Jaipur Historical Tour

Day 1
Jaipur

Today morning pickup from Hotel/Residence. Then we start our sightseeing tour. First we visit Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds). Hawa Mahal was built by Maharaja Sawai Singh in 1799 as part of City Palace. It is a five storey high red sandstone building which has more than 950 windows. In the ancient times royal ladies observe everyday life in the street below from these windows without being seen. After visiting Hawa Mahal we proceed to visit City Palace, (Inside the old city nearby Hawa Mahal).A magnificent blend of traditional Mughal and Rajput architecture. It is a huge palace complex occupying about one-seventh of the Pink City. It was built by Maharaja Jai Singh II. The complex is divided into a series of courtyards, buildings and extensive gardens. It is dwelling to some regal structures like the Chandra Mahal, (residence to present Maharajah of Jaipur), Mubarak Mahal (exhibiting a textile museum), Diwan-e-Khas (or Hall of Private audience exhibiting 2 biggest silver vessels in the world, which are stated in the Guinness book), the Diwan-e-Aam (or Hall of Public Audience) and the gateway Ridhi Sidhi Pol (with four small doorways adorned with designs portraying the four seasons). After city palace we proceed to visit Jantar Mantar, (nearby City Palace), This UNESCO world heritage site is the biggest among the other astronomical observatories built by Maharaja Jai Singh. The observatory consists of geometric instruments for measuring time. There is signage providing detailed explanations for the use of each device, and guides can be hired to provide the same information. The audio guide at the observatory is not too good and doesn't tell you very much more information than the already existant signage. After finishing visit of Jantar Mantar we stop for Lunch. After Lunch we proceed to Jal Mahal (Water Palace), (On the way to Sisodia Rani Garden). A Rajput style architectured palace situated in the middle of the Maan-sarovar lake. The lake is often dry in the winter, but summer monsoons normally turn it into a beautiful lake filled with water Birds. After Jal Mahal we proceed to Amber Fort, (situated 10 km North of central Jaipur). Amber Fort was built by Raja Man Singh. The prominent attractions inside the fort include the Sheesh Mahal, decorated with mirror tiles on the ceiling and walls. In Amber Fort we will do elephant ride if time permits. After Amber we visit Albert Hall Museum, it is a museum situated in Ram Niwas Garden in Jaipur. It is the oldest museum of Rajasthan and functions as the State museum of Rajasthan. The museum exhibits artifacts like Jaipur Pottery, Paintings, Ivory, Jewellery, Egyptian mummy which is more then 2000 years old and many more things. The design of the museum was laid by Sir Samuel Swinton Jacob, and was opened for public museum in 1887. It is also known as the Government Central Museum.