Rajasthan Motorbike Tour, Rajasthan Package Tours, Vacation Deals, Rajasthan India, Rajsthan Travel Guide

Duration : 21 Days

Destinations

Delhi : The capital city of India and your starting point.
Neemrana : Famous for its restored fortress palace known as the Neemrana Fort Palace.
Mandawa : The compact and busy little market town of Mandawa has the collection of some of the finest painted Havelies.
Bikaner : The camel country , the city is renowned for the best riding camels in the world.
Pokhran : Became famous after the detonation of nuclear missiles by India in 1998.
Jaisalmer : The golden desert city of Rajasthan.
Jodhpur : The second largest city of Rajasthan, sits on the edge of the great Thar Desert.
Mount Abu : The only hill station in Rajasthan.
Udaipur : The city of Lakes.
Chittorgarh : The pride and glory of Rajasthan.
Pushkar : Pushkar is famous for the Lord Brahma Temple and camel fair, also called as Pushkar Fair.
Jaipur : Capital city of Rajasthan. Famous for Forts, Hawa Mahal and shopping.
Ranthambore : The gateway to the world renowned Ranthambhor National Park- the famous Tiger Reserve
Bharatpur : The eastern gateway to Rajasthan. Bharatpur is popular for its bird sanctuary-the Keoladeo Ghana National Park - finest in Asia rich avian variety.
Agra: City of Taj Mahal.

Best time to visit
Oct - March.

Tour Path
Delhi (2 nights) > Neemrana (1 night) > Mandawa (1 night) > Bikaner (1 night) > Pokhran (1 night) > Jaisalmer (1 night) > Jodhpur (1 night) > Mount Abu (1 night) > Udaipur (1 night) > Chittaurgarh (1 night) > Pushkar (1 night) > Jaipur (2 nights) > Ranthambore (1 night) > Bharatpur (1 night) > Agra (1 night) > Delhi.

Tour Detail
Arrive Delhi
After a late-evening arrival, you'll transfer to your hotel. Delhi stands as the capital of modern India, though it is made up of seven ancient cities, spanning the period from the 11th to 20th centuries.

Explore Delhi
Today you will be introduced to the support team for the safari and test drive the motor bikes. We'll take a tour of Old Delhi where we can see some of the finest monuments of Delhi like the Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque, and the impressive Red Fort. We can also do some last minute shopping and preparations before departure.

Neemrana
We make an early start for Neemrana. We set a leisurely pace and enjoy the burble of the bikes as we briefly take National Highway 8 southwest from the capital and soon enter Rajasthan. We leave the highway as early as possible and take to the back roads, traveling only 120 kilometer for our first day's ride to Neemrana Fort Palace. Covering some 25 acres of land and built in 1464, it is the oldest heritage resort in all of India.

Mandawa
Visit Nawalgarh and Dundlod en route, renowned for their painted 'havelis' (traditional homes). Peacock, The state emblem of Rajasthan, can be spotted roaming freely while we traverse today on our way to the Shekhawati region, famous for its beautiful havelis, those centuries-old mansions of wealthy merchants and noblemen. As we meander around the city, we will get enticed by the intricate frescoes and murals.

Bikaner
This day you will be heading directly to the west through arid wastelands, approaching the Great Thar Desert which constitutes much of Rajasthan. The strategic location of Bikaner on the ancient caravan routes that came from West/Central Asia made it a prime trade centre in the times of the yore. Bikaner stands on a slightly raised ground and is circumscribed by a seven kilometer long embattled wall with five gates.

Pokharan
Today we will take you through progressively sparser vegetation and population, to the remote outpost of Pokaran. An obscure little spot until very recently, Pokaran is the nearest inhabited place to the site of those notorious nuclear tests which India flaunted at the rest of the world in 1998. The nearest you come to the site is about 65km however, so you are not in much danger of radioactive contamination.

Jaisalmer
Our tour of Jaisalmer is divided in two days. After we reach Jaisalmer and approach the western extremities of India near the border with Pakistan; an amazing spectacle rises from the floor of the Great Thar Desert. On our way is the great Jaisalmer Fort. With its incredible array of bastions, battlements and ramparts, the color of this sandstone fort at sunset has led to Jaisalmer becoming known as the Golden City.

The next day is for exploring Jaisalmer, perhaps with an afternoon camel safari. In earlier days it truly was a golden city, a place of great opulence on the caravan trading routes between India and central Asia. A feature of Jaisalmer is the abundance of splendid havelis; intricate carvings and works of art are commonplace and visitors are welcome to roam freely.

Jodhpur
The 300 kilometer long journey form Jaisalmer to Jodhpur can be termed as the longest in our itinerary but is compensated by good sealed roads and lesser traffic hassles. The Maharaja of Jodhpur gave the world those wonderful horse-riding breeches of the same name, which he had specially made by the court tailor after he found it quite impossible to play polo with the British in his long, flowing regal robes.

Our second day in Jodhpur we set out to explore this beautiful city. Although not appearing blue from down at ground level, the view from the huge fortress of Meherangarh Fort over the town is a true spectacle as all the blue-washed Brahmin houses shimmer in the sunlight. We may also visit the Umaid Bhawan Palace, a stunning Maharaja's palace now converted into the largest ground-area 5 star hotel in India, with the Royal Family still resident in one wing. Not to be missed are the Jaswant Thada, A white marble memorial with beautiful marble lattice work and the carved wooden doors of the cenotaph, the museum, and the colorful Girdikot and Sardar Markets.

Mt. Abu
This day we proceed to Mt. Abu. In the very south of the state on the border with Gujarat, this is the only 'hill station' to be found in Rajasthan. The climate is a cool welcome relief from the plains below, with the town spread along a hilly plateau at 1200 meters. Beautiful Nakki Lake is the primary attraction in the town. The entire town is very picturesque.

Udaipur
We will visit the superb Dilwara Temples, en route Udaipur, which are possibly the best preserved group of Jain temples to be found in India, with intricate designs and marble carvings unmatched anywhere else. In the afternoon we ride to Udaipur, famous for the beautiful white Maharaja's palace in the middle of Lake Pichola.

The next day in Udaipur is a rest day. The lake palace, like so many others, has now been converted into a luxury hotel and we can visit for lunch or afternoon tea to have a look around. We shall spend some time on the lake in a solar-powered tourist launch, and the sunset over the lake with a stunning white palace provides great photo opportunities.

Chittaurgarh
Chittorgarh, perhaps more than any other fortress, is symbolic of the futile, idealistic chivalry which was a way of Rajput life in the middle ages. Frequently plundered and sacked by superior invading armies, the warriors of Chittorgarh responded by declaring jauhar, a ritualistic, macabre suicide pact. The main places of interest in Chittorgarh are the Majestic Chittorgarh fort, The Vijay Stambh (or 'The Victory Tower'), The Kirti Stambh (or 'The tower of Fame') and the Rana Khumbha Palace.

Pushkar
A longish ride to the scenic lakeside town of Pushkar, famous for the annual cattle fair and festival held every November. Thousands of camels, horses, cattle and oxen are bought and sold with the enthusiasm and gusto that only an Indian crowd of around 200,000 traders can muster. It's always held at the time of the full moon in November, and is one of the most colorful and flamboyant festivals in India.

Ranthambore
This day you will be arriving at Ranthambore, which is famous for the Ranthambore National Park. The park is one of the finest tiger reserve in the country under the Project Tiger. The majestic predators, assured of protection, roam freely during the day time and can be seen at close quarters. Ranthambore sanctuary has a large number of sambhar, chital, Nilgai, chinkara, langur, wild boar and peafowl. Jeeps can be hired from several places, the main ones being the RTDC for the jungle safari. Ranthambore Fort, is another reason for visiting this place. It is well - preserved imposing fort, built in 994 A.D. atop a steep high creek 200 metres above sea level. Ruined pavilions, walls, chhatris and splendid monuments are interspersed within the majestic fort. An 8th century A.D. Ganesh temple on an open land attracts thousands of devotees and is the venue for an annual fair held on. Bhadrapad Sudi Chaturthi, fourth day of the bright half, in the month of Bhadra.

Bharatpur
We hit the road again and head north to another sanctuary of a different kind; Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary. Even for non-bird lovers, this place is quite spectacular. Some 415 bird varieties have been identified here, migrating from as far away as Siberia in huge, apparently unsustainable numbers. Upwards of 3000 painted storks have been counted in one square kilometer of marshland. Bharatpur was the premier Jat State in Rajasthan. Badan Singh established and founded the fort and palaces of Deeg in 1725. Seven years later, his son laid the foundation nearby of the fort of Bharatpur. It was a formidable structure called Logagarh (iron fort), which lived up to its reputation.

Agra
We move on to Agra ending our memorable journey of Rajasthan. En route we shall visit the incredible deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri, once the capital of the Mughal Empire for a brief period before being completely abandoned, due to a total lack of foresight in obtaining a reliable water source! Then we proceed to Agra in time for a sunset visit to that most famous of all Indian monuments, the Taj Mahal. This mausoleum is without doubt the world's greatest symbol of love, constructed between 1631 and 1653 by Emperor Shah Jahan as an eternal tribute to his beloved wife Mumtaz who had died in 1629 perhaps not surprisingly, giving birth to their 15th child in 17 years.

Return to Delhi
We then head off to Delhi, to end our adventurous tour. Covering the 200km between Agra and Delhi, we should do easily by around lunchtime on this recently improved highway.