Udaipur travel guide

Lake palaces, ghats and sunsets in the City of Lakes. Most people stay 2–4 nights. Best months: Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, Jul, Aug.

Highlights

• City Palace
• Lake Pichola boat ride
• Jag Mandir
• Bagore ki Haveli folk dance
• Sajjangarh (Monsoon Palace) sunset

Things to do in Udaipur

• City Palace museum · 3 h · about ₹400 per person. Rajasthan's largest palace complex, with mirror-work rooms and lake views from the upper courtyards; go at opening time and add the audio guide.
• Lake Pichola boat ride to Jag Mandir · 1.5 h · about ₹500 per person. Boats leave from the City Palace jetties; the sunset trip costs more and stops at the Jag Mandir island palace.
• Dharohar folk dance at Bagore ki Haveli · 1.5 h · about ₹150 per person. An hour of Rajasthani dances and puppetry in a lakeside haveli courtyard; queue early for good seats.
• Sajjangarh (Monsoon Palace) sunset · 2 h · about ₹200 per person. A hilltop palace in a wildlife sanctuary west of town; vehicles take you up from the gate.
• Saheliyon ki Bari and Fateh Sagar · 2 h · about ₹50 per person
• Jagdish Temple and old-city walk · 2 h · free. The carved 17th-century temple by the palace gate, then the lanes down to Gangaur Ghat and the miniature painting shops.
• Rajasthani cooking class · 3 h · about ₹1,500 per person. Home kitchens in the old city teach dal, gatte ki sabzi and chapati; vegetarian throughout.
• Vintage and classic car collection · 1 h · about ₹400 per person
• Eklingji and Nagda temples · 3 h · free. The Mewar royal family's Shiva temple 22 km north (phones and cameras deposited at the gate), with the older Saas-Bahu temples at Nagda nearby.

Where to stay in Udaipur

• Lal Ghat and Gangaur Ghat guesthouses (budget, ₹1,500–₹3,500 a night): Rooftop restaurants with lake and palace views in the old city.
• Lakeside havelis in the old city and Hanuman Ghat (mid, ₹5,000–₹12,000 a night): Restored havelis on the water with views across Lake Pichola.
• Lake palaces and lakeshore luxury hotels (premium, ₹20,000–₹80,000 a night): Island and lakeshore palace hotels reached by boat, among the most romantic stays in India.

What to eat

• Gatte ki sabzi and ker sangri: Lakeside rooftop restaurants in the old city
• Mewari thali: Thali restaurants around Jagdish Chowk

Getting there

• ~40 min to UDR airport
• ~2h to Chittorgarh
• ~2–2.5h to Kumbhalgarh
• ~3h to Mount Abu
• ~5h to Jodhpur

Good to know

• Apr–Jun is hot (up to 40°C) and the lakes can run low before the monsoon.

Rajasthan itineraries with Udaipur

• Monsoon in Mewar: Udaipur and Mount Abu · 6 days, Udaipur → Mount Abu · from ₹25,300 per person, base estimate before flights. Rajasthan's green season: Udaipur's lakes fill and the Aravallis turn green, the Monsoon Palace lives up to its name, and Mount Abu sits in the clouds.
• Udaipur and Kumbhalgarh honeymoon · 6 days, Udaipur → Kumbhalgarh & Ranakpur · from ₹26,150 per person, base estimate before flights. Lake-palace romance in Udaipur, then two quiet nights in the Aravalli hills by Kumbhalgarh's great walls and the marble temple at Ranakpur.
• First trip: Jaipur and Udaipur · 7 days, Jaipur → Udaipur · from ₹33,465 per person, base estimate before flights. Two of India's most photogenic cities at an easy pace, linked by a one-hour flight: the Pink City's forts and bazaars, then Udaipur's lakes and palaces.
• Mewar circuit: Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Kumbhalgarh and Mount Abu · 7 days, Udaipur → Kumbhalgarh & Ranakpur → Mount Abu · from ₹30,700 per person, base estimate before flights. Southern Rajasthan's forts and temples: Udaipur's palaces, the epic fort at Chittorgarh, Kumbhalgarh's walls and Ranakpur, then the Dilwara temples in the cool hills of Mount Abu.
• Three royal cities: Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur · 7 days, Jaipur → Jodhpur → Udaipur · from ₹35,550 per person, base estimate before flights. A brisk week through the three capitals of Rajput Rajasthan — the Pink City, the Blue City and the City of Lakes — with Ranakpur's marble temple on the drive between them.
• Friends' road trip: Udaipur, Jodhpur and the Jaisalmer dunes · 8 days, Udaipur → Jodhpur → Jaisalmer · from ₹43,400 per person, base estimate before flights. Lake-city rooftops, a zipline over Mehrangarh's walls and a desert finale: dune jeeps, a camel ride, a camp night and the drive to the border at Tanot.
• Palace hotels: Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur · 8 days, Jaipur → Jodhpur → Udaipur · from ₹36,940 per person, base estimate before flights. A week of royal stays: a Jaipur palace, a suite below Mehrangarh or in Umaid Bhawan, and a lake palace in Udaipur, with private guides and a hot-air balloon at dawn.
• Classic Rajasthan: Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer · 10 days, Jaipur → Udaipur → Jodhpur → Jaisalmer · from ₹51,515 per person, base estimate before flights. The four great cities in one loop: Jaipur's forts and bazaars, Udaipur's lakes, Jodhpur's Mehrangarh and a night in the Thar dunes outside Jaisalmer.
• Heritage Rajasthan: Jaipur, Bundi, Udaipur and Jodhpur · 11 days, Jaipur → Bundi → Udaipur → Jodhpur · from ₹55,265 per person, base estimate before flights. Palaces, murals and stepwells at a thoughtful pace: Jaipur's royal city, Bundi's painted palace, Chittorgarh on the way to Udaipur, then Ranakpur and Jodhpur's great fort.
• Grand Rajasthan: tigers, palaces and the desert in two weeks · 15 days, Jaipur → Ranthambore → Bundi → Udaipur → Kumbhalgarh & Ranakpur → Jodhpur → Jaisalmer · from ₹77,015 per person, base estimate before flights. The full sweep from Jaipur to the Thar: tiger safaris in Ranthambore, Bundi's murals, Udaipur's lakes, Kumbhalgarh and Ranakpur, Jodhpur's fort and the Jaisalmer dunes.