(Picture by Getmemorefood)
Who doesn’t
like travelling but with travelling comes a huge amount of bill and all of us
hate that, right? No one wants to spend a fortune on a single trip. So, today
I’m going to cover two cities in a budget of one! I know, I know it sounds
weird but keep on reading and discover it for yourself.
We visited two
cities in Rajasthan: Mandawa and Jaipur. Mandawa is a town in the Jhunjhunu
district of Rajasthan. Known for its forts and havelis, Mandawa has also been a
hub for some of the great Bollywood movies (Jab We Met, PK, Love Aaj Kal etc.).
Jaipur as we all are well aware is the
capital of Rajasthan and also known as “the Pink City”. Jaipur is a major
tourist destination in India, with the most beautiful forts and palaces; Jaipur
is indeed one of the best places to visit in India. And not only just the
tourist attraction but the food here is delectable as well. From daal Baati
Churma, Gatte ki Sabzi, Ghever, Gajak, Pyaaz ki Kachori to what not. Everything
here is just commendable.
(Picture by
Frametastic Productions)
Now coming
back to how I actually did manage to travel 2 cities on such a small budget:
For going to
Mandawa the cheapest option is taking a train till Churu that will cost you
around Rs.120(Sleeper class, non a/c) and then from Churu taking a bus to
Mandawa. There are a lot of buses that travel frequently between Churu and
Mandawa, so you can easily get a bus from the nearest bus stop (the bus stop is
walking distance from the Railway station) . The bus that we took was priced at
rs.50/person.
The bus will
leave you in the middle of the Mandawa city from where all the hotels are quite
reachable by foot. The hotel that I
stayed in was called “Hotel Shekhawati” (I am going to put all the links at the
end). Hotel Shekhawati, a budget hotel, is a 100 years old haveli built by
Mandawa rulers. Hotel Shekhawati provides low cost room for budget travelers,
it has colorful rooms, with jodhpuri murals each depicting a different story
about the kings and the queens, the rooftop is amazing and has the most scenic
view of the Mandawa city.
(Picture by
Frametastic Productions)
The room
that we took had 1 double-sized bed and one single-bed, the toilets were clean
and big and we had no problem in the hotel. Though, they didn’t have a lot of
options in food and the food was just average, I hope they are going to work on
that. The staff was really courteous and was really enthusiastic about telling
us about their city.
(Picture
from Google)
In the
evening, we went for a little stroll in the city to actually witness the
beautiful havelis and the most magnificent architecture. Though, some of the
big havelis had some entry fees and some are now transformed into a residential
place but there are still a lot of havelis that are easily accessible and just
as pretty. The lanes of Mandawa are really picturesque, with the havelis on
both the side and if the weather’s just perfect you’re surely going to have the
time of your life.
(Picture by
Getmemorefood)
The overall
that we spent on our one day trip to Mandawa is: Rs.830, which includes bus
tickets from Churu to Mandawa, hotel rooms, lunch and dinner.
The next
morning we took a bus from Mandawa to Jaipur (Rs.150) which is a 3hrs Journey.
On reaching Jaipur we went straight to our hotel that we had already booked
through MakeMyTrip.com through which we got some amazing discounts. Our hotel’s
name was Star Palace, a great hotel for budget travelers, also operated by OYO
rooms. We took 2 rooms
and both smelled really bad, so we asked the manager to change our rooms, which
he did immediately and gave us another room which was quite better. The rooms
were not that big, it had one double-sized bed and a toilet attached. It was a
basic room with a television set, a chair and a table. We quickly changed and
went to Amber Fort.
For Amber
Fort we took an auto which is a 15min ride from the hotel. On reaching the
fort, there is an entry fee of about Rs.100 but as we all are students and had
our College id cards with us, the entry fee was just Rs.10. Located high on a
hill, it is a climb of 15-20 minutes. Built by Raja Man Singh 1, Amber fort is
one the most beautiful forts in Jaipur, blending both Hindu and Rajput
elements. It has a little lake in the front known as Maota Lake.
(Picture by
Getmemorefood)
After
finishing the fort, we took a bus to Baapu Bazaar in search for some great food.
We had some roadside Golgappas, Kulfi faluda with Ice cream and Jaipur’s most
famous Pyaaz Ki Kachori from Rawat’s. If you’re in Jaipur, don’t miss its Pyaaz
ki Kachori, it is to die for.
The next morning we had our breakfast at our hotel which
was beyond words and left for Delhi by bus (Rs. 350)
The overall
expenditure from Mandawa to Jaipur and staying in Jaipur was: Rs.995 (which
includes bus from Mandawa to Jaipur, Jaipur hotel, auto and bus rides, Amber
fort entry fee, food and drinks)
Important
links:
Amber Fort- https://www.amberfort.org/ (Do check out this website before going to Amber Fort, it
has all the details.)
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