India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) (302 page)

FESTIVALS
Udaipur’s biggest festivals are the
Mewar Festival,
held every March or April, and the
Holi Festival,
held every March. October’s Ashwa Poojan is another celebration worth inquiring about (your hotel should be able to advise you on exact dates and where best to experience the festivities). The
Gangaur Festival
is celebrated with special zeal by the women of Udaipur (end of Mar to Apr). During this festival, unmarried women pray to the goddess Gauri (manifestation of Parvati, Shiva’s wife) for a good husband, while the married pray for the well-being of their husbands and a happy married life. Women decorate their hands and feet with
mehendi
(tattoos of henna paste) and carry colorful images of Gauri and terra-cotta lamps on their heads as they dance and sing songs in street processions. At the end of the festival they break these lamp-pots and celebrate with a feast. Festivities last 18 days and include many colorful processions and a fireworks display.

WHAT TO SEE & DO

To make Udaipur’s intriguing and valorous history really come alive, consider taking on the services of a qualified guide in the city, which can be requested through your hotel or by contacting one of the recommended local operators (see above).

If your idea of a vacation is lying by a pool with a good book, only visits to the City and Lake palaces (see “Top Attractions,” below) need top your list of things to do in Udaipur proper. The city is the ideal base for a number of day trips, however. The most highly recommended is a round-trip through Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary and Fort, taking in the temples of Ranakpur along the way, and possibly stopping at Eklingji on the way back (see “Top Excursions,” below). The lovely, scenic drive passes picture-postcard rural hamlets and fields of mustard, scattered with boys tending cattle and women clad in bright saris tilling the soil.

For those interested in seeing more of the city, the following day tour—to be tailored to your needs—provides an overview of the top sights in and around Udaipur. Start your day by exploring the City Palace, which usually towers over the city’s raison d’être, Lake Pichola. Two more palaces can be seen on what would be the islands of Jag Niwas and Jag Mandir (see “Top Attractions,” below). Exit through Tripolia Gate to explore the Old City of Udaipur, which sprawls north of the palace.
Jagdish Temple
, the largest in Udaipur, is its chief attraction. Despite some lovely exterior carvings (including hidden erotic pieces your guide will point out), the temple itself is rather ordinary (if you’ve seen a number of them elsewhere, that is), but its attraction lies in its massive popularity. The temple has seen a constant stream of people who come to worship Lord Jagannath, an aspect of Vishnu (the black stone image enshrined within), since it first opened its doors in 1652.
Aarti
takes place at around 10am, 7:30pm, and 10pm—try to time your visit for when the
bhajans
(prayer-songs) make for a most atmospheric experience. (Remove your shoes before entering, and an attendant will look after them for a small tip; no photography inside.) The bronze half-man, half-bird statue of Garuda outside is the vehicle of Vishnu. From Jagdish Temple you can wander the mazelike streets of old Udaipur, admiring the whitewashed havelis and popping into tiny shops before reaching the clock tower that marks the northern edge. Near the lake edge, at Gangaur Ghat, you can visit the
Bagore-ki-Haveli Museum
(
0294/242-2567
), a restored royal haveli with plenty of idiosyncratic design detail that’s now part of a museum and cultural center; it’s best visited on evenings for the nightly music and dance performances. If you haven’t picked up a bicycle from
Heera Cycle Store
(86 Gangaur Ghat Rd., near Jagdish Temple), catch a taxi from here (or have your driver waiting) to
Bharatiya Lok Kala Museum
(Panch Vati Rd.; entry Rs 35, Rs 20/50 camera; daily 9am–6pm), Udaipur’s unofficial “Puppet Museum” (Rajasthan being the birthplace of this favored Indian storytelling medium), where you can watch a good show, staged almost hourly throughout the day. The best is held each evening at 6pm (Rs 30 with traditional folk dances added on (though note that most hotels have a puppet show as part of their evening’s entertainment including the rooftop at Jagat Niwas). The folk museum also contains models, instruments, and photographs documenting other local traditions and crafts, but for this you’re better off visiting
Shilpgram
(
0294/241-9023;
www.shilpgram.org
). This extremely faux rural arts-and-crafts “village” is located 3km (2 miles) out of town; follow the road that runs along the north of Fateh Sagar Lake; daily 11am to 7pm, folk dances 11am and 7pm; admission is just Rs 25 but you’ll pay for extras such as camel rides and the use of cameras. Created to “promote and preserve the traditional architecture, music, and crafts of the tribal village of western India,” Shilpgram has a distinctly artificial feel but interesting cultural performances; you can also ride a camel and browse for tribal knickknacks that the “traditionally” attired craftspeople will be only too delighted to finally off-load. If you’re in a particularly touristy mood, you can dress up in a traditional Rajasthani outfit and have your picture taken. Beware that it is very touristy and in season can become extremely crowded. Along the way, stop for a brief wander through
Saheliyon-ki-Bari
(Garden of the Maids of Honour)
north of Bharatiya Lok Kala Museum—turn left at Sukadia Circle. It’s open daily 8am to 7:30pm (small admission fee). Created by Sangram Singh in the 18th century for the ladies of his household (some say to re-create the monsoon climate for his sickly daughter), this is billed as Udaipur’s finest garden, but it suffers from neglect, with none of the fountains operating. Still, it’s a peaceful place, and the array of established indigenous trees may interest keen botanists. If the monsoon has been good and lake levels in Udaipur have risen, from Saheliyon-ki-Bari make your way to nearby
Fateh Sagar Lake,
along a scenic winding road,
passing
Moti Magri
on your left, atop which is the statue of Maharana Pratap and his beloved horse, Chetak (largely missable, but the views from here are lovely). Fateh Sagar, the large lake that lies north of Lake Pichola, has a small island garden of its own, the rather neglected
Nehru Park.
Make sure you stop off for a drink or lunch at Raaj Bagh (
0294/243-1700
), a delightful garden restaurant serving regional cuisine overlooking the lake, which serves inexpensive, quality food by efficient staff. It also has a small vintage car collection (note the Corgi scooter) and ice cold drinks.

An excellent place to view the sunset is
Sajjan Garh
(Monsoon Palace),
built by the Maharana Sajjan Singh as an observatory in the late 19th century. You can enter the palace building by tipping the guard (though it’s a restricted security area). Head to one of the alcoves from where views of the surrounding mountains are breathtaking. Then rush down to have a sundowner nearby at the new Fateh Garh with its award-winning (
Condé Nast Traveler
Best Pools July 2009) infinity pool (see “Where to Stay,” below) and commanding views towards Lake Pichola and the city. If this sounds like one stop too many after a rather exhausting day, head straight for one of the rooftop or garden restaurants in the city (Ambrai at
Amet Haveli,
or the rooftop at
Jagat Niwas
Palace); get a table on the
Sunset Terrace
(near the Dovecoat lobby of the Fateh Prakash hotel); or sit on the marbled “deck” at the Lake Palace, where you can relax with a drink as the sun sinks behind the distant jagged outline of the Aravalli Hills, and the flautist conjures up the moon.

TOP ATTRACTIONS

City Palace and Museum
For full effect, the staggering, monumental City Palace complex is best viewed from either of the islands on Lake Pichola; the palace’s cream-colored stone walls tower some 30m (98 ft.) above its mirrorlike reflection in the lake and stretch almost 250m (820 ft.) across its eastern shore. The 300-year-old complex actually comprises 11 palaces (or
mahals
) built by its successive maharanas, making it by far the largest palace complex in Rajasthan. Purchase the useful guidebook at the entrance (or hire the services of a guide through your hotel; those who hang around the ticket office charge on average Rs 300 for a 2-hr. tour) to help you maneuver the sprawling museum, much of it connected by a maze of rather claustrophobic tunnel-like stairways designed to confuse and slow down potential invaders. (This is why it’s essential to get here as soon as the palace doors open—finding yourself trapped between busloads of jeering families who mysteriously come to regular standstills in these airless passages is sheer purgatory.) The entire palace is a delight, but highlights include the large peacock mosaics in the 17th-century
Mor (Peacock) Chowk;
mirror-encrusted
Moti Mahal;
the glass and porcelain figures of
Manak (Ruby) Mahal,
which has a central garden; the collection of miniatures featuring Krishna legends in
Krishna Vilas
(dedicated to a 16-year-old princess who committed suicide here); exquisite Zenana Mahal (Palace of the Queens); and the Chinese and Dutch ceramics of
Chini Mahal.
When the lake levels are normal, the cusped windows provide superb views of the serene waters of Pichola Lake, on which white-marble Lake Palace appears to float. The last two palaces built, both now open to visitors wishing to overnight or dine, are the grand but rather staid
Shiv Niwas
and gorgeous
Fateh Prakash.
The latter can be visited for high tea (a rather dull affair) to view the Durbar Hall’s royal portrait gallery, with its massive chandeliers and Venetian mirrors, and to see the Crystal Gallery, which has a huge collection of rare cut-crystal furniture and ornaments imported by Maharana Sajjan Singh from England in 1877. (For more on these palaces, see “Where to Stay” and “Where to Dine,” later in this section.) Vintage-car lovers should ask about the tour of the Mewar family’s Classic Car Collection. Set aside 3 hours to do the palace justice. (Water and soft drinks are available at a small stand inside the palace complex.)