You have the morning at leisure to sleep in, take a dip in the pool, or enjoy the spa. Meet your Indian National Guide and the rest of the group in the hotel lobby around 8:30 a.m. to return to the airport for our 75-minute flight to Udaipur. Upon arrival in Udaipur, we’ll be whisked away on a 2.5-hour drive to Dungarpur. As we’ll discover, this small town is home to some unexpected artistic treasures. Our accommodation for the next two nights is the 19th-century Udai Vilas Palace, a lakeside heritage hotel that was originally the home of Maharawal Udai Singhji-II, a great patron of art and architecture, and this region’s ruling family. It is a blend of Rajput and Mughal styles, where a fantastic four-story pavilion with densely carved friezes, canopies, and balconies dominates the courtyard of this beautiful palace. We’ll have time to wander the grounds of this idyllic escape before sitting down for a Welcome Dinner to get to know our fellow travelers and our Indian escort.

January 2023 Baneshwar Festival: Indigo Airlines domestic flight departs Delhi at 11:25 a.m. and arrives to Udaipur at 12:45 p.m. (subject to change) followed by 2.5 hour drive to Dungarpur

We spend the morning soaking in the atmosphere of Udai Bilas and Dungarpur. You may choose to explore with your guide or relax at the hotel. After an early lunch, we drive 1.5 hours to Baneshwar where we encounter the annual gathering of the Bhil people. The main purpose of this gathering is to immerse the ashes of their ancestors in the small delta formed by the Soma River. We will see various sacred and devotional rites being performed and we will walk through the huge country fair and see the colors of Rajasthan come to life. The fair caters to local communities from Rajasthan, but also those from the neighboring states of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. We’ll see stalls selling items ranging from stone and steel kitchenware to colorful scarves and bangles; from plastic children’s toys to tattoo artists and food vendors. To visit Baneshwar is to take a step out of modern India and experience a culture and celebration that has remained unchanged through generations, and the sights are quite extraordinary. We return to Dungarpur for dinner at our heritage hotel.

Today we return by road 2.5 hours to Udaipur - the City of Lakes. Udaipur is a city of romance, legend, and history. A favorite among visitors to Rajasthan, it is a jewel in a state known for fairytale palaces, imposing forts, and desert kingdoms. The iconic City Palace Complex dominates the lakeshore, cupolas rising from the structure like mountain peaks. The detailed art and workmanship we see here is a tribute to the skills of local artisans and craftspeople. Built on a hill, the 17th-century stepped palace illustrates various architectural styles of the time, mostly Mughal and Rajput. Magnificent stone elephants stand at the entrance and the 90-foot-tall ramparts tower overhead. In keeping with the claim of the royal family that they are “Surya vansh” – descendents of the Sun, the whole structure faces east, and a stunning bejeweled image of the sun greets you at the entrance. We’ll have lunch together at a café overlooking Lake Pichola and then venture into the old city. Sharing the winding lanes with cows, elephants, people, our walk will give us an insight into daily life in “small-town India”. We gaze into shops selling a variety of items, catch a glance of unexpected folk art on walls, and find small architectural gems like a latticework Haveli window. Our accommodation for this evening is a heritage royal palace and part of the iconic City Palace complex. It was built in the 20th century by Maharana Fateh Singh. The original palace décor has been meticulously maintained, and the rooms afford views of the lake and the mighty Aravalli mountain range.

The morning is free to further explore Udaipur. After lunch we set out by road, driving four hours north to the village of Jojawar. With the picturesque Aravalli Hills in the east and broken rocky hills interspersed with farms and scrub forests all around, it will certainly be a scenic drive. The Precambrian Aravalli Hills are one of the oldest mountain ranges of the world and are home to the Rabari tribal community, traditionally camel herders by profession. Our home for the evening is a heritage hotel, set amidst the Aravalli hills, converted from an 18th-century garrison fort that was once a major principality of the royal house of Marwar. Our stay offers a rare insight into life in rural Rajasthan. This evening, guided by our host family of Jojawar nobles, we wander through a nearby Rabari settlement. We’ll walk past the simple thatch and mud houses of the herder families and enjoy spontaneous conversations with the people, many of whom wear exquisite silver jewelry. Sunset here is known as “Gaudhuli” - the cow dust hour - because of the dust raised by the herds of cattle returning home after a day of grazing. It is a magical and spiritual time to be out in the countryside. Sunrise and sunset are considered auspicious times in India and we will see small rituals performed to welcome in the night and ward off dark spirits.

Our visit to Jojawar coincides with the full moon, which gives us the unique opportunity to be the only outsiders to witness a powerful spiritual event. During the ritual, the spirit of “Mamoji”, a local folk deity, enters the shaman and he becomes an oracle. A “Mamoji” is an ancient Rajput warrior who has fallen while fighting for his community and is now worshipped as a guardian angel. Mamoji manifest themselves through shamans who are visited by spirits regularly on a full moon night, and locals come to consult the spirit through the possessed shaman and seek his guidance. The current shaman is a frail-looking elderly Rabari shepherd who lives at the shrine and quietly goes about his work cleaning and performing the daily rituals of the shrine, but once possessed, he becomes wild-eyed, energetically huffing and fuming while answering questions from the audience from his trance.

This morning we have the choice to either relax and enjoy the lovely lawns and quiet countryside around Rawla Jojawar or take a delightful local narrow-gauge train ride. We board the line at a tiny, charming station that has not changed since the system was set up by the British, as modernity has still not reached this area. We share the train with local villagers and the experience is an unmatched immersion into local life. Leaving behind the rugged hills of the Aravalli Mountains, today we drive four hours into the Great Indian Desert. In the heart of the Indian desert, we find a luxury tented camp at Manwar, our home for the next two nights while we explore the cultures and rituals of the desert. With architecture inspired by indigenous wisdom, the camp is styled to reflect the traditional villages of the desert and borrows generously from the sustainable practices of the land, and generously gives back by supporting the surrounding villages and communities. During our time here we will hear stories and experience many of the myths and legends of the area. The highlight of our first evening there will be a musical performance by The Langas. The group comes from a Muslim Community on the very west side of the desert, and their patrons are the Sindhi Sipahi, a community of Muslim Rajputs. Passed on from one generation to the next, their songs are the oral history and music of the desert.

We head out of camp early this morning with a packed breakfast. Within two hours we reach the village of Khichan, where about 10,000 Demoiselle cranes come to feed in a small school compound during the winter before returning to Mongolia and northeastern China. On our way back to camp we will stop at the Pabuji Temple in the village of Kolu. The story of Pabuji - a much-loved hero of the region - will be told by the Bhopa nomadic tribe. The Bhopas were the storytellers of old and priest-singers of the folk deities, using the medium of song and dance to narrate the stories of Pabuji. The most precious possession for the Bhopa is the “phad”, a long painted scroll that is crowded with images depicting the brave and dramatic events in the life of Pabuji. After the performance, we return to Manwar for lunch and an afternoon at leisure. This evening we’ll ride out into the desert on camels for sundowners and a special musical performance by the Manganiyars, who consider themselves descendants of the Rajputs and survived for centuries on the patronage of wealthy merchants.

Our journey of discovery of the lesser-known ritual and myths of the desert continues at the desert city of Jodhpur, approximately a 90-minute drive from Manwar. We arrive in time for lunch and an afternoon of relaxation, shopping, or free exploration at the stepwell near our hotel. In the late afternoon, we'll drive about an hour to the ashram of the Jasnathi Siddha tribe - who are known for their yogic beliefs and their medicinal knowledge - to witness another rare and mesmerizing Rajasthani desert ritual, the Fire Dance. We first hear the haunting and rhythmic sound of singing, and as the beat reaches a crescendo, each performer dances on the burning embers leading up to the dramatic climax when, in a frenzy, they kick the burning coals scattering them around the fire pit. Watching the dance in the quiet of the desert at night is an enthralling experience. 

Here in Jodhpur, the blue-painted buildings of the old city are pressed tightly together, but the eye is drawn to the majestic mountaintop Mehrangarh Fort. We look out over the 15th-century fortress walls, where 400 feet below us the vast panorama of Jodhpur stretches beyond the blue of the Old City. The fort, one of the largest in India and still owned by the Jodhpur royal family, is architecturally stunning and houses museums with priceless collections of royal memorabilia and art. In the afternoon we explore the markets around the clock tower, the streets aromatic with spices, where the tribes from the desert come to sell their handicrafts. This is a good time to do some souvenir shopping, both at the market and at the lovely boutiques near the stunning stepwell. This evening we celebrate the end of our adventure with a farewell dinner on the rooftop of our hotel in the shadow of the magnificent fort. When lit up in the evenings, the views are simply breathtaking.

The morning light stretches over the Blue City and with it our final day in Rajasthan. You have time this morning to meander the streets of Jodhpur on your own. After lunch, we transfer to the airport to catch our flight back to Delhi. On arrival, we are met and assisted with onward travel arrangements.

If continuing on our extension, this afternoon we set out together on a fascinating two-hour walk through the old city starting at the foot of the fort. It is a fascinating and leisurely insight into local life, where history and present-day life continue in the same space. The walk will take us past lovely architectural features, shrines, small craft workshops, and examples of folk art. This is a part of Jodhpur which is largely untouched and retains its atmosphere as a stop on the trade route through the desert.

This morning we begin the six-hour drive to Jaipur, stopping en route in Pushkar. Pushkar is a peaceful pilgrim town of lakes and 600 temples. In the founding legend of Pushkar, Brahma the creator dropped petals of a lotus from heaven, and wherever the petals fell, lakes were created. Thus the name Push (flower) and Kar (hand). According to myth, Brahma’s wife Saraswati cursed him for replacing her with a local girl at an important ritual in his wife’s absence. As a result, Brahma is today worshipped in very few places, but in Pushkar, we can still find a temple dedicated to him. We continue our drive to the Pink City after lunch. A labyrinth of fascinating bazaars, opulent palaces, and a futuristic observatory, Jaipur was the inspiration of the ruler Sawai Jai Singh, who moved the capital here from Amber in 1727. Jaipur was designed by a young architect from Bengal and together they planned a city following the ancient Hindu treatise of “Shilpa Shastra”, a science similar to Feng Shui. Jaipur is laid out in a geometric grid of streets and squares, making it one of the earliest planned cities in India. In honor of the visit of Prince Albert Edward in 1876 - then the Prince of Wales who would become King Edward VII in 1901 - the king of Jaipur had the entire city painted a rich terracotta, a tradition which has continued through the years. Today it serves as the State capital for Rajasthan.

Our exploration of Jaipur starts this morning at the Hawa Mahal, the ornate pink façade that has become the iconic image of the city. This five-story high “screen” of windows and balconies protected by fine latticed screens was so designed to enable the ladies of the harem to observe the lively street scenes of the city from a position of privacy. We continue to the sprawling City Palace which, painted pink in keeping with the color theme of the old city, is a blend of predominately Rajput and Mughal styles of architecture. Here we will visit the galleries which house the private memorabilia of the royal family as well as the excellent textile gallery and the newly opened painting gallery. We won’t want to miss the stunning courtyard and its rich mosaic decorations. The pinnacle of our morning’s explorations will be the extraordinary “Jantar Mantar”, the monumental astronomical observatory built by Raja Sawai Jai Singh II in 1827. This is one of five observatories he built in northern India. The futuristic-looking massive stone structures are actually highly sophisticated astronomical instruments that remain accurate today. We conclude our walking tour with a specially curated experience that will introduce us to the living traditions of the walled city. Our guide will showcase the arts and artisans, traditional medicine men, the small exquisite architectural jewels tucked away in the lanes, and the 300-year-old shrines and temples. It is a juxtaposition of the old-world lifestyle within the city walls against the glitzy malls and modern homes of the city that exists outside the walls.

This morning we visit the stunning Amber Fort. The Rajputs built their forts on high hills and ridges giving them a 360-degree view of the surrounding area and protecting them from invading armies. Most were built as defensive structures but they also included pleasure palaces, rich in art and architectural features. Amber is among the finest of all the fort palaces and reflected the opulence and elegance of the nearby Mughal courts. From the Fort, we descend through the narrow alleys and lanes of the surrounding settlements, stopping in for local snacks at a tea shop, a beautifully carved temple, a traditional stepwell, and the Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing. It is a great way to observe life in a very historic area of Jaipur. Amber is a part of the city and yet the rhythms of life here are slower and much more traditional. After lunch, we transfer to the airport to catch our flight early evening flight back to Delhi. On arrival, we are met and assisted with onward travel arrangements.