Jodhpur India – Your Quick Travel Guide

In a nutshell

Jodhpur is a wonderful Indian city with rich history and comfortably walkable main parts of the Old City. Similarly to other cities in Rajasthan, northern desert state, the sights are mostly historical, related to the royal families but also close to some natural sights, for those who seek for those.

Why go to Jodhpur

If you travel through Rajasthan, you should definitely consider visiting Jodhpur as well. It provides many tourist attractions and things to do to satisfy mostly history lovers and cultural enthusiasts. Jodhpur happen to be the seat of local Mahrajas for few centuries and so it is not surprising that the interesting places have the link between them and the royal family.

Travelling to Rajasthan gives the opportunity to see many fortification buildings from the past eras and for travellers it may seem to be overfilled by forts. And it is kind of true. But when choosing one over the another, we highly recommend the winner to be the Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur as it is the most charming and the most stunning with well preserved interior and audio guides including in the entry fee.

Apart from the fort, you can visit Jaswant Thada, lovely marble mausoleum and burial grounds, a small museum in an exquisite heritage hotel Umaid Bhavan or the Clock Tower area with the surrounding markets.

Jodhpur`s advantage is that the Old City can be easily visited by walking and the rest of the sights is not far away, if you stick to those main ones.

Generally, Rajasthan is also one of the Indian prime shopping areas as there are many markets, exhibition centres and the centres of traditional and cultural locally made products. Jodhpur is famously known for traditional hand made painted fabrics, gems, ornamented shoes or fragrant spices.

When to go to Jodhpur

The best time to visit Jodhpur and surrounding area is certainly during winter season, October to March, when the temperatures are not feeling as in winter but they are surely more pleasant. Avoid planning the visit during the summer in India which means in May or April. That time is the hottest of the years and the burning sun would just take the energy from you.

Where to stay in Jodhpur

There are plenty of possibilities when it comes to accommodation in Jodhpur. The main aspects to narrow the choices should be the price and the location. The budget is one of the most important criteria and then you can browse numerous accommodation offers. There are choices for budget travellers, middle ranged travellers as well as there are luxurious accommodation types.

Accommodation is usually provided in classic hotel rooms with attached bathrooms. Shared bathrooms are very rare and the Wi-Fi connection is practically a must to have on the market.
Budget accommodation prices start at around 500 INR to up to 2,000 INR. Average price for quite cosy room with attached bathroom is around 1,000 INR. Be aware of the fact, that the cleanliness standard does not need to necessary meet your requirements. For budget accommodation in Jodhpur there is usually no food plan. Budget accommodation can be found mostly around train station, bus stand and in the Clock Tower area.

Then the standard and the prices get higher and higher. Better hotels offer also breakfast with the room and provide more than just basic amenities. In Rajasthan, there are many luxurious heritage hotels owned by the best known brands, and some of these heritage hotels and resorts can be found in Jodhpur as well. These provide the grandiose services and real royal experience. Of course, the prices range is in tens thousands of Indian rupees.

Where and what to eat in Jodhpur

There are many restaurants all over the city so it is easy to check the menu and the prices. Most of the restaurants provide mixture of Indian and continental cuisine but it is not unusual in India that many restaurants are pure vegetarian. Here you can check classic Indian thali, a plate with many bowls and various curries accompanied with rice and flattened bread or different types of typical curries.

Street food offers immense choices of fried items, pakodas, samosas, typical kachoris, Chinese noodles, Indian chai tea and many more.

How to get around Jodhpur

There are options to choose when moving around Jodhpur. The basic and the most budget friendly is walking. This is the most useful if your stay is somewhere close to the Clock Tower as from there you can have nice walk up to the Mehrangarh Fort from where it is just a little walk to Jaswant Thada or Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park. It is possible to walk also to the Blue City.

Other sights and also the transport within the city can be done by hiring an autorickshaw. This is quite cheap and comfortable. From the railway station to the clock tower area you should pay around 200 INR per a car. Drive to Umaid Bhawan Palace from the Clock Tower should cost around 400 INR including some waiting time.

Another good and very comfortable option is hiring a taxi. It costs more than a rickshaw but sometimes the difference is not so high if you use a provider with per kilometre price and taximeter such as Ola cabs or Taxi For Sure. Often, there are also affordable packages limited by time or kilometres, such as 8 hours or 80 kilometres. That may be really useful if travelling in a group.
Advantageous travellers may also try using public buses that run in Jodhpur and connect different areas of the city. This may be bit time consuming, though.

How to get to and from Jodhpur

Jodhpur is well connected with other parts of India. There is an airport in Jodhpur with regular connection to Delhi and Mumbai with fares starting at around 4,500 INR for Delhi, one way, for Mumbai it starts at around 6,000 INR.

Many travellers arrive by train which is one of the most convenient and most favourite modes of transport in India. There are many connecting routes to and from many cities such as Delhi, Jaisalmer, Jaipur, Ahmedabad etc. For example, the train from Delhi takes over 10 hours and the rates for Sleeper class start at 370 INR per person.

Some areas do not have direct connection to Jodhpur and in that case they are usually accessible by buses. There are many booking offices that will provide you proper information on timetable and the prices which may vary greatly because of different type and amenities serviced. For example, Udaipur, city of lakes, can be reached by bus from Jodhpur in approximately 5 hours with rate starting at 500 INR.

If you are travelling in a group then you may think of renting a taxi or tempo traveller minibus for long distances. The prices are higher but especially in the case of tight schedule it may be the right choice. For example, the tempo traveller minibus with the capacity of 13-15 people should cost around 12,000 INR from Jodhpur to Udaipur.

Is Jodhpur a safe place to visit?

Generally speaking, India is quite a safe country and that applies to Jodhpur city as well. Considering basic rules of safety, avoiding dangerous situations and behaving within the rules of local culture, you will be fine.

Of course, the crazy Indian diving works without exception also here so be careful not to be hit by the autorickshaw.