largest and the best-preserved.

Climb the steep narrow steps to get on top of these instruments for a great view of the surrounding area or crawl around under the instruments that measure local time, the angle of the sun, altitude and declination of the stars and planets.

The most striking instrument is the Brihat Samrat Yantra Sundial, a commanding yellow construction which has a 27-meter high arm set at an angle of 27 degrees.

The shadow this casts moves up to four meters an hour and calculates the local time as well as various attributes of the heavenly bodies.

Places to visit near Jaipur

9- Palace on Wheels

Rollback through time and travel like a Maharaja aboard the Palace on Wheels.

Each carriage has been refurbished to resemble the original saloons of the Maharajas and come complete with private bathrooms, wall-to-wall carpeting and a personal attendant.

From Jaipur, you’ll be able to explore classic India – Jaisalmer Fort, Jodhpur’s blue city, Udaipur’s lakes and gardens, Bharatpur’s bird sanctuary and the fabled Taj Mahal at Agra – in railway luxury.

10- Sariska National Park

classic jaipur 9

This one of the best places to visit near Jaipur for wildlife lovers.

Situated 107 kilometres from Jaipur, Sariska National Park covers an area of 800 sq km.

Take a jeep safari through the forested landscape where the rocks and tall grass of Sariska hide a range of wildlife including tigers, jungle cats, civets, wild boars and langur monkeys.

The park is open almost all year round, but the best time to view wildlife is from October to April.

Taking a trip to Kolkata? Check out these monuments of Kolkata. Other things to do in Mumbai and places to see in Jodhpur. Another lovely city in Rajasthan is Udaipur.

Places to visit in Jaipur

Plan Your Trip

best car rental

Rent A Car – Find the best car rental rates at Discover Cars. They compare car hire companies to provide you with the best deal right now.


Find A Hotel – If you’re curious about this article and are looking for somewhere to stay, take a look at these amazing hotels.

Previous article10 Best Beginners Ski Resorts in Canada
Next articleCarnaval de Santiago de Cuba
Christina Pfeiffer
Christina Pfeiffer is a writer, photographer and video blogger based in Queensland, Australia. She has lived in three continents and her career as a travel journalist has taken her to all seven continents. Since 2003, she has contributed travel stories and photographs to mainstream media in Australia and around the world such as the Sydney Morning Herald, CNN Traveller, The Australian and the South China Morning Post. She has won many travel writing awards and is a full member of the Australian Society of Travel Writers.