When someone asks me to choose between mountains and beaches, I ask them if they have ever visited a desert! Deserts can be very fascinating indeed. Shifting sand dunes making for lovely landscapes, unique flora and fauna, and interesting communities make deserts such an attractive proposition! And if we are talking about Jaisalmer, it’s not only the deserts, add to the package a rich history, heritage, architecture and culture. One cannot but just fall in love with this desert town in western Rajasthan. If you are thinking of visiting Jaisalmer for the first time, you may like to know all the reasons to love Jaisalmer; so, let me just share my experience with you.
{More experiences from Rajasthan: Udaipur ||| Pink City Rickshaws, Jaipur}
My rendezvous with the desert city
I first visited Jaisalmer in the autumn of 2008. Nights were not yet too cold, and days not too hot; so, very enjoyable times. My first visit was a solo trip. I just wanted to experience the sandy desert, a landscape I had never seen before. And maybe I was not much aware of the city’s history and heritage back then. However, as I read more about Jaisalmer’s history and saw great pictures of its wonderful architecture, I decided to explore them on my next trip.
The second trip came 13 years later, in October 2021. This time I had a good company- my colleague friend, Rajendra. We travelled together from Barmer, experienced the desert safari, stayed in a tent in the desert, enjoyed quintessential desert culture and explored interesting places. So, this is how I collected all the reasons to love Jaisalmer.
All the reasons to love Jaisalmer
What does one expect to see in a desert? Lifeless barren stretch of land, lack of resources or livelihoods and minimalist standard of living, right? Jaisalmer, in the middle of Thar desert, is far from this imagination of a desert. A grand fort with palaces and ornate buildings, beautiful temples, a rich culture, colourful people and a thriving society; this is Jaisalmer, one of India’s most enigmatic places.
Among all the reasons to love Jaisalmer, my favorites are watching the sunset over sand dunes, the incredible architectural heritage and interesting Rajasthani culture. However, in recent times, I have noticed that a lot of adventure sports avenues have come up in the area. Though I’m not very fond these sports, they are quite popular among tourists.
Why deserts are so fascinating!
My first encounter with a desert (without sand dunes) was in Kutch (click to read), Gujarat. Reaching there at mid-day, I felt like I was in a furnace! As it was a work trip, I had to finish some official engagement before taking refuge in an air-conditioned room for the rest of the day. But later in the evening, when I got out of my room, the environment had completely changed! It was already pleasant with cool breeze blowing away, and was very enjoyable. Deserts are like this; an experience in many contrasts.
Deserts are very hot places during day time, but are cold at night. They look lifeless, but if you look closer, they are full of life, a unique ecosystem with very interesting bio-diversity! Deserts may seem to be boring places to ordinary souls, but are actually very interesting places to explore.
7 interesting facts about deserts:
- Deserts occupy 20% (30% if one includes partial deserts) of total landmass on earth, and support about 17% of world population!
- Deserts are growing each year! Gobi desert (China, Mangolia) is growing by over 1000 square miles every year! (though Sahara is actually shrinking)
- The largest dry desert is Sahara in Africa that spans 9 countries! And the largest cold desert is Antarctica.
- There are places in Atacama desert that has never received any rainfall! And yet, it’s home to a million people!
- Despite being one of the driest places, Antarctica conserves over 90% of earth’s fresh water in the form of frozen ice!
- On 18 February, 1979, it actually snowed in Sahara for about 30 minutes!
- In the summer months, the sun never sets over the arctic desert for about 60 days!
Love Jaisalmer for the desert safari
Thar is the only desert in India with sand dunes. For me, sand dunes are the first of the reasons to love Jaisalmer. I still remember vividly the first desert safari I had in Jaisalmer. I booked a safari with the hotel I was staying in; they took me by a small tempo to the nearby Sam sand dunes. They had arranged for camels for the safari, and a cultural program with dinner.
{Love desert safaris? Further reading suggestion: Desert safari in Dubai}
Gorgeous sunsets and charming evenings:
The camel-man helped me ride his animal and we went quite far into the desert just before it was sunset. It was a bit too warm for the comfort, but I was excited about the prospect of a gorgeous sunset over the beautiful sand dunes. Indeed, the sunset didn’t disappoint. Watching the sun go down the horizon beyond an unending stretch of sand dunes amidst bright golden rays was absolutely fascinating!
The second time I visited Jaisalmer, I couldn’t have missed this opportunity. This time, I and Rajendra spent more time watching the sunset, almost a repeat of the first experience. In fact, as the sky hardly ever becomes cloudy, the sunsets are always against a clear sky, and they offer the same views each time. I still remember the sight of how the lights slowly came up from the hotels and resorts of Sam under the orange sky.
Camel, ship of the desert
How fascinating are the camels! Absolutely peaceful animals, always at the service of mankind, and hardly ever demanding. In good old days, they were the only means of transport, especially for goods across vast desert regions from Africa to west Asia and right up to China (spanning the famous Silk Road). As horses were crucial for warfare, camels were important for goods transport. No surprise then that people refer the camel as ship of the desert.
Though in course of time, with advent of mechanized transport options, dependency on camel for transport has gone down significantly. However, they still play an important role in transport for locals, and take part in making the tourists happy.
It doesn’t appear to be an overtly intelligent animal, but it has certainly got high emotional quotient with human beings. I just love its demeanour. Camels are of course, one of the reasons to love Jaisalmer.
Use of camels for livelihoods:
We had a friendly chat with our camel-boy. Among other things, he talked about his livelihoods using the camels. For a lot of people in the desert areas, using camels for tourism is the only source of livelihood. These days, some people talk about avoiding/ discouraging camel rides (and other animal rides) in tourism. However, discussions like this with local communities over the years have convinced me that blanket banning/ discouraging use of animals in tourism is not such a great idea. As long as one can drink milk of any animal, or eat meat of any animal, use of animals in tourism should be allowed.
Yes, however, there is a need for ethical treatment of animals in tourism as much as in any other industry where animals contribute. The local communities using the animals should be educated, and the government should have some monitoring over ethical use of animals.
The child labour issue:
And if you noticed the boy engaged in the camel-tourism industry here; yes, it’s a common practice here. There are a lot of poor households in the desert-villages. They engage their children (along with everyone else in the family) to earn a bit more for the household. Child labour is banned in India; but definitely, the law is not enough. The economy needs to reach that stage when we can seriously implement the law.
Love Jaisalmer: A cultural oasis
If a place you are visiting has a two thousand years old history, you cannot just ignore making it part of the travel experience. Whenever I visit a place, I definitely look for its history and heritage value. Culture is intricately related to the history of a place. The older the history, the richer is the culture. Because culture evolves immensely over generations, and changes itself while keeping the essence of the earlier generation.
Rich culture of Jaisalmer is second of the reasons to love Jaisalmer. Jaisalmer’s culture and tradition are essentially Rajasthani in nature, and largely influenced by the neighboring Sindh province, now in Pakistan. The dominant colour of the region reflects the golden vistas of the desert landscape. However, the monotony is broken by the colourful dresses of its people. Women wear lovely bright colours like pink, red, black, and yellow with beautifully crafted silver jewelry. Though men generally wear whites, their turbans are colourful (tie-and-dye fabric).
My love for folk culture:
For me, the best part of Jaisalmer culture is their awe inspiring folk dance and music. Be it the traditional ghoomar dance or the kalbeliya form, each time I have just loved the performances of local artists. And the kathputli (puppet form) is icing on the cake!
While on the desert safari, we met a local musician playing flute and another similar instrument. Thanks to him, our evening became even more enjoyable.
How to experience Jaisalmer culture:
The best way to experience culture of a place is to live with the community as the way they live, and experience their slow pace of life. However, it’s not always possible for tourists. The next best option is a tour operator. Most tourists pick a local tour operator for a desert safari. The package generally includes cultural shows by local artists.
Besides, every camp site/ resort in the desert has its own local cultural groups to perform for the guests in the evening. Tip: better resorts provide better cultural experiences.
And do not forget to look for local folk/ instrumental musicians wandering around the desert. It’s a win-win; they earn a little, and you are treated to some authentic local cultural experience for peanuts.
If you are visiting Jaisalmer in February, look for the Desert Festival. The festival showcases the best of Jaisalmer culture- food, dance, music, craft, etc.
Love Jaisalmer for its Architectural Heritage
Jaisalmer as a kingdom has a 2000 years old history since its first rulers- the Raikas, Sindhis and Bhatis. However, it was a Rajput king Rawal Jaisal who in his quest for a place to establish a more secure and grand capital city, discovered Trikuta hill to build a fort in 1156. The subsequent rulers kept adding palaces and buildings inside the fort to make it one of the most amazing forts in the world.
This is where the current city of Jaisalmer grew around. In good old days, the whole population lived inside the fort; but since 17th century, inhabitants started settling down outside of the fort campus. With about 5000 inhabitants, it’s still one of the very few ‘living’ forts in the world. The inhabitants belong to two castes/ classes of Hindus- the Brahmins (priests), and the Rajputs (soldiers).
Rulers of the kingdom over the years have built magnificent palaces, temples and other beautiful buildings both inside and around the Jaisalmer fort. These architectural masterpieces are third of the reasons to love Jaisalmer. It takes at least two days to explore all the wonderful architectural heritage of Jaisalmer.
{Interested in architectural heritage? Read more: Hampi |||| Stepwells of India |||| Khajuraho- Orchha}
Monuments in the Jaisalmer fort area
On my first visit to the city in 2008, I was more keen on visiting the deserts, and was not sure of exploring anything else. When I asked a few locals about the Jaisalmer fort, they didn’t seem enthusiastic in suggesting me to visit the fort. Thus, I dropped the idea! Later in 2013, when the UNESCO declared it as a World heritage Site as part of Hill Forts of Rajasthan, I realized what I had really missed!
{For referring another UNESCO world heritage hillfort in Rajasthan, check out: Gagron fort}
On my second visit, I explored the old fort area thoroughly. The striking golden-yellow sandstone in which the fort is built looked so gorgeous! The colour made it resemble sand castles we used to make on river beaches in our childhood. It dazzled like gold under the afternoon sun. No wonder Satyajit Ray, the Oscar winning film-maker called it the Golden Fort (Sonar Qilla). The golden fort and the surrounding golden sand desert prompt people to nickname Jaisalmer as the ‘golden city’.
All the wonderful buildings in the fort complex:
Perhaps the most wonderful building in the fort complex is the Raja ka Mahal (King’s palace), or the Maharwal Palace. The 1500 ft long and 750 ft wide fort has four impressive gateways- the Hawa pol, Ganesh pol, Akshay pol and Suraj pol. A part of this palace is called Rani ka Mahal (Queen’s palace). Some of the other beautiful buildings within Raja ka Mahal are Gaj vilas, Akhai Vilas and Sarvottam vilas.
The detailed carvings on the gateways, jharokhas (windows) and balconies of the palaces are quite extraordinary. Now the palace serves as a museum; I think, a must visit museum to have a peek into the past. A particular point- Canon point in the fort gives an amazing view of Jaisalmer.
Some other notable buildings in the fort complex are several merchant havelis, Baa Ri haveli, Nathmal ki haveli, Tazia tower, 7 Jain temples and a few Hindu temples. It’s overwhelming to walk around such magnificent buildings in a span of a few hours.
Jain and Hindu Temples:
There are 7 Jain temples of which Parshwanath temple is the most popular, and a number of Hindu temples of which the Lakshminath temple is the most popular. These temples have such wonderful architecture and intricate carvings that I wish they stood not in the corners of crowded streets but in spacious lush green campuses. While taking a walk around these Jain temples, I thought to myself, “how come all Jain temples across Rajasthan and Gujarat have such outstanding designs/ carvings”!
{If you are interested in more Jain heritage shrines, check out: Shravanabelagola}
Streets and bazaars:
The narrow alleys and busy streets within the fort complex are vibrant with people and shops, mostly catering to the tourists. Because the people living in the fort complex have been there since centuries, there character has not changed too much over the years. With the heritage buildings and people in colourful clothing, these alleys are absolutely fascinating! They just took me to another era, centuries back in time! So, definitely, they are also one of the reasons to love Jaisalmer.
The street shops sell some of the most amazing collection of artefacts, dolls, puppets, brassware, home-decor, stone craft, hand-crafted accessories, silver jewelry, miniature paintings and much more. Rajasthan is a great place for shopping traditional craft products. Unlike many other tourist destinations where cheap Chinese products flood the markets, products on offer in Rajasthan are made by local artisans.
Monuments outside the fort area
Jaisalmer is not only about the fort though. You are overwhelmed after visiting the magnificent monuments in the fort, and then you realize that many more equally splendid monuments wait for you outside of it too! Some of the monuments not to miss are: Patwa ki haveli | Salim Singh ki haveli (Moti Mahal) | Vyas cenotaph | Gadisar lake.
- Patwa ki haveli, built by 5 Jain brothers in the early-19th century, is the most intricately designed haveli in all of Jaisalmer. Out of the five sections of the building in a narrow lane, Kothari’s Patwa ki haveli is now a museum, and worth paying a visit inside.
- Salim Singh’s haveli (Moti Mahal): A beautiful 18th century ornate building.
- Vyas Cenotaphs: Located to the north of the fort, this cenotaph is dedicated to the writer of Hindu epic- Mahabharat, Vyasa. A great place to watch sunset.
- Gadisar lake: Rawal Jaisal built this lake in order to fulfill the water demand of the inhabitants of the fort. But it’s noticeable how the lake is surrounded by a number of beautiful gates, chhatris, temples, etc. A good place to spend an evening. Isn’t the sight of a lake an amazing thing in a desert!
Places of interest near Jaisalmer
Kuldhara, the ‘haunted’ village:
On our way back from the Thar desert safari to Jaisalmer, we visited the so-called haunted village of Kuldhara. About 200 years ago, unhappy with the local rulers, the Paliwal Brahmin community of this village and other nearby villages completely abandoned the area. Legend has it that a local minister wanted to forcibly marry the daughter of a local brahmin family, and the community complained against this to the ruler. Their complaints remained unheard; so they decided to leave the village.
The village remains uninhabited since then. Some people have reported eerie things happening around the village; thus, the ‘haunted’ tag. However, I felt as good as anywhere else. The beautiful buildings in the village can hardly scare anyone off! But the ruins of broken houses around the village do give a weird feeling.
Other interesting places:
Bada Bagh Cenotaphs: At about 12 kms, these are a group of monuments honouring the kings and queens of Jaisalmer.
Lodurva/ Lodrawa village: The place from where Rawal Jaisal moved his capital to Jaisalmer still exists, just about 14 kms from Jaisalmer. Now it houses a few Jain heritage temples from the pre-12th century.
Desert National Park: If you are fond of exploring flora and fauna, visiting the Desert National Park is a great idea. It’s about 32 kms from Jaisalmer on the way to Sam sand dunes.
Battle of Longewala point: At 110 kms from Jaisalmer is Longewala war memorial where a decisive battle was fought between India and Pakistan in 1971.
Adventure and sports
If you are an adventure seeker or at least love to try your hands at some adventure sports, Jaisalmer has quite a few to offer: Parasailing | Quad-biking | Jeep safari | Dune-bashing | Zip-lining | Paramotoring. Of late, I heard that someone has started a hot-air ballooning experience; I have not seen this though.
Honestly, I have never liked the concept of adventure as sports, or sports as adventure. Plus, they cost a bomb! But yes, everyone is not me! So, if you like it, look for professional agencies online, rather than finding them on the spot, because you never know if they would provide the best experience.
Jaisalmer Travel Tips
When to visit:
Summers are of course, too hot; so, October to March are the best times to visit Jaisalmer. Desert Festival is held in February every year; so, it’s a great opportunity to have the best cultural experience there.
How to plan:
- At a minimum, one needs two-three full days to explore Jaisalmer
- Day-1: Jaisalmer fort complex | Moti Mahal | Gadisar lake | Desert safari and night camping
- Day-2: Kuldhara village | Monuments outside Jaisalmer fort (refer above) | Bada Bagh Cenotaphs
- If you have one or more additional days, enjoy adventure sports, or a safari in the Desert National park, and explore the nooks and corners of the old city.
How to reach:
- Regular buses, trains from Delhi, Jaipur and other cities of Rajasthan
- It has a domestic airport; check out flight options from your place
Where to stay:
- Budget hotels: Garh jaisal Haveli | Lal Garh Fort and Palace | Royal Haveli | Oasis Haveli | Gaji Hotel | Jaigarh Palace | Amar Villa
- Hostels: Jaisalmer Hostel Crowd | Zostel | Moustache | The Hosteller
- Desert camping at Sam Sand Dunes: Oasis Camp | Bhati Desert Camp | Dynasty Desert Camp | (actually one can check-in any of the camps on the spot as well; except for high-demand dates)
Staying in a desert-tent is surely one of the reasons to love Jaisalmer. I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in a tent at Sam Sand Dunes. The facilities were comfortable, and clean. However, I would mention one critical tip for choosing your camp. With increasing tariff, though there wouldn’t be much difference in facilities, the quality of cultural programs definitely improves. Cheaper camps offer cheap cultural experiences; one may not like the overall ambiance and style of performance of the folk artists. Of course, more skilled performers ask for more money! So, choose costlier camps for a better cultural experience.
What/ Where to eat:
Food is definitely a reason to love Jaisalmer. Here are a few suggestions to look for:
- Dal Pakwan at Mohit Pakwan Bhandar
- Pyaaz kachori and Mirchi bhajiya at Fateh ki kachori or Chandan Shree
- Rajasthani Thaali | Ker sangri | Gatte ki sabzi | Mutton Saag at The Trio
- Daal-Baati-Churma at Gazi’s restaurant
- Makhania lassi at Kanchan Shree
- Ghotua ladoos at Dhanraj Rawal Bhatia Sweets
How to move around:
It’s a small place. One can move around by auto-rickshaws or cabs. One can hire bikes for rent also. But walking around is difficult, except of course, the old fort area where it’s the best way to explore the place.
Jaisalmer : A concluding remark
History and cultural heritage of very few deserts is as rich as Jaisalmer’s. In fact, it was not far from the ancient Indus valley civilization. Though there is no archeological evidence, it is possible that it was very much part of the civilization. Or, maybe it has ancestral lineage to the people from the erstwhile civilization.
Visiting Jaisalmer has been a very unique experience for me. If one asks me which part of the experience I love the most, I would perhaps not be able to differentiate. The deserts are as fascinating as the culture of the place, and the architectural heritage is equally outstanding. So, you may pick up your interest area and enjoy the experience.
Hope you liked my all the reasons to love Jaisalmer. Have you already been there? Please share your all the reasons to love Jaisalmer. Want to know more? Do write to us.
Jayvanti Einjen
Beautifully described. I will visit with parina and you.lovely photographs
stampedmoments
Certainly, we will visit together some day 🙂
Thank you!
Soumen
Just rightly said the Rich culture of Jaisalmer is the reason to love Jaisalmer. Jaisalmer’s culture and tradition are essentially Rajasthani in nature, and largely influenced by the neighboring Sindh province, now in Pakistan. The dominant color of the region reflects the golden vistas of the desert landscape. However, the monotony is broken by the colorful dresses of its people. Women wear lovely bright colors like pink, red, black, and yellow with beautifully crafted silver jewelry.
Jaisalmer has really an Architectural Heritage. How one can forget Satyajit Ray, the Oscar-winning filmmaker who called it the Golden Fort (Sonar Qilla) and made a movie out of it. The golden fort and the surrounding golden sand desert prompt people to nickname Jaisalmer as the ‘golden city’.
The most wonderful building in the fort complex is the Raja ka Mahal (King’s palace), or the Maharwal Palace, The 1500 ft long and 750 ft wide fort has four impressive gateways- the Hawa pol, Ganesh pol, Akshay pol, and Suraj pol. A part of this palace is called Rani ka Mahal (Queen’s palace). Some of the other beautiful buildings within Raja ka Mahal are Gaj Vilas, Akhai Vilas, and Sarvottam Vilas. All these are really worth watching.
Some other notable buildings in the fort complex are several merchant havelis, Baa Ri haveli, Nathmal ki haveli, Tazia tower, 7 Jain temples, and a few Hindu temples.
The narrow streets and bazaars are quite beautifully explained and yes it’s really worthwhile while roaming in the streets.
There are also other monuments and Havelis which have nicely curved rich architecture. How we can forget the famous Gadisar lake, it’s really a nice time to spend during the evening.
Kuldhara, the ‘haunted’ village, doesn’t look scary during the daytime as the architecture is again so beautiful.
There are a lot of adventure sports that have come up during these days for the tourist. There are even craft villages in the middle of the desert that attract tourists. The sand dunes and camel safari is the main tourist attraction
I had the opportunity to visit Jaselmer during my internship with KIIT School of Rural Management Bhubaneswar, where I spend along with my college friend and a friend from Germany David Wickman with whom we met at Seva Mandir Udaipur. We spend 1 night in the desert enjoying the cool night and slipping under the sky gave us a wonderful experience. By reading the blog I went back to my memory lane in the year 2009.
Its really fascinating and wonderful read exploring the culturally rich Jaisalmer.
stampedmoments
Oh good to know that you have already been there.
It’s such a unique experience!
Thanks for the feedback.
Sarita Rout
I haven’t been to Jaisalmer. This piece is really helpful to plan my trip sometime.
stampedmoments
Maybe, we will go together one day! haha
Ramesh Patel
Wah,wah….wah bhai wah…Suvendu ji.. One question to you is..How you are managing such time to be spared from the current professional engagement??.. You are roaming and enjoying unique places in India at the very right age too.. Congratulations for such planning, thoughtful sight hunting, precious documenting, and sharing with a wider audience. It was pleasant experience for me to travel in your Jaisalmer document and feel the sense of it. Thanks for sharing the same.. Sandy salute from Ramesh Patel.
stampedmoments
Ramesh bhai! Such a pleasure to hear from you!
Thanks a lot for all the compliments, and reading the blog.
Yeah, I am trying follow a passion- of travelling and writing.
Let’s see if I do good 🙂
Please remain connected all the time.
Sara Hevia
Fascinating place and fantastic description and photography
I had note to visit someday
stampedmoments
Hi Sara!
Good to hear from you after long! Thanks a lot for the lovely feedback.
Yup, visit someday, and let me know 🙂
SHRIKANT BANSOD
When I was in Barmer, I missed the opportunity to go there. I look forward to travelling to Jaisalmer someday and listening to Ravanahatha live.
Thank you for this. This is really helpful.
stampedmoments
Absolutely, you should have visited Jaisalmer then.
But never too late, you are so young!
It’s such a unique place with a wonderful culture!
Do share your experience whenever you are there.
Thank you!
Shrusti
I love the opening line, I found myself thinking along these very lines on a recent holiday. What a great piece, it covers so much detail and I particularly love the little segue into camels!
stampedmoments
Yeah, deserts are very fascinating places.
I do echo your thoughts.
Thanks a lot for the appreciation.