INDIA'S GOLDEN TRIANGLE TOUR PLAN - DELHI AGRA JAIPUR PART 2

INDIA'S GOLDEN TRIANGLE TOUR PLAN - DELHI AGRA JAIPUR PART 2

Here we will start our journey from Agra and will move towards Jaipur after visiting Fatehpur Sikri. Let’s start the tour. 

DAY - 4 

Fatehpur Sikri is a town in Agra district of Indian state Uttar Pradesh. The city was founded by Mughal Emperor Akbar after his victory over Gujarat. The main place to visit here is the Fatehpur Sikri fort. If you are traveling Fatehpur Sikri by your own car then you have to park the car just after entering through the outer gate of the city. The parking place here is a large complex where you can get every facility. From this parking place, you have to avail government buses to go to the main fort entrance. The bus fare is Rs 10 per person. The entry fee to Fatehpur Sikri fort is Rs. 50 for Indian tourists, Rs. 610 for foreign tourists. Children up to 15 years are free to enter the premises. After entering through the main entrance you will see Diwan-i-am or the public audience hall of Emperor Akbar. Behind Diwan-i Am there is a big open space. In the middle of this open space stands the Diwan-i-Khas or the hall of private audience. The building is famous for its beautifully decorated central pillar. The pillar has a square base and octagonal shaft. On the left of Diwan-i-Khas is the treasury building of Emperor Akbar. Behind it, you can see Anup Talao. It is a tank in front of the khwabgah. The tank is made up of red sandstone. In front of Anup Talao, there is Panch Mahal. Panch Mahal was built by Akbar. The palace was near the harem and was a summer retreat for royal family members. Going from bottom to top each floor is smaller than the other. There are 84 pillars on the first floor. Each pillar had a jali work from where women can have a glimpse of the city. Beside Panch Mahal, there is Khas Mahal or the Emperor’s private palace. It is a two-storied building. This building is connected to the Ladies harem. At the centre of the ladies harem stood the palace of Jodhabai, the Hindu Rajput wife of Emperor Akbar. The palace has notable Gujarati influence in its architecture and is built around a courtyard. Special care was being taken to ensure the privacy of this Palace. In this Palace complex, you can see the summer and winter Palace of Jodhabai. These two are double storied structure famous for intricate Jali work. On the third side, you will see the Temple where Jodhabai used to worship God. At the ground floor of this complex, you can be entertained by an audio-visual show which tells the story of Fatehpur Sikri. On one side of Jodhabai’s Palace, you can see the horse stable. At the end of the horse stable, there is Birbal’s Palace. The palace was built on the basis of Mughal and Persian architecture and is of two stories. On the other side of Jodhabai’s palace,there is another palace which was belonged to the Christian wife of Emperor Akbar. From the back of the harem complex, you can clearly see the entrance of the fort. In front of Panch Mahal, you can see Pachisi Court. A Pachisi Court was built by Akbar to play the Pachisi game. A ground with black and white checks was built and humans were used instead of mohras to play the game. Emperor Akbar used to play this game with his queens and other important royal members. This fort is now a UNESCO world heritage site and experiences thousands of visitors every day. 

From Fatehpur Sikri go to Jaipur via Bharatpur. The distance of Jaipur from Fatehpur Sikri is 207.6 Km via NH21 and it will take around 4 hours to reach Jaipur from Fatehpur Sikri. The road from Fatehpur Sikri to Jaipur is very beautiful but it has toll charges which are a bit high. At the entrance of Jaipur, you can enjoy the beauty of Aravalli hills. After reaching Jaipur first visit City Palace. The magnificent City Palace in Jaipur is one of the most famous tourist attractions in the city. It was built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh during the years 1729 to 1732. The vast complex of the palace occupied one-seventh of the walled city. It was once the seat of the Maharaja of Jaipur. The architecture of this palace needs a special mention as it is a perfect blend of Mughal and Rajput style architecture. From the city Palace go to visit Hawa Mahal. Hawa Mahal stands at the intersection of the main road in Jaipur, Badi Chaupad. It was built by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh in the year 1799. Hawa Mahal derives its name from its unique structure, which is a mesh of small windows that allows cool wind to enter the palace to keep it comfortable during the hot summer days. It is located right on the edge of the City Palace Jaipur. The entry fee to Hawa Mahal is Rs 40 per head for Indian visitors. 

A charming fountain welcomes you inside the main palace, from whereon you can make your way up to the different floors. Hawa Mahal palace is a five-story building each of which has a uniquely decorated chamber. It has been decorated with 953 tiny windows,also known as 'Jharokhas' and embellished with gorgeous latticework. There is a slop in every floor through which you can move to another floor. Roam around, visit every nook and corner, experience this stunning architecture of this majestic palace. Only the fourth story has a steep staircase to go to the top floor. From the top of the palace, you can get a brilliant view of the City Palace, Jantar Mantar, and the ever-busy Siredeori Bazar. There is a small museum as well which holds some rich relics and miniature paintings. From Hawa Mahal take a tour of the famous pink city. Pink City in Jaipur refers to the old walled city that was built in the year 1727 by Maharaja Jai Singh II. The wall that marks the boundary of the Pink City is about six meters high and three meters thick and encompasses a number of structures within its confines. In Jaipur, you will find many hotels in the different budget range. You can also book them online.

DAY - 5

A local cab will be charged around Rs. 2500 for this whole day tour. Here we will first go to Jaigarh Fort. We started our journey from the heart of Jaipur City. As soon as your crossed the main city territory the view of surrounding wills begin to change, instead of the urban structure you will see the beautiful Aravalli ranges. Aravalli is the oldest mountain range of india, unlike Himalaya mountain range you will not able to see fresh greeneries here instead of that you will be exposed to dry and draft mountains where you can see plenty of marbles, quadraits and small plants. But middlest to say these mountain range it some unnatural beauty. It may seems that the length of our journey to Jaigarh Fort beat long. A base of Jaigarh Fort the road is divided in two direction, one is Nahargarh Fort and another is Jaigarh Fort. We took the second one, 

Jaigarh Fort is situated on the cafe locally called Chill ka Tilla which means Hills of Eagles of the Arivalli range. The fort was build by Jaisingh II in 1726 to protect Amer Fort and hence this complex was named after him. It is also known as Victory Fort the thick fort was made of red sand stones. If you are travelling Jaigarh for with you own reserve car then you park your car in front of the canon jaivan inside the fort complex. From there you have cover the tour of this fort on foot. Right now Jaivan is the largest canon on wheels this canon was manufacured in the fort ground in 1720 to form a strong weapon for the city of jaipur. Currently Indian Army taken care of this canon. Enjoy the walker on the for wall and experience its past glory. Jaigarh Fort was contractually and design by talented architect Vidhyadhar Bhattacharya and its say to the strongest all three forts Jaigarh, Nahargarh and Amer. It has never face any major resistance. Best time to visit this fort is from October to March. From the one side of fort wall you can have a clear view of beautiful Jal Mahal and lake. Each pillars of the fort wall as a small opening if you take a look through this small windows then you can have a glens of realistic Aravalli range & beautiful lake at the far end. From the other side of the fort wall you can see the entire fort complex, Jaigarh fort and Amer fort a connected by the passages considered as a one complex. From the Jaigarh Fort wall you can see that passage also at the far ends you be able to get a clear view of Amer Fort  from the top of this wall. Moving forward through the fort wall you can see a majestic tower at the end of the wall. There a some ancient ruins in the front of the tower. It is here at the base of  the fort wall you can see a small temple. 

Being one of the major fort in Jaipur City this fort experiences a large number of visitors every day. The entry fee to the fort is Rs 150 per person for the foreigners Rs 70 person for Indian tourist. The fort is open from 9 AM to  5 PM. From Jaigarh Fort moves towards Nahargarh Fort, Nahargarh Fort has a wall that connect its to the Jaigarh Fort. Nahargarh Fort is another major fort of Jaipur City. This fort is situated on the age of Aravalli Hills and is famous for amazing views of the surrounding. Currently it is one of the most popular tourist attraction in jaipur. Nahargarh Fort was built in the year 1734 by Maharaja Sawai Jaisingh II the founder of Jaipur. And it was retreat palace for the Royals. After entering through the main entrance first take a walker on the near by fort wall. From here you can enjoy a stunning view of Jaipur City and the base of the hill. Also you can enjoy beautiful view of Aravalli Mountain range. A small land cover with sand can be seen at the base of this hill. Next go to see the Wax Museum & replica of Sheesh Mahal. To enter inside of the Sheesh Mahal and Wax Museum you have to get a separate entry ticket. The ticket price is Rs 150 per person, in front of the Wax Museum you can see some puppet dressed-up in traditionally Rajasthani attire. And can see the pictures of rural life of Rajasthan. From Sheesh Mahal moved towards the water tank whether the royal use to store water for daily uses in ancient time. Behind the water tank you can see a step well, the architecture of this step well is amazing. 

From there go to visit Madhavendra Bhavan, the women`s quarter or janana dharohin known as the Madhvendra Bhavan is the most attractive part of the Nahargarh Fort. It is the summer resort of the Royal family. Currently there is fine dinning restaura named " Once Upon Time Inside The Kings Bedroom" at the entrance of this palace you can see two small canons. After you enter through the main palace gate you will see a complex with notable artworks on its pillars. Moving forward you will enter into rectagle cotier the palace consist of Nine absolutely identical two stored suit, which were the resident of nine wives of the maharaja. Every apartment had the name of the queen written on the door, there are four quarter on the two sides of cotier and the third side the quarter of the main queen which is identical to the quarters of the other queens and the forth side of the cotier had the personal wing of maharaja. Each quarter has one bedroom, one dinning room and one dressing room on each floor. There are also separate room for maids of the queens. Each building consist of the separate kitchen & toilets on each floor. Every room of the beautiful palace was decorated with stucco design and phrases cores. All the rooms were enter connected through corridors that had striking phrases cores. The Kings personal wing is also the same as is queens, only it big large in size. Each apartment has been places in such a manners that if the king would visit one queen the other could not know about it. The rooftop of the palace is most famous among all fort of Jaipur. From the rooftop enjoy the stunning views of  surrounding city. From the one side of the rooftop you can have a glenns of the fine dine resto once upon a time. 

While visiting Nahargarh Fort keep ample time in your hand because it is amazing architecture were you can enjoy two to three hours easily. The fort is open 10 AM to 5 PM all days, entry fees here is Rs 20 per head for Indian tourist and Rs 70 per head for foreigners. From Nahargarh Fort go to visit Jal Mahal. The Jal Mahal Palace is Architectural brilliance of rajput style of architect. The building has pictures views of the lake itself. The palace was build with red sand stones, and is a five stored building of which four floors remain in underwater when the lake is full and the top floor is exposed.

DAY - 6

On the 6th day, early in the morning, go to visit Amber Fort by car. A local cab will charge around Rs 3000 for a whole day tour. After crossing the main city of Jaipur, you will be exposed to the rough Aravalli mountain range. The unnatural rustic beauty of this oldest mountain range of India is a relief for our urban eyes. If you are going to Amber fort by your own reserved car then you have to park your car at the base of the hill. From there you can either take a jeep or can enjoy elephant ride to reach the main Fort entrance. The fare of the jeep is Rs 500 and the elephant ride will cost Rs 1100 for 2 people. We availed a jeep to reach the top. The Jeep entered the fort from the back side and stopped near the main entrance. From there you have to cover the fort tour on foot. In front of the main entrance, you can see local musicians playing their local instruments and some local people selling local hand-made products. You can buy small souvenirs from them. After passing through the main gate of the fort you will enter to the first courtyard of Amber Fort. There are two big entrances at the two ends of this courtyard. One is named Suraj Pol and the other is named Chand Pol. If you are taking elephant ride then you will come straight to this point through the front gate. At the far end of this courtyard, there are two entrances. Through the first entrance, you will be able to visit the Temple of Shila Devi. Videography is prohibited at the temple. Through the second entrance, you will be able to enter the second courtyard of the Fort. From the top of this gate, you will be able to get a clear view of the entire first courtyard and the beautiful surroundings of the fort. 

In the second courtyard, first, visit the Diwan-i-am or the public audience hall. This hall is famous for its beautifully decorated pillars. Crossing the Diwan i am you will find the beautifully designed Ganesh Pol. It is a gate in the second courtyard entering through which you will come to the main palace. After entering through the Ganesh Pol you will be exposed to a large ground. On one side of this ground stands the famous Sheesh Mahal. It was once the main residence of the king. On the walls of Sheesh Mahal, you can see the beautiful artwork using thousands of convex mirrors. It is a two-story construction. From the top floor of this palace, you will get a clear view of Diwan i am. Also, you will be able to see the surrounding Aravalli mountain ranges from this place. From the back of this rooftop, you can see the old Amber fort where princess Jodhabai was born. On the other side of the ground, stands the Sukh Mahal or the summer and monsoon palace of the queen. You can see stunning marble artwork in this palace. Here, you can see a passage inside the queen’s bedroom. Once, water used to flow through this passage in order to make this room cool in the scorching summer days. In between these two palaces, there is a beautiful garden. Crossing this ground you will enter into the women’s quarter where the 12 queens of the king stayed. Each queen had a two-story building in which there were a separate bedroom, dining room and dressing room. At the center of this women’s quarter, there is the third courtyard of the palace. This was a highly secured place. There is a two-story structure which surrounds this courtyard. There are some steep staircases which lead you to the top floor. On the top floor, you can see the places once where royal guards used to stand to provide security to the royal ladies. At the back side of the main palace, there was the royal kitchen. Here you can see the enormous cooking pots which were used for cooking in past days.  After completing your fort tour you will again come out to the first courtyard. Amber fort is open from 10 am to 5.30 pm. Entry fee here is Rs 100 for Indian tourists and Rs 550 for Foreigners. Since this fort is a UNESCO world heritage site, you can see large crowd everywhere inside the fort. In the evening you can be entertained by light and sound show here. The ticket price is Rs 150 per person. 

From Amber fort, go to visit the Albert Hall Museum. This is the oldest museum of the state and functions as the State Museum of Rajasthan. It is also called the Government Central Museum. In the front hall of this museum, you can see beautiful Paintings of all the kings of Jaipur. In the inner room, you can see a rich collection of jewelry, carpets, stone and metal sculptures and crystal artworks. The museum is open from 9 Am to 5 PM. Ticket fare is Rs 10 per head for Indian tourists and Rs 150 for foreigners. At this point, we complete our Golden Triangle tour guide. 

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