Maro des “Rajasthan”

The first thing that struck me about Rajasthan was its roads when I last went in 2000 with my parents. Rajasthan’s roads are amazing, and they are very well connected in terms of buses, trains, private cars; you can even hire cars to drive around between different places within the state. This makes traveling in Rajasthan quite safe and less tiring. With good road conditions, you can also explore the interiors of Rajasthan. This fact remains the same even today when I visited with my family in October 2010.

The time from late October to early March is considered ideal to visit Rajasthan, though it’s the high tourist season.

Rajasthan is a major tourist destination, and it’s quite commercialized in every way. In some remote areas, like nomadic villages, people mainly rely on entertaining tourists for their income. When you visit tourist spots, you’ll need to pay for taking photos and videos, and the prices can vary for Indian and foreign tourists, which can be surprising.

Indian tourists often feel treated unfairly. They sometimes get less favorable treatment compared to Western tourists, especially when it comes to receiving tips in foreign currency. This makes the experience less enjoyable for Indian visitors.

Rajasthan is full of great dining options, from the regular highway dhabas to the most luxurious hotels in India. They have a very rich culture in terms of dress colors and turbans, with more than 1000 types and styles of turbans, the variations depending on the region, caste, and creed in society. An array of instruments such as sarangi, ektara, dhol, chang, etc., are used to create melodious tunes and variations in folk dances. Camel safaris are a “must-do,” especially if you’re crossing the Thar Desert; it’s a great way to explore the vastness of the desert. Once you embrace the culture, you’ll feel like delving deeper and getting mesmerized.

Another thing I like about this place is that they know business very well. If you go shopping and think that you might have to pay extra at the airport, of course, you can opt for their courier service, which they will do for free. But be aware, sometimes there are complaints that they send defective pieces or change the fabric you’ve chosen. After all, it’s India, where anything can happen.

Santanu is so impressed that he wants to travel to Rajasthan again, but with a different route, probably - Bikaner, Mt. Abu, Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Kota, Bundi, Ranthambore, Agra, back to Jaipur. One thing I would like to add here is that with the number of days we spent there, we could have easily covered Bikaner.