5 places in Udaipur to visit, and how far each is from our hotel

If it’s your first trip to Udaipur, start with these five. The City Palace, Jagdish Temple and the ghats of Lake Pichola stand close together in the old city, so they fill one day well. Fateh Sagar Lake and Saheliyon Ki Bari lie further north, nearer our side of the city, and make an easy start to a second.

For each place you’ll find what it is, a little history, what to see, how long to allow and how far it is from Hotel Rudra Kripa in Sukher. After the five come more places for a longer stay, a plan for one or two days and a word on where to stay. Distances are by road from the hotel, and the drive times allow for city traffic.

Places in Udaipur to visit, at a glance

1. City Palace

The City Palace rises in tiers above the east bank of Lake Pichola. Maharana Udai Singh II, who founded Udaipur, began it in the 16th century, and the Maharanas who followed kept adding to it for almost 400 years. The result is a chain of palaces joined by courtyards, stairways and terraces, Rajput in style with Mughal touches; it’s often described as the largest palace complex in Rajasthan. Much of it is now the City Palace Museum.

Photo: Jakub Hałun · CC BY-SA 4.0

What to see

• Mor Chowk, the courtyard of glass-mosaic peacocks
• Mirror work and miniature paintings in rooms such as the Sheesh Mahal and Krishna Vilas
• Amar Vilas, the raised garden at the top, and the views across the lake from the upper terraces

Good to know

How long

2–3 hours, with plenty of stairs.

From the hotel

About 9.2 km – around 25 min by car, to Badi Pol, the main gate.

Tip

Go early, before the tour groups and the midday heat. Jagdish Temple is a few minutes’ walk from the gate, so see the two together.

2. Lake Pichola

Udaipur grew up around Lake Pichola. The lake was dammed in the 14th century, and Maharana Udai Singh II enlarged it after founding his city on its eastern shore. Palaces, temples, bathing ghats and old havelis line the banks, and two island palaces sit out on the water. Jag Niwas, the white Lake Palace, was built as a summer palace in the 1740s and is now a hotel. Jag Mandir was completed under Maharana Jagat Singh I in the 17th century; the Mughal prince Khurram, later the emperor Shah Jahan, sheltered there in the 1620s while in revolt against his father.

Photo: Daniel Villafruela · CC BY-SA 3.0

What to see

• A boat ride past the Lake Palace to Jag Mandir, where some trips stop so you can step ashore
• Sunset from Ambrai Ghat on the west shore, with the City Palace across the water
• Gangaur Ghat in the old city, where processions bring the goddess Gauri down to the water at the spring festival of Gangaur

Photo: UnpetitproleX · CC BY-SA 4.0

Good to know

How long

1–2 hours, longer if you stay on for sunset.

From the hotel

About 9.3 km to Gangaur Ghat (around 25 min) or 9.7 km to Ambrai Ghat (around 30 min) by car.

Tip

Boats leave from the City Palace jetty and from other ghats. Sunset trips are the most popular, so in the busy winter months get to the jetty early. The Lake Palace is a hotel, so most visitors see it from the boat.

3. Jagdish Temple

A few minutes’ walk from the City Palace, Jagdish Temple was built by Maharana Jagat Singh I and completed in 1651. It’s dedicated to Vishnu as Jagannath, Lord of the Universe, whose black stone image stands in the main shrine, with four smaller shrines to Ganesha, Surya, Shakti and Shiva around it. This is a living temple, busy with worshippers through the day.

Photo: Jakub Hałun · CC BY-SA 4.0

What to see

• The climb: a steep flight of 32 steps up from the street, with stone elephants at the entrance
• Walls and a tall spire crowded with carved dancers and musicians
• An image of Garuda, Vishnu’s half-man, half-eagle mount, in a small shrine of his own facing the main one

Good to know

How long

30–45 minutes.

From the hotel

About 9.0 km – around 25 min by car.

Tip

Dress modestly, take your shoes off before you go in, and ask before taking photographs inside.

Nearby: Bagore Ki Haveli

A few minutes’ walk downhill, on the waterfront at Gangaur Ghat, Bagore Ki Haveli was built in the 18th century by a prime minister of Mewar. Its courtyards and rooms are now a museum, and it’s known for an evening show of Rajasthani folk dance and puppetry: check the day’s programme before you go. It’s about 9.4 km – around 25 min by car from the hotel.

4. Fateh Sagar Lake

North of the old city, Fateh Sagar is a different kind of lake from Pichola: more open water, fewer palaces and a favourite with local families in the evening. Maharana Jai Singh first dammed it in the late 17th century. When floods washed the earth dam away, Maharana Fateh Singh built a new one in the late 1880s and enlarged the lake, which now carries his name. Of its three islands, the largest is Nehru Park, a garden you reach by boat; another holds the Udaipur Solar Observatory.

Photo: Mustang Joe · CC0

What to see

• A boat ride out to Nehru Park, the garden on the largest island
• The Pal, the lakeside embankment, with its food stalls and evening strollers
• Moti Magri, the hill beside the lake, with its bronze statue of Maharana Pratap on his horse, Chetak

Good to know

How long

1–2 hours.

From the hotel

About 7.9 km – around 25 min by car, to the Pal by Moti Magri.

Tip

Come in the late afternoon for soft light and the lakeside crowd, or in the morning for quiet. Saheliyon Ki Bari is just round the corner, so pair the two.

5. Saheliyon Ki Bari

Saheliyon Ki Bari, the “garden of the maidens”, was laid out in the early 18th century by Maharana Sangram Singh II for the royal ladies of the court; the story goes that his queen came to Udaipur with 48 maids when she married. It’s a compact garden of lawns, marble pavilions and fountains, fed by gravity from Fateh Sagar next door.

Photo: Mustang Joe · CC0

What to see

• The fountains, some in marble pavilions and some made to fall like rain
• A lotus pool, marble elephants and kiosks
• Shady lawns and flower beds – a quiet hour between sights

Good to know

How long

About an hour.

From the hotel

About 6.4 km – around 20 min by car.

Tip

Mornings are usually quieter. From the gate it’s a short walk on to the shore of Fateh Sagar.

More places in Udaipur if you have time

With a third day, or a free afternoon, these are worth the drive. Shilpgram and Sajjangarh are on the western edge of the city; the rest make half-day or day trips.

Shilpgram

A crafts village set up by the West Zone Cultural Centre, with traditional houses from Rajasthan, Gujarat, Goa and Maharashtra and craftspeople at work. Every December it hosts a ten-day crafts fair, the Shilpgram Utsav.

Sajjangarh, the Monsoon Palace

Maharana Sajjan Singh began this hilltop palace in 1884, chiefly to watch the monsoon clouds roll in, and it was finished after his early death. It stands in a wildlife sanctuary, and people come up for the sunset over the city’s lakes and hills. See Udaipur in the monsoon for the season it was built for.

Eklingji

A complex of temples at Kailashpuri to Shiva as Eklingji, the ruling deity of Mewar: the Maharanas governed as his minister. By tradition it was founded by Bappa Rawal in the 8th century, and it was last rebuilt in the late 15th.

Nathdwara

Home of the Shrinathji temple, a major pilgrimage centre for devotees of Krishna, whose image was brought here from near Mathura in 1672. It’s shown only at set darshan times through the day, so check them before you set out.

Haldighati

The pass where Maharana Pratap fought the Mughal army, led by Man Singh of Amber, in 1576. It’s named for its turmeric-yellow soil (haldi is turmeric), and a memorial nearby marks where his horse Chetak is said to have fallen.

Kumbhalgarh

A 15th-century hill fort built for Rana Kumbha and the birthplace of Maharana Pratap. Its wall runs for some 36 km across the hills.

Chittorgarh

One of India’s largest forts, and Mewar’s capital until Akbar’s siege of 1567–68, after which the court moved to Udaipur. Look for the 15th-century Vijay Stambha, the Tower of Victory. Chittorgarh and Kumbhalgarh are both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, two of the Hill Forts of Rajasthan.

How far they are from the hotel by road:

A 1–2 day plan from Sukher

Here’s how the five fit into two days from the hotel, with a rest in the middle of each. A taxi for the day saves hunting for parking in the old city’s narrow lanes; ask at reception whether they can arrange one.

Day 1: the old city and Lake Pichola

1. Morning: the City Palace, as early as you can.
2. Late morning: walk to Jagdish Temple, then down to Gangaur Ghat.
3. Midday: a long lunch in the old city, or back to the hotel to rest through the hottest hours.
4. Late afternoon: a boat ride on Lake Pichola.
5. Sunset: Ambrai Ghat, looking back across the water at the City Palace.
6. Evening: the folk-dance show at Bagore Ki Haveli, then back to Sukher, about 25 min by car.

Day 2: Fateh Sagar and the west of the city

1. Morning: Saheliyon Ki Bari, while it’s quiet.
2. Late morning: Fateh Sagar Lake – a boat to Nehru Park, then up Moti Magri.
3. Afternoon: a rest, then Shilpgram.
4. Sunset: Sajjangarh, high above the lakes.

With a third day, take the road north: Eklingji, Nathdwara and Haldighati fit into one long day by car. Kumbhalgarh and Chittorgarh each need a day of their own.

Where to stay for sightseeing

Where you stay shapes these days. A hotel in Udaipur city, by the lake, puts the old city at your door, along with its narrow lanes and scarce parking. A base in Sukher, on the north side, means a drive of about 25 min to the City Palace; in return you get quieter evenings, free parking and a rooftop pool facing the Aravalli hills to come back to.

If you’d rather sleep by the water, compare boutique hotels in Udaipur near Lake Pichola with a calmer base like ours. Our guide to choosing a deluxe room in Udaipur shows what a stay with us includes, and our tips for a budget stay in Udaipur will make your money go further.

Room rates across Udaipur rise in the winter peak. If you’re looking for a hotel in Udaipur under 1,000 rupees a night, travel outside the busiest months and compare what each rate includes.

And at the end of a long day in the old city, there’s dinner under the stars at our Roof Top Cafe, with the lights of Udaipur spread out below the hills.