Gujarat & Rajasthan Textile Tour

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Duration : 13 Nights / 14 Days

Destination Covered : Mumbai-Bhavnagar-Gondal-Bhuj-Zaindbad-Mt. Abu-Udaipur-Jaipur-Agra-Delhi

Day 01 : Arrive Mumbai

Met at the airport on arrival in Mumbai and transfer to The Ambassador Hotel. Afternoon half day city tour of Mumbai visiting The Gateway to India, The Hanging Gardens on Malabar Hills, the Dhobi Ghat and Prince of Wales Museum.

Day 02 : Mumbai - Bhavnagar (By Flight IC 635 - 0945 hrs / 1035 hrs )

Morning transfer to the airport to fly to Bhavnagar. On arrival, transfer to the Nilambagh Palace Hotel. Late morning visit the Palitana, 51 kms south west of Bhavnagar. A Jain pilgrim centre located at the foot of the 600 mtrs Shetrunjaya hills. It has 863 Jain temples built over 900 years, many of them of marble. Surprisingly, a Muslim shrine is also located next to one of the major temples.

Day 03 : Bhavnagar - Gondal ( By Road - 5 hours drive )

After breakfast, a (05 hours) drive brings us to Gondal. Check in to the Riverside Palace Hotel. B L D

Day 04 : Gondal - Bhuj ( By Road - 6 hours drive )

Morning depart for Bhuj, a 06 hours drive. Check in to the Prince Hotel. This beautiful old walled city leaps out from the pages of the Arabian Nights. You can lose yourself for hours in maze of narrow streets and colorful bazaars or admire the Kutchi people dressed in their heavily embroidered traditional costumes. Afternoon, visit the richly decorated Swaminarayan Temple - which has been widely featured in several travel magazines around the world. Later in the afternoon visit the Bhuj bazaar and witness a tie and dye demonstration. B

Day 05 : Bhuj

Morning we will visit different Banni Tribal Villages . The dwellings are made of round mud huts called `bhungas' with a single central support pole and a thatched or tiled roof, all surrounding a large community courtyard. The women tend to be shy with male visitors, but are hospitable and will welcome you into their homes.

They have exquisite personal collections of embroidered quilts and garments. Walls, shelves, grain containers and cupboards are fashioned in mud with decorative designs washed with lime paste and embedded with mirrors which throw back hundreds of shimmering reflections. You will also see a variety of handicrafts, including textiles like tie and dye, vegetables color dye printing, `Rogan' art, glass bead work, woollen shawls, leather articles and more.

We will also drive to Sumarsar village, famous for Scoof Embroidery done by the Harijan Community. Nirona Village has `Rogan' art & bell making by the Muslim Community. Lace is also produced by the Harijan Community. Later, drive on to Mundra Village, to see the making of sheep wool, including wax printing. Evening at leisure. B

Day 06 : Bhuj - Bhujodi - Zainabad ( By road - 7 hours drive )

Morning visit the nomadic Rabari embroiders and weavers of woolen blankets in Bhujodi Village. Later drive for 7 hours to Zainabad. On arrival check-into a unique ethnic camp, the Desert Coursers Camp Zainabad - with huts built like that of the colorful tribal villages in this area.

This western part of Gujarat state has unique barren salt flats known as the Rann of Kutch. During the monsoons this area is flooded with seawater and once this water recedes, this vast land is covered with salt as far as the eye can see. In the winter months (November to February), this area forms a good breeding ground for flamingoes and pelicans. The famous Indian Wild Ass live here in abundance and the isolation from the outside world has helped the local Kutchhi people preserve their customs and traditions more than any other part of the state. B L D

Day 07 : Zainabad

Morning full day excursion, traveling deep into the Rann of Kutch, observing the local Kutchhi tribes and wildlife which includes a thriving population of Wild Asses, Indian foxes, jackals and birds like the houbara bustard, sandgrouse, quails, eagles and falcons just to name a few. Desert Coursers. B L D

Day 08 : Zainabad - Chitra Vichitra - Mt. Abu ( By Road - 6 hours drive )

After breakfast, a drive of about 200 kms (4 hours brings us to Chitra Vichitra Fair. We halt here for couple of hours and proceed for Mt Abu ( 50 kms - 2 hrs). En route we will also visit the Poshina Tribal area and see 'Patola Weaving' in the Patan area. Patola is coloured silk thread weaving in double Ikat i.e. for fabric where the warp and weft threads are woven into intricate multi-coloured designs. In Mt. Abu, Check in to the Cama Rajputana Resort. B

Chitra Vichitra Fair: This fair takes place in the village of Gunbhakhari in Sabarkantha district, very near the borders of Rajasthan. It is held a fortnight after the Holi festival. The fair site is attractive, as the temple, which is its focus, overlooks the river Sabarmati, Akul and Vyakul. It is one of the largest purely adivasi fairs of the border region and attracts large numbers of Bhils who come from all the surrounding districts using every imaginable form of transport.

Day 09 : Mt. Abu - Ranakpur - Udaipur ( By Road - 4 hours drive )

After breakfast visit the beautiful Dilwara temples of Mt. Abu, and drive on to Ranakpur, the fabulous 500 year old Jain Temples. The temples are superbly preserved in near perfect condition. The most distinctive feature are the 29 halls of the main temple, some octagonal and many more than one story high, each dissected by 1444 pillars, each sculpted with unique designs, of which no two are the exactly alike. The carvings are on the walls, while musicians and dancers have been modeled out of brackets between the pillars and the ceiling.

After the sightseeing of Ranakpur drive to Udaipur. This lake city is perhaps the most romantic of all the Indian centers. A fairytale collection of exotic gardens, mirror-calm lakes and fantasy island palaces. In Udaipur, check in to The Trident Hotel. Late afternoon, we have a boat ride around the fabulous Lake Pichola, which will include a visit to another island palace called the Jagmandir. B

Day 10 : Udaipur - Jaipur ( By Flight CD 7492 - 1955 hrs / 2035 hrs )

After breakfast, followed by a half day city tour of Udaipur includes the City Palace, Saheliyon-ki-Bari (Garden where women of the royal household would meet) and the Jagdish Temple (Built in 1651 AD by Maharana Jagat Singh, this Indo-Aryan temple is the most beautiful temple of Udaipur). Evening transfer to the airport to fly to Jaipur, the beautiful pink city almost totally built in shimmering pink sandstone, you will be met and transferred to The Trident Hotel.

Day 11

Jaipur : Morning photo-stop at the honey-comb designed Hawa Mahal also known as the " Palace of Wind " from where the royal ladies, who lived in seclusion, observed life on the outside. Later visit the fairy tale like Amer Fort, as you ascend the hill like a Maharaja on the back of an Elephant. This is followed by visits to the City Palace of the Jaipur Maharaja and the amazingly accurate Jantar Mantar, the medieval stone Observatory. Afternoon, visit a hand knotted carpet weaving unit - where wool is colored in vegetable dyes, making each carpet only one of a kind. We will also see a hand block printing on cotton fabric demonstration. B

Day 12 : Jaipur - Fatehpur Sikri - Agra ( By Road - 6 hours drive )

After breakfast, a 06 hours drive through the vast farmlands of Uttar Pradesh State. En route we will visit the Ghost Capital of the Mughal Emperor Akbar Fatehpur Sikri, built entirely of red sandstone and now declared as a World Heritage Monument. In Agra, Check in to The Trident Hotel. Afternoon visit the fabulous Taj Mahal : Symbol of eternal love and one of the "Wonder of the World" and the Agra Fort, standing testimony in red sandstone to the story of the Great Mughals . B

Day 13 : Agra - Sikandra - Delhi ( By Road - 5 hours drive )

Morning depart for Delhi. En route visit Sikandra, 10 kms from Agra, to see the Mausoleum of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. This building has an excellent Muslim architecture, which is very visible in subsequent Mughal buildings, including the Taj Mahal. In Delhi, Check in to The Park Hotel. Later drive down one of the largest bazaars of Delhi, Lajpat Nagar with its assortment of shops or to the Hauz Khas Village with its line up of fashionable boutiques. B

Day 14 : Delhi Departure

After breakfast full day city tour of Old & New Delhi which including Raj Ghat (Mahatma Gandhi's Memorial), the Jama Masjid (Universal Mosque), the Red Fort and to fabled Chandni Chowk (Silver Street) covering the spice market, Gold / Silversmith market on rickshaws (tri-cycles) through the bylanes. Afternoon city tour of New Delhi which includes the Qutab Minar, Emperor Humayun's Tomb, the Houses of Parliament and the Presidential Palace. Also visit the National Museum, having a good collection of Indian bronzes stone & wood sculptures dating back to the (2 nd and 3rd Century BC). This museum also has a fine collection of tribal costumes. This evening enjoy a Farewell Dinner hosted by "INDIA EXCLUSIVE TOURS".