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Udaipur Travel Guide: 460 reviews and 1,448 photos
Udaipur lies in southern Rajasthan and was founded by Maharana Udai Singh II (1522-72) in 1559 when he moved his ruling rajput kingdom of Mewar from its capital Chittorgarh, here. Legend has it that the king came upon a hermit while hunting in the foothills of the Aravalli Range. The hermit blessed the king and asked him to build a palace on the spot and it would be well protected. The king built a small palace overlooking Lake Pichola, (which was formed when he flooded the village of Picholi, which gave its name to the lake), in 1568 - the same year that Mughal emperor Akbar captured Chittorgarh. Popularly known as the City Palace, subsequent additions were made to it by successive Maharanas and the small palace gradually evolved to become one of the largest palaces in Rajasthan covering an area of 2 ha (5 acres). Its facade is some 244m long and 30m high and dominates the eastern shore of the lake and is today open as a museum, restaurant and hotel. Opposite the City Palace lies Udaipur's claim-to-fame, the wonderful Lake Palace Hotel which seems to float serenely on the lake like a large cruise ship. If you recognise it from somewhere, it's because it was used in the James Bond film Octopussy, which helped put Udaipur on the tourist map. So-much-so that the film is played in virtually every hotel restaurant throughout the city every evening! Udaipur has many other attractions within the city such as the 16th century Jagdish Temple, Bagore-ki-Haveli (a large palace museum beside Gaugaur Ghat), Fateh Sagar (another large lake to the north of Lake Pichola), Vintage & Classic Car Collection Museum (cars once owned by the current Maharana's father and grand-father) and Shilpgram (a cultural heritiage and crafts village that displays an array of traditional mud huts and houses from western India). Udaipur was one of my favourite city's in India as it's very romantic with the lakes and palaces and also has some good shops selling traditional miniature paintings and silver jewellery. I also used the city as a base for exploring the large beautiful Jain temple at Ranakpur and the amazing hill-top fort at Kumbalgarh. If you're visiting Rajasthan, you can't miss Udaipur!
Reviews (97)
Everywhere, every night!
Nightlife
(1)
Every evening at either 6pm or 7pm, you'll find most hotels will show the James Bond movie Octopussy. Why? Well a large... more travel advice
Car tour to Ranakpur & Kumbalgarh
Transportation
(3)
I visited the Jain temple at Ranakpur and Kumbalgarh Fort as part of a day's car tour I hired with two Canadian girls... more travel advice
Kumbalgarh
Off The Beaten Path
(2)
Attributed to Rana Kumbha, this fort was built between 1443 and 1458 under supervision of the famous architect Mandan.... more travel advice
Ranakpur
Off The Beaten Path
(2)
Ranakpur is named after Rana Kumbha whom Dharna Sah, a Jain businessman, approached when he had the vision of his great... more travel advice
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Comments (2)
I was in India in 2006 and my favourite city, too, was Udaipur. Your narratives are enjoyable and you have some very good photos! Happy New Year, Ellsasha.
Thank you for made very nice Udaipur page, your picture's are very nice. I hope see you here in my country.