3 Days in Jaipur - The Ultimate Jaipur Itinerary for Photographers
No trip to India is complete without a visit to Jaipur. Jaipur is the capital of India’s Rajasthan state and is a bustling city with its incredible architecture, busy roads and delicious food. The historic ‘Old City’ of Jaipur is a walled centre with terracotta ‘pink’ walls, giving its Pink City name. Visiting Jaipur has always been one of my travel dreams and so our three days in Jaipur were one of there most interesting and well-remembered days of our trip.
HOW MANY DAYS SHOULD I SPEND IN JAIPUR?
If you’re planning to visit Jaipur, I’d recommend 3 full days in the city with a guide, to have time to fit in all the sights below. This would be a relatively packed schedule though, as you’d be out all day sightseeing with not too much rest in between. If you’re adventuring out on your own and prefer to take things slow, then four days would be a good amount of time. If you want to do a day trip to Taj Mahal from Jaipur (instead of staying at Agra), then also choose four days. If you’re super pressed for time but really absolutely want to visit the city, you could probably do two days however you would either have to be super go-go-go, or look into skipping a few of the sights.
Our three day trip in Jaipur was comfortable. We didn’t visit Taj Mahal whilst we were at Jaipur (we did this separately with an overnight stay in Agra). However, we did have a wonderful local guide (Puneet Yadav) who took us around in his car and made everything so incredibly efficient without feeling rushed at all. Just having a local with us was so great as he knew exactly where to go for tickets, bathrooms and entrances and peppered our day with much humour, kindness, historical tidbits and fun! Some places we visited would have been a struggle to find on our own and without him, I think we definitely would not have been able to fit everything below in three days. So super recommend having a local guide like Puneet, especially if it’s your first time in India.
Anyway, onto our three day itinerary! Brace yourselves, this is going to be a long one!
DAY 1
SUNRISE: AMER VIEWPOINT
This gorgeous spot in Amer, a little town 20 mins away from Jaipur and is the perfect place to watch the sunrise and was super quiet when we visited! It’s absolutely stunning here and was an incredible way to start our time in Jaipur.
To get to the viewpoint here, you’ll need to climb some steep steps for 20 minutes. I would definitely recommend bringing some well-soled shoes like a pair of sneakers, though I managed okay with my sandals as unfortunately that’s all I had packed.
MORNING: CITY PALACE
Our next stop for the day was the beautiful Jaipur City Palace, home of the royal family. This spot is one of the most popular places to visit in Jaipur and rightly so. It’s home to so many of the images I have seen of Jaipur and was just so incredible to see in real life.
Tip: If you want visit the famous blue room and the other private areas of Jaipur’s City Palace, be sure to purchase the Royal Grandeur ticket, as the other tickets don’t include access. The Royal Grandeur ticket is a lot more pricey at 3500INR ($70AUD) vs 700INR ($14AUD) for the regular ticket. The price difference is quite large, so keep this in mind when deciding whether you think it’s worth it or not! The blue room and private areas are really quiet and give you a nice insight into the residential areas, especially if you’re interested in the history and learning more about the City Palace in general, but if you just want to have a general look around, then the regular ticket is sufficient.
I think we spent around 2-2.5 hours at the City Palace, there were just so many sights to see and the whole complex is quite large. You don’t want to rush it!
HAWA MAHAL
Hawa Mahal or Wind Palace is just around the corner from the City Palace so it’s easy to pair this up with your visit to the City Palace. The terracotta pink facade faces the main road but interestingly enough, this is actually the backside of the building. The 953 windows on the face of the building were originally made for women to privately enjoy the street scene without being noticed by others.
The Hawa Mahal is stunning and is best enjoyed from one of a number of cafes across the road which make for a great spot to take some pictures whilst enjoying the view. It was here at one of these very cafes that I had my first taste of Maggi masala noodles - yum!
After Hawa Mahal, we went back to the hotel to relax a bit and enjoy our hotel (Alsisar Haveli), so there’s a bit of spare time in our itinerary which also means a the perfect time to check out the stalls surrounding Hawa Mahal - there are heaps of shops here if you’re keen to bring home a souvenir.
CAFE PALLADIO
Cafe Palladio is a stunning restaurant/cafe in Jaipur with gorgeous hand-painted murals with a pastel palette. This spot serves an Italian fusion menu and is a must-visit when in Jaipur! Come here for an early dinner or later afternoon snack and if you have time, check out Bar Palladio (its sister bar venue) as well.
DAY 2
MAHARANIYO KI CHHATRI
This royal crematorium was made for the women and is filled with exquisite cenotaphs in memory of the royal women of the past. It’s not as popular with foreign tourists as the men’s equivalent, Gaitor Ki Chhatriyan (which we visit later), however I think it’s just as beautiful if not more beautiful, especially as it’s a lot more peaceful. Most visitors here are locals who come to take pre-wedding photos!
ALBERT HALL MUSEUM
Albert Hall Museum is the oldest museum in Rajasthan and is also famous for its numerous pigeons out the front. Many locals come here to take pre-wedding photos with the birds. It’s a beautiful spot to pass by for a few snaps.
PATRIKA GATE
Patrika Gate is one of my favourite places in Jaipur. This grand gate stands at the entrance of Jawahar Circle, a garden in Jaipur city. Each pillar of Patrika Gate is painted with important facts about different areas of Rajasthan and its intricate details and pastel colours make for a beautiful sight to see.
LUNCH @ SAMODE PALACE
An hours drive from Jaipur is the town of Samode where you can find Samode Palace, a luxurious 300 year old mansion turned hotel set on top of the hills. If you’re not staying at Samode Palace, you can still visit the palace as a day-guest. The entrance fee is 1000INR per person but can be used as credit towards lunch at their restaurant.
Samode Palace is beautifully decorated with mirror-tiled halls, marble swimming pools and velvet sofas, it really makes for a great relaxing stopover. One day I’d love to experience an overnight stay here as well!
SUNSET: NAHARGARH FORT
One of the most popular spots to catch sunset in Jaipur is at Nahargarh Fort. Hundreds of people come here at night to visit and there are a number of food stalls and bars where you can sit and enjoy the view. We joined in on one of those days, it was incredible to see the sun set across the city. I didn’t know Jaipur was so big until I saw it from above. It really does go on and on.
DAY 3
AMER FORT
Amer Fort is another one of the more popular sights in Jaipur. It’s situated in the town of Amer, about 30 mins from Jaipur. As Amer Fort is really busy, it’s best to visit in the morning when it opens at 8am. The fort is made up of numerous courtyards, palaces, halls and gardens. We wandered through the grounds for approximately 1.5-2 hours.
Tickets cost 500INR for foreign tourists.
PANNA MEENA KA KUND (STEPWELL)
Panna Meena Stepwell is a beautiful spot that is no longer in use, situated in Amer. It’s muted pink colours and gorgeous symmetry makes for a really unique spot! Depending on the day, you may or may not be able to visit the steps as it’s meant to be no longer open to tourists. It’s a little confusing here and depends on the guard in charge as to whether or not you can have a quick picture on the steps. But even if you can’t, it’s a beautiful spot to view from ground level as well.
JAGAT SHIROMANI TEMPLE
Also in Amer is the stunning Jagat Shiromani Temple. For some reason, nobody seems to come by - they just skip it and visit Amer Fort and maybe the Stepwell if they have time. However, Jagat Shiromani Temple is definitely worth the stop even just for a little while. The view from the top of the stairs of this Hindu temple is breathtaking, to see Amer surrounded by the mountains.
GALTA JI (MONKEY TEMPLE)
After a morning in Amer, it’s time to head back to Jaipur. Our next stop is Galta Ji (Monkey Temple). a large Hindu complex that is both an operational temple, as well as a popular tourist attraction. The temple is home to a large group of monkeys hence the name. On the day we visited it was heaps busy as locals were visiting to bathe in the holy waters. The entrance fee was 50INR per person.
ONCE UPON A TIME @ THE BAGH
If you want a cool place for a late lunch and somewhere to chill out, head to Once Upon a Time @ The Bagh after your stop at Monkey Temple. This restaurant is a gorgeous open air venue with a small indoor area that is painted and decorated in various shades of blue. It’s such a beautiful space and a great place to share some platters with friends.
Gaitor Ki Chhatriyan (ROYAL GAITOR)
These royal cenotaphs are another relatively off the beaten path spot to visit. It’s located at the foot of Nahargarh Fort and contains the marble cenotaphs of Jaipur’s former rulers. There is a small entrance fee of 30INR per person to enter.
And that brings us to the end of a very long but hopefully helpful 3 day itinerary for Jaipur! Hope you enjoy and happy travel planning!