TIGERS, TEMPLES & PALACES - THE INDI COCKTAIL

Day 1 ARRIVE DELHI   Arrive into the capital of India or 'Hindoostan'. It is also known as Lutyens Delhi, here we will drive past the stately government buildings of the British Era designed by Lutyens, including the India Gate & the Presidential Palace. The city is divide into two parts Old & New Delhi - here we have some great monuments from 8th to 11th Century and also some great Moghul masterpieces.   Day 2 DELHI TO UDAIPUR   We take the morning flight to Udaipur Later arrive at the 'City of lakes' and also called as the 'City of dreams.' Relax and discover the charm of Udaipur, afternoon we take a boatride on Lake Pichola.   Day 3 UDAIPUR   Visit Udaipur - the romantic Lake City in Southern Rajasthan (founded in 1599), famous for the stunning white marble Palace built on an island in the Lake Pichola, with a bakground of wooded hills. It was the former Palace of the Maharana and now converted to one of the most glamorous hotels in India. Here we will visit the magnificent City Palace - built in 1725, the Jagdish temple, the pleasure gardens and a drive around the other nearby lakes.   Day 4 UDAIPUR TO JODHPUR ( 275 Kms )   Drive onto Jodhpur, visiting enroute the vast complex of Jain temples at Ranakpur.   Day 5 IN JODHPUR   Jodhpur is the largest city in Rajasthan after Jaipur, It stands at the edge of the Thar Desert. Founded by Rao Jodha chief of the Rajput clan known as Rathores and the Rathore kingdom was once known as Marwar - the Land of Death. Here we visit Meherangarh Fort the majestic fort - one of the most impressive & formidable in the whole of fort-studded Rajasthan, Jaswant Thada - the Royal Cenotaphs, the Umaid Bhawan Gardens & Museum. We take night train to Jaisalmer, a sleeper berth will be provided.   Day 6 JAISALMER   Early morning arriving into Jaisalmer a perfect Rajput walled desert city, which is like a golden jewel shimmering above the hard sand. Built in 1156 by Rawal Jaisal, the Jaisalmer Fort is the second oldest fort of Rajasthan after Chittor. One fourth of the population lives inside the Fort. Visit the palaces, the Jain temples and magnificent Havelis, which are quite different to the Shekhavati Havelis - they are very tall to catch the breeze and thick - walled to keep cool, with jali screens. Instead of paintings, their exterior walls have been carved to honeycomb delicacy. Morning to rest, afternoon drive to famous Sam sand dunes to witness the sunset.   Day 7 JAISALMER Visit the Maharawal's palace and Jain temples decorated with beautiful dancing figures in mythological settings. Short drive to Lodruva one of the former ancient capitals of Rajasthan - the view back to the city is enchanting. Day 8 JAISALMER TO KHIMSAR (302 Kms)   Drive onto the Royal castle, the beautiful hamlet of Khimsar perched on the edge of the Thar desert has a castle, which dates back to the 15th century. The history says that here Aurangzeb is reported to have stayed when he ordered his armies to invade Jodhpur. It was built as a "Thikana" or fortified home of a local ruler. The battle scarred walls & turrets are a reminder of the glorious past......by the mid 18th century. The Royal family moved in a new "Janan-Khana" or ladies residence was erected with finely carved windows in stone. The family runs it now as an hotel.   Day 9 KHIMSAR TO SAMODE (325 Kms)   Drive to Samode - 45 Kms from Jaipur, Once a noble state, the palace is decorated in the Shekhawati style with wealth frescoes, many of them depicting religious subjects. The highlight is vast & grand Durbar hall.   Day 10 SAMODE TO JAIPUR (45 Kms)   Drive onto Jaipur, the intriguing 'Pink City' of Jaipur, enclosed in battlemented walls built from local rose-pink coloured stone. Jaipur is noted for its arts, crafts & handicrafts. It is the Gem capital of India. Here we drive out to the hills beyond the city to Amber the ancestral hill fortress of Jai Singh. Take an elephant ride up to the fort, which is well known for its lavish architecture. Return to Jaipur to see the City Palace, a blend of Mughal & Rajasthani design, it now contains many treasures from Jaipur's princely past. Nearby is the ornate Hawa Mahal - decorated with delicate screens carved from pink stone and Jantar Mantar observatory containing immense brick and mortar instruments.   Day 11 JAIPUR TO BHARATPUR   Morning leave for Bharatpur - it is one of the finest bird sanctuaries in the world and consists of 29 Kms of fresh water swamp developed by Maharaja of Bharatpur for his famous duck shoots. It is also known as Keoladeo Ghana National Park. Famous the world over as a bird sanctuary for both the thousands of visiting migrants and it's breeding populations of Pelicans, Storks, Herons, Jacanes, and other water birds. It has the distinction of being the wintering area for the few Siberian crane that comes to India, together with vast flocks of geese and ducks.   Day 12 BHARATPUR TO AGRA Morning visit to the bird sanctuary. Thereafter we drive to the deserted city of Fatehpur Sikri. Empror Akbar, tired of Agra, built a new capital here only to abandon it a few years later due to shortage of Water. Continue to Agra. Strategically located on the river Yamuna, it was once the capital of Moghul India and the centre of great power & glory. Moghuls built many beautiful monuments here - Taj Mahal , an incredible 20,000 workman laboured on it, day and night, for over 20 years. Agra Fort with its superb views of the taj across the Yamuna river and the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daula a masterpiece of refined craftsmanship. Day 13 AGRA TO GWALIOR Drive to Gwalior noted for its very old and a large fort which is said to be finest in India. Within the walls of the fort you will find many interesting temples and palaces. Day 14 GWALIOR TO KHAJURAHO via ORCHA Drive to Orcha and visit Datia hilltop palace enroute. Arrive to the village of Orcha which was once a capital of the region, here an old fort on an island in the river contains several exquisite palaces. Continue to Khajuraho - world famous for its magnificent temples built by the rich and powerful Chandela emperors. The temples present the best examples of Indian art and architecture. Day 15 KHAJURAHO Visit the temples where forthright sculptures celebrate the joy of life and love for which there is no equivalent in the world. Day 16 KHAJURAHO TO BANDHAVGARH (250 Kms) Leave early to Bandhavgarh which stretches across the heart of the Vindhyan mountain range of central India. It is dominated by 14th century fort, Sal forest and valleys and currently harbours the high density tiger population. This former hunting reserve of the Maharajas of Rewa. Day 17 BANDHAVGARH Visit the park at dawn & dusk by jeeps. Day 18 BANDHAVGARH TO KANHA Drive onto Kanha National Park, travelling through Kiplings Central Indian highlands, it is proclaimed as the best in Asia. It is famous for its tiger sightings and for the last viable population of the highly endangered, hard-hoofed variety of swamp deer. The beautiful meadows where these can be seen also reveal large numbers of chital, sambar, gaur and wild pig. Blackbuck, nilgai, wild dog and sloth bear may also be sighted, and the bird species tally is closed to 300. Day 19 KANHA Full day game viewing by Jeep or Elephants in the reserve. Day 20 KANHA TO NAGPUR AND FLY ONTO DELHI OR BOMBAY Kanha to Nagpur and fly onto Delhi or Bombay