Tourist Places to See in Jodhpur

Fascinating Facts:
Second largest city of Rajasthan, after Jaipur.
Famously called as the “Blue city of Rajasthan”.
Built in 1459 A.D by Rao Jodha.
Major highlights are Mehrangarh fort, Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jaswant thada etc.

Introduction:
If you want to dive into the deep sea of Rajputana culture than just come to Jodhpur, considered as one of the three sculpted city of Rajasthan. Jodhpur, the former capital of Marwar province of the bygone Rajput era was established by Rao Jaodha, a Rajput cheiftain in the year 1459 A.D. It is the second largest city of Rajasthan after Jaipur, having a total area of 22,850 sq km.

Popular as the “Gateway to the Great Thar Desert”, Jodhpur is blessed with some scenic landscape and ravishing palaces, forts , gardens that would surely mesmerize you by their charm.

Location of Jodhpur:
This bustling desert city of Rajasthan is situated in the western part of Rajasthan, very close to the International border between India and Pakistan. Due to its proximity to Pakiastan, Jodhpur has a large defense contingent. Jodhpur is bounded by Bikaner and Jaisalmer districts in the north, Barmer and Pali districts in south, Nagaur district in the east and Jaisalmer district in the west.

As Jodhpur is located at the vicinity of Thar desert, it receives very less amount of rainfall in a year( 10.3cm to 64 cm). The weather of Jodhpur, always remains very bright and hot, due to which it is also known as the “Sun City of Rajasthan”.

Charm of Jodhpur:
Jodhpur is one of the hot tourist destination of Rajasthan have some outstanding architectural master pieces of erstwhile royal period. There are numerous forts, palaces, temples which attracts the holidaymakers by their beauty. Some of the popular tourist spots in Jodhpur are-

Mehrangarh Fort- One of the most formidable and largest citadel of Rajasthan, Mehrangarh fort stands atop a 150 m high hill and 5 km long. The construction of this fort was started by Rao Jodha but successive Maharajahs of Jodhpur has completed it during their reign. Within this fort, there are series of courtyards and palaces. This fort provides an awesome view of the blue colored houses of the Jodupur town which is located at the foot hill of this fort.

Umaid Bhawan Palace- Built atop the Chittor hill, Umaid Bhawan palace is one of the most recent built palace of India. It got its name from its builder Maharajah Umaid Singh. This imposing and lavish palace is world' s largest private residence. Till date it serves as a home to the present Maharajah of Jodhpur named Maharajah Gaj Singh II. This sprawling palace is built of white marble and golden – yellow color sandstone of Chittor. Umaid Bhawaan palace is now separated into three parts, one serves as resdent of Jodhpur royal family, one serves as a luxurious hotel, and third portion serves as a museum.

Jaswant Thada- Jaswant thada is a memorial made up of white marble. It was built in memory of Maharaja Jaswahnt Singh II of Jodhpur in 1899 A.D.

Other charm of Jodhpur includes Government Museum, Umed Garden, Kamen Art Gallery.

Attractions Around Jodhpur:
Beside the tourist attractions of this city, nearby places to Jodhpur also have some fascinating places that can behold your attention. Some of the excursion places of Jodhpur are

Luni Fort- Lies at a mere distance of approximately 20km from Jodhpur, at Chanwa. This fort is now converted into a Heritage hotel by its owner Maharaja Dalip Singhji. This majestic fort is another worth watching sight which very well maintains the glory of bygone era.

Dhawa Wildlife Sanctuary-If you are nature lover, you can visit the Dhawa Wildlife Sanctuary, which is just 45 km away from Jodhpur. Here, you can have a close encounter with the Cheetal and Sambhar, as this sanctuary has the largest number of Cheetal and Sambhar.

Osian- Located approximately 60 km away from Jodhpur, on the Jodhpur-Bikaner highway diversion, Osian is an oasis in the desert area of Marwar region. This place is famous for an ancient Jain temple and also for the panoramic view of the descent of sun over the golden sands. It is believed that Oswal a Jain community originates from here only.

Nagaur Fort- Nagaur fort lies in Naguar, a beautiful town between Jodhpur and Bikaner, at a distance of 135 km from Jodhpur. This historic places has seen many wars between the Muslims invaders from Central Asia and Marwars. This fort has some artistically designed palaces like the Badal Mahal, Sheesh Mahal, and Hadi Rani Mahal, which are beautiful specimens of Rajput architecture.

Other nearby excursion places to Jodhpur are Mandore garden, Balsamand lake, Kailana lake, and Mahamandir temple.

Access to Jodhpur:
By Air- The airport of this city is located at a distance of 5km from city centre. Daily flights of Indian Airlines and Jet Airways ply from Udaipur to other major Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Udaipur.

By Train-Jodhpur is well connected to all major Indian cities as it is a important division of North Western zone of Indian Railways.

By Road- Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation buses and private buses runs regularly from Jodhpur to various other cities of Rajasthan as well as to Ahmedabad and Delhi

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