Our trip to Udaipur – The city of lakes

Udaipur the city of lakes is the most peaceful place I have ever visited. The trip to Udaipur from Delhi was of three days with my parents. Below you will find all the important points of the trip which will help you out as and when you visit this place.

Travel time – 10th -12th Jan 2015

ARRIVAL – Day 1(10th Jan 2015)
We had booked Jet airways flight from Delhi at 05:35 Hours .As T3 is a silent airport hence no announcements will be made for boarding. Kindly watch the LCD screens positioned all around the terminal for updates. Yes the flights which are being delayed will be announced. We reached Udaipur on time ie 07:05 Hours. We had booked Hotel Udai Palace Kothi. Udaipur Airport is approximately 26Kms from Lake Pichola which is the central place of Udaipur and the most happening too. As Airport is outside the city hence there are no Autos/Bus services available. The only option is taking prepaid Taxi service outside airport which have very high fixed rates as there is monopoly. The driver charged us INR 700 for the drop to our hotel which was nearby lake Pichola.

HOTEL UDAI KOTHI
Hotel Udai Kothi lies just nearby Lake Pichola and is a palace built into heritage haveli. The Haveli has two room views one is lake view other is garden view. Hotel has an amazing garden and roof top swimming pool restaurant where we had some snacks till the time room was allotted to us. The ambience of restaurant is amazing. Do relax on Sofas which are placed just next to the pool. Swimming pool can be used from 6.30 am till night. Rooms are very neat, clean with wooden work and 24 hours running hot water. Rooms have electronic locker and Mini Bar(chargeable, highly priced).

LAKE PICHOLA
Do take hotels near Lake Pichola as it’s the best place to live in Udaipur. Lake Pichola Hotel (Government Approved) and Ambrehi Haveli are other hotels which I can suggest and are worth staying(Under INR 5,000 per night). Enjoy the lake side small cafes which serve you Italian, Mexican, Indian snacks. The price fits your pocket and the light music along with lake pichola view makes your morning more lively. One of such restaurant is Jasmine Restaurant.

Boat rides are available from many places across lake Pichola which can take you to Jag Mandir and Lake Palace situated at the centre of Lake Palace. Lake Palace can be entered by only those persons which have their room booking at the palace or else boat will just go around the same. As it is the most famous and most visited lake it is very polluted and smelly from some shores.

CITY PALACE
Next we went to City palace which is Palace of King converted into museum. Its walking distance from Lake Pichola (15-20 Min walk ). There is a market on the way from where you can buy shawls, kurtis, handicrafts etc at a reasonable price. Make sure you visit City palace early morning as it gets very crowded post noon. Timings are from 09:00 Hours to 16:30 hours. Entry fees is INR 100/50 Adult/Child plus Camera in INR 200. Entrance is amazing where you can click lots of photographs. You have shops on the left and right side of Palace as you enter which have culture of Rajasthan embedded in textiles/handicrafts. They are expensive though. The museum has weapons/protective gears etc which were used during fights. It also has Palkis in which Queens were carried from one place to another. There is a stable at ground floor too. It showcases different rooms of Palace and how Indian Rulers used to live their life. There is a sun depiction made of gold which is worth seeing. The view from top of palace is very good.

City Palace Entrance

Inside City Palace

The open restaurant in City Palace has very good food with all the cuisines but is quite expensive. There is an option of taking ticket of boat ride of lake Pichola which takes place from City Palace tickets of which can be taken either at the entrance of City Palace or just next to Restaurant in City palace.
For the people who can’t climb stairs there is a lift in Museum which can take you up to some level. Washrooms and Water filters are there in the premises.
Total time on an average will be 2-3 Hours in City palace.

Sun in Gold

From the top of City Palace

MASSAGE/YOGA PARLORS

There are lots of massage/yoga parlors near lake Pichola which are reasonable to and quite relaxing. Try Thai/ Mexican massage for sure.

SHILPGRAM
Shilpgram is the place to witness Rajasthan Culture. It is a village 5 minutes from Fatehsagar lake. It has camel rides and folk dance and local music which is being played after regular intervals. You can get dressed in Rajasthani style and get yourself clicked in different poses. There is nail art shop from where you can buy different nail paintings. Also you will find handicrafts shop and jewellery and how the villagers go about their daily life. There are snacks and coffee shops which also have Rajasthan thali and famous daal baati. The famous Craft festival takes place from 25th Dec to 2nd Jan.
Total Time– 1 hour

RAJASTHANI EMPORIUM
This is a government textiles and handicraft emporium located in centre of Udaipur. It has all types of Rajasthani textile designs like bandhej, lehriya, multicolor etc. Beautiful paintings depicting Rajasthan culture is also available at fairly good price. Sarees, bed sheets, Suits, Kurtis etc are all available. The price is fairly cheap then what you get from elsewhere. They have option of courier also. Best part if the warm and friendly nature of the people working there. You will not go empty handed bet me.

CULTURAL SHOW(BAGORE KI HAVELI)
This is a puppet mataka show which happens every day at Bagore ki Haveli located close to City Palace. Make sure you reach early and get the best seats available. It is a very amazing and beautifull show where people sit together and enjoy the Rajasthan culture. The best part is the puppet show. Timings are from 6.30pm to 7.30 pm.

Bagore Ki Haveli

Bagore Ki Haveli

LAKE PICHOLA HOTEL
This hotel is placed just across the lake pichola. The vie from hotel is amazing and the cool breeze eases you off and takes away all the tiredness. The food quality is very good and also within your pockets. Drinks are also available and at a very good rate.

FATEH SAGAR LAKE
Fatehsagar lake is 20 minutes from lake pichola and is a very beautiful lake. It is much cleaner and water is clear. Unlike pichola there are very few hotels near the lake due to which it has its calmness. There is a very nicely built park called Nehru Park in the middle of the lake. There is a boat every thirty munte that takes you to the park. The park has an boat like canteen at one end where you can have ice creams, cold drinks and some snacks. The views from corners are good and you can capture some good pictures from there. 30-45 minutes are enough to spend here.

Nehru Park – Fatehsagar Lake

SAHELIYON KI BARI
Saheliyon ki bari is an interesting park having lots of fountains and beautiful flowers and trees. This was built for the RANI’S who used to come here and relax. The water comes from Fatehsagar Lake which is used in fountains and reused again. Its a nice place to relax and walk. You can spend 1 hour here enjoying and relaxing.

MODE OF TRANSPORT
The best mode of transport is auto as they are cheap and easily available. Walking across the Pichola lake is also a good experience. Hire cabs for airport transfers as it is quite far away from the city.

BEST SEASON TO VISIT
If you want to enjoy the most then visit between November to February as the temperature is not that much high at that time.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment and I would very gladly offer my inputs.