Hi ! I am planning a 8 day holiday in Jodhpur between 10.08.08 and 18.08.08. with my wife. Can any one help us plan what to do/see? we are in the early 50's and would like to see as much of Rajasthan as possible without getting stressed out.

The date of our travel should read 10 oct 08 and 18 oct 08

Assuming youre Ok with travelling around with a car and driver, you should be able to do this -
10 - Fly into Udaipur. Night in Udaipur
11 - Udaipur
12 - Udaipur - Kumbhalgarh - Ranakpur
13 - Ranakpur - Jojawar/Narlai
14 - Jojawar/Narlai - Khimsar
15 - Khimsar - Jaisalmer
16 - Jaisalmer
17 - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur
18 - Depart Jodhpur by flight
This itinerary is just suggestive. You could cut out the samller places and continue onto Bikaner and Shekhawati and Jaipur but it would be nice to experience the charm of Rajasthan through its smaller towns and villages.

Thanks for your suggestions npjai.I should have mentioned that we are booked in Jodhpur for a week. So keeping that as a hub could you suggest something? We are not keen on Jaipur as we have been there earlier.Do you think it is possible to make day trips by taxi to Udaipur/Jaisalmer and back to Jodhpur?Also is it worth spending one night in tents at jaisalmer-sand dunes?
Thanks and in anticipation
shreedhar

Why are you obsessed by staying in one place and taking day trips?

What on earth would be the point of taking day trips to Udaipur and Jaisalmer. You'd no sooner get there than you'd have to go back. Well actually I'm not sure how long it would take in a car cos I've only done it by train.

Methinks you should wise up on where these places are.

Your best bet if you want to explore is to cancel that week booking you have, get a map, and get real.

Lol, afterall. I wrote a similar reply - but it was much ruder than yours!

But [for once] I deleted it before sending.

Hi Shreedhar,

Sometimes focusing in on one area can be a wonderful experience. Jodhpur was my favorite place in India and I envy you.

There is are owners of an eclectic furniture boutique here in Boston that have week-long buying and touring trips to Jodhpur every year. Here is a National Geographic article on how they spend their week: http://www.buyingtrips.com/press.html

The distances and roads are long and bumpy in Rajasthan. They lose their charm quickly. Day trips to other cities simply won't work. If you want to visit Udaipur and Jaisalmer, you really need to change your itinerary. YOu can certainly do those three destinations in eight days, but not with Jodhpur as a hub.

Here is a great distance chart for India: http://www.tsiindia.com/dindex.html

However, remember, roads are two lanes, bumpy and dusty. 35 MPH is absolutely screaming.

Have you paid for the full week in Jodhpur? Then you will be limted to places you can do as a day return. You need to spend at least two nights in Jaisalmer to really enjoy the place. The places you can do as a day return from Jodhpur (and some of these would need stretching the day)would be Osian, Khimsar, Ranakpur, Nimaj, Khejarla, Chandelao, Luni, Rohet, Sardar Samand, Bhadrajan. But really all these places can really be enjoyed fully with a night stay. If you can still get out of your hotel booking for the week, do it.