Udaipur & Mount Abu

Udaipur: history

Udaipur was founded in 1559 by Maharana Udai Singh II as the new capital of the Mewar kingdom, after the old capital at Chittorgarh had been besieged again and again. He chose a valley ringed by the Aravalli hills and built beside a man-made lake.

The Sisodia rulers of Mewar went on adding to the City Palace for about four hundred years, and built island palaces on Lake Pichola in the 1600s and 1700s. That is why the city is called the City of Lakes.

Udaipur: tourist attractions

• City PalaceA long line of palaces above Lake Pichola, now a museum of courtyards, mirror work and balconies.
• Lake Pichola boat rideA boat trip past the Lake Palace to the island of Jag Mandir, best near sunset.
• Jagdish TempleA carved Vishnu temple from 1651 in the middle of the old city.
• Saheliyon Ki BariAn 18th-century garden of fountains and lotus pools built for the ladies of the court.
• Fateh Sagar LakeThe evening lake of the city, with boats, an island garden and street food on the bank.
• Sajjangarh (Monsoon Palace)A hilltop palace from 1884 with wide views over the lakes at sunset.
• Bagore Ki HaveliAn old mansion by the lake with an evening show of Rajasthani folk dance.

Udaipur: excursions nearby

• Eklingji & Nagda about 22 kmThe Shiva temple of the Mewar rulers, and the old Sas-Bahu temples close by.
• Haldighati about 40 kmThe pass where Maharana Pratap fought the Mughal army in 1576.
• Nathdwara about 48 kmThe Shrinathji temple, an important Krishna shrine.
• Kumbhalgarh about 85 kmA hill fort with a wall about 36 km long.
• Ranakpur about 90 kmA 15th-century Jain temple in white marble with 1,444 carved pillars.
• Chittorgarh about 115 kmThe great fort that was the capital of Mewar before Udaipur.

Distances are approximate. Tell us which excursions you want and we add them to your quote.