Udaipur

The inner city (and the city palace):

The old part of the historic city is an attraction in itself with its small narrow alleys and streets. A labyrinth filled with bicycles, carts, elephants, monkeys, local people and tourists. On the south side of this chaos you will find the stately city palace back.

This is Rajasthan's largest palace with a façade of 244 meters long and more than 30 meters high. The construction started no later than 1600 by the city's founder Maraharaja Udai Singh II and has been adapted and extended by many later rulers so that a mix of different architectural styles is visible.

The palace contains countless museums and viewpoints where you can see, among other things, the city and the lake. Perhaps the Durbar hall is the highlight of a visit to this palace; this was used for official (state) visits and is one of the most admirable of India. 

About 150 meters from the gates of the city palace you can view the Jagdish temple. Built in 1651 by the then Maharaja Jagat Singh this is a beautiful specimen with stone treatments. The temple is dedicated to the Hindu God Vishnu. Located on the water side is the graceful Bagore-ki-Haveli building built in the 18th century. Built by a former prime minister this property has no less than 138 rooms around a courtyard. There is room for (temporary) art exhibitions and you can watch a traditional dance. On the north side of the palace you can see a number of interesting ghats (laundry places) and washing places.

Pichola lake and its islands:

The most famous lake in Udaipur is of course the Pichola lake. At the foundation of the city it was reduced by building a dam but also now there are still dry spots in the lake visible. The city lies on the northeast side of the lake. There are two islands in the lake; Jagniwas that is completely used by the palace built by Maharaja Jagat Singh II in 1754.

The former summer palace is now a group of luxury hotels. This island served as the main decor in James Bond's Octopussy from 1983. Non-guests are only allowed to come for lunch or dinner.

The other island is Jagmandir and also a palace has been built here (by Maharaja Karan Singh in 1620). The story is that this palace was (partly) the inspiration for the construction of the Taj Mahal.

Sajjan Gar palace and Shilpgram

The Sajjan Garh Fort, also known as monsoon palace, was built in 1884 and is situated on a hill above the city, about 8 kilometers from the center. This "Disney" palace/fortress was built in the 19th century and was originally built as an astronomical center.

Later it was recently converted into a monsoon palace and hunting place (see also the national park around it). This palace was also used in the movie "Octopussy" by James Bond (1983).  

At 3 km distance from Udaipur center is Shilpgram which is a cultural village with many different traditional architecture of India. It serves every year in December as a scene of the Shilpgram festival. Local dances are also organized. Other attractions are the Moti Magri, or Pearl Hill; on this hill is a statue of the former ruler Maharana Pratap Singh II. Bhartiya Lok Kala museum and the gardens of Saheliyon-ki-Bari.