Rajasthan itinerary - feedback and suggestions
 

We are planning a trip to India in December. We are planning to cover Delhi, Agra, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, and Udiapur. Please give us feedback on the itinerary and suggestions on what to do in each of our destinations.

Day 1: Arrive in Delhi in the evening
Day 2: sightseeing in Delhi
Day 3: day trip to Agra
Day 4: sightseeing in Delhi (then night train to Jaisalmer)
Day 5: arrive in Jaisalmer midday then sightsee
Day 6: Sam sand dunes
Day 7: morning train from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur arrive at around 3 and sightsee
Day 8: drive from Jodhpur to Udiapur and then sightsee in Udiapur.

A couple of questions about the itinerary:

Would an extra day in Jaisalmer be good to have?
Should we go to Jodhpur or skip it and just go to Udiapur on Day 7?
Should we look for hotels by ourselves or should we go through a travel agent for best pricing?

Hi,
Udaipur is worth more than a day...
Also the day trip to Agra is a long one, just be prepared. We took the "new" highway and I think it was still about 3 hours. I didn't go to Jaisalmer. I did spend a day in Jodhpur and the fort is beautiful, the best part is the Flying Fox - a zipline through the fort over the blue city. I highly recommend checking this out.

I found for India I could get the same rates for the hotels I wanted on the internet and the agents weren't much help. I used one for a driver only.

Okay, I am definitely not in the majority here I know when we took our rather unusual trip to Rajasthan in 2011, so take my comments that way.

We spent six weeks in India and never went to the Taj Mahal.

We too arrived at night in Dehli. The next afternoon we had a cab driver take us around for the afternoon to a number of sights and then took the overnight train to Jaisalmer. We really liked Jaisalmer and had three nights there, mostly just walking around soaking up the atmosphere. Delhi to us was just another large city, and if you want to see the real essence of India I'd definitely add more time in Jaisalmer. We didn't do the dunes and don't regret it.

Jodphur was interesting for the two days we had there, but the touristy Bishnoi places outside of town didn't do much for us.

If you want a taste of something completely different fromn what you have planned, try an overnight in one of these places--Fort Dhamli or Fort Bhadrajan. Scroll down through my trip report to red about them. http://www.fodors.com/community/asia...ited-india.cfm

Everyone is different, but I have to say that what you propose sounds absolutely ghastly to me.

In 8 days, you expect to cover 5 places. This means you will spend much of your time in transit and very little time in any one place. Your trip to visit the Taj Mahal is awful. You will spend 6 to 8 hours on the road to see it at the worst time of the day. If the Taj Mahal is s must for you, then stay overnight so you can see it in the evening and the morning.

You will have a half a day (at best) in to sightsee in Jaisalmer, a couple of hours to sightsee in Jodhpur, and a few hours in Udiapur. That's it for these places. If you have any interest in any of these places, spend enough time to see a bit. With 8 days the maximum number of places I'd recommend is three.

Ditto what Kathie said. Delhi, Agra and Udaipur will give you a taste without killing you. You'll return for more...

Agreed with Kathie's point about the Taj. You MUST visit at sunrise. And wait a while to see the change in color along with the light. Visiting in the afternoon would not do it justice.

Totally agree with all others. OVernight in Agra!! The fort there is a highlight and can be seen in the afternoon, you can see the Fort AND see the Taj from distance, across the river, from the Moonlight Garden.
Then get up early the next morning and go to Taj Mahal

I agree with Kathie and the others that this is far too much for the time you have. For an 8 day trip you need to pick fewer places. If you want to see something of Rajasthan you need more time in each place to enjoy things. Traveling in India take time, particularly by road.

I get Julies point too, we've been to India three times and I only made it to Agra on the last trip, I have to say it wouldn't be a the top of my list and I wouldn't consider a day trip but then I often don't care about the "must sees". I liked Jaiselmer but we had three nights here as part of a far longer trip it was a long drive. I liked Johdpur more than Jaipur which was my least favorite stop in Rajasthan. of the cities Udaipur was my favorite and we've visited several times. Overall I was most charmed by the rural area/smaller towns, Bassi, Bundi, Kumblagarh, Sharpura bagh etc.

If you could add in some days this could be a good itinerary. Breaking the journey in Jodhpur makes sense and I can see just passing through, though the city could offer more if you had time. It's too much to get from Jaiselmer to Udaipur in one day. How many nights do you have in Udaipur? If you're paying to drive from Jodhpur to Udaipur I'd consider stopping somewhere in this route to see something of rural Rajasthan. Perhaps a night at Deogarh or around the temples at Ranakpur or the fort at Kumblagarh.

Hope this helps!