14 Best Places to Visit in Udaipur, Ranked with Practical Tips

Mewar's Sisodia rulers built the palace from 1559 onwards, adding to it for about four centuries. Its facade runs roughly 244 metres along the east bank of Lake Pichola, and it is generally considered the largest palace of its kind in Rajasthan. Inside are the Mor Chowk with its glass-mosaic peacocks, the Badi Mahal courtyard garden raised on a natural rock, the zenana galleries, and balconies that hang over the water. If you see one thing in Udaipur, make it this.

• Time needed: 2.5 to 3 hours.
• Tip: The museum is open 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, ticket sales stop at 4:45 pm, and the adult ticket for Indians is ₹300. Go at opening, before the tour groups, and take the audio guide. If you want to land on Jag Mandir, the boats leave from Rameshwar Ghat inside the palace complex, so book that ride straight after your visit while you still hold the ticket.

The lake the whole old town faces, with the City Palace along one shore, the Lake Palace and Jag Mandir on islands, and stepped ghats such as Gangaur Ghat and Lal Ghat on the old-town side. A walk along the ghats followed by time on the water is the classic Udaipur hour.

There are two kinds of boat, and the difference matters:

• Public boats from Lal Ghat: short rides of about 25 minutes, recently listed at around ₹250 per person. They pass the Lake Palace and Jag Mandir but do not land on either island.
• HRH boats from Rameshwar Ghat (inside the City Palace complex): these stop at Jag Mandir. The published tariff is ₹600 per adult for the regular excursion and ₹800 for the sunset one, and you need a City Palace ticket to reach the jetty.

• Time needed: 1 to 2 hours, including the ghat walk.
• Tip: The hour before sunset is the best light, so it fills up first. Sunset is around 5:45 to 6 pm from November to January and closer to 6:30 pm in late September and February.

Rana Kumbha's 15th-century hill fort, whose wall runs for about 36 km over the ridges, one of the longest continuous walls in the world. Inside are seven fortified gateways, more than 360 Jain and Hindu temples, and the Badal Mahal at the highest point, with the wall snaking away below. It is also known as the birthplace of Maharana Pratap.

• Time needed: 2.5 to 3 hours at the fort, plus roughly 2 to 2.5 hours each way by road (85 to 100 km, depending on the route).
• Tip: The climb to the Badal Mahal is steep. Wear proper shoes, carry water, and visit Kumbhalgarh in the morning so you reach Ranakpur after it opens to non-Jain visitors at noon.

The 15th-century Chaturmukha temple dedicated to Adinatha, set in a forested valley about 90 to 95 km from Udaipur and about 50 km from Kumbhalgarh. Its halls stand on 1,444 individually carved marble pillars, no two alike, under carved domed ceilings. It is one of the most beautiful buildings in India.

• Time needed: 1 to 1.5 hours.
• Tip: Non-Jain visitors are admitted from 12 noon to 5 pm. Entry is free, but there is a small camera or phone fee. Leather items, including belts and wallets, are not allowed inside, and legs and shoulders must be covered.

Maharana Sajjan Singh began this palace in 1884 on Bansdara peak, about 5 km west of the city and some 944 metres above sea level. He planned a nine-storey astronomical centre, but he died young, and it was finished on a smaller scale as a monsoon palace and hunting lodge. The building is modest. You come for the view over the lakes, the white city and the Aravallis, reached by a road through Sajjangarh Wildlife Sanctuary.

• Time needed: 1.5 to 2 hours, including the drive up.
• Tip: The gate closes around 6 pm, with last entry around 5:30 pm. Recent listings put entry at about ₹110 to ₹120 for Indians, plus about ₹100 per seat for the shared jeep from the gate. From November to January the sun sets before closing time. In late September, October and February, plan for late-afternoon light rather than the sunset itself.

An 18th-century mansion on Gangaur Ghat, built for Amarchand Badwa, who was Mewar's prime minister from 1751 to 1778. By day it is a museum of rooms, costumes and balconies over the lake. In the evening its courtyard hosts Dharohar, an hour-long programme of Rajasthani folk dance and puppetry that starts at 7 pm. It is the best staged cultural evening in the old town.

• Time needed: About an hour for the museum, and an hour for the show.
• Tip: Tickets are cheap (recently listed at about ₹125 for Indian adults, with a camera fee extra), and seats go to whoever arrives first, so be there 30 to 45 minutes early.

A small ghat on the west bank, directly across the water from the City Palace. From here you see the palace, the old town and the Lake Palace in one frame. It is the classic Udaipur view.

• Time needed: 30 to 45 minutes.
• Tip: Come at first light, when the water is stillest and the ghat is quiet. Sunrise is around 6:30 am in October and closer to 7 am or later from December to February.

Maharana Jagat Singh I built this temple in 1651, a short walk from the City Palace. A brass Garuda faces the shrine at the top of the marble steps, and inside is a four-armed Jagannath carved from a single black stone. The plinth and walls are covered in carving, including elephant friezes.

• Time needed: 30 minutes.
• Tip: Visit early, on your way to the palace's 9:30 am opening. Leave your shoes outside and dress modestly, as this is an active temple.

The island palace in the south of Lake Pichola, built in yellow sandstone and marble, with eight carved stone elephants at its entrance pavilion facing the Lake Palace. In 1623 the future emperor Shah Jahan sheltered here as a rebel prince. Today it has gardens and a restaurant in the Darikhana pavilion.

• Time needed: 1 to 1.5 hours, including the boat.
• Tip: Only the HRH boats from Rameshwar Ghat land here. You need a City Palace ticket to reach the jetty, on top of the boat fare (₹600 regular, ₹800 sunset on the published tariff). The tariff lists regular departures until about 2 pm in winter and sunset departures until about 5 pm in winter. Confirm current rates at the jetty, because the published tariff covered April 2025 to March 2026.

Eklingji, about 22 km north of the city, is a walled complex of 108 shrines and the family deity of Mewar's rulers, still in worship. Nearby Nagda has the 10th-century Sahasra Bahu (Saas-Bahu) temples, a carved pair that sees far fewer visitors.

• Time needed: 2 to 3 hours for the round trip.
• Tip: Both lie north of the city, so they make an easy half-day by auto or taxi, or a short stop on the way towards Kumbhalgarh.

Maharana Raj Singh I built this reservoir in the 17th century, about 12 km from Udaipur, and named it Jiyan Sagar after his mother. Its embankment carries three chhatris, and the Bahubali Hills nearby give a short walk up to a view over the water. It is greener and much quieter than Pichola.

• Time needed: About 2 hours.
• Tip: Go early morning or late afternoon, by scooter or taxi, as there is little public transport.

Mewar's original capital, on a plateau about 115 km east of Udaipur (2 to 2.5 hours by road). It holds the Vijay Stambh and Kirti Stambh towers, Rana Kumbha's palace ruins and Padmini's palace.

• Time needed: A full day trip, or half a day if you stop on the drive between Udaipur and Delhi or Jaipur on NH48.
• Tip: The fort is large and spread out. Hire an auto or use your own vehicle to move between the sights on top.

Udaipur's second lake, north of Pichola, with a long promenade where much of the city walks in the evening.

• Time needed: 1 hour.
• Tip: Treat it as an evening stroll with a snack from the stalls. Saheliyon ki Bari, the fountain garden, is close by if you want to pair the two.

A hilltop temple on Machla Magra above Doodh Talai, reached by a short ropeway from Deendayal Upadhyay Park. The top looks over Pichola and the City Palace.

• Time needed: About 1 hour.
• Tip: It is closer to the old town than the Monsoon Palace, so it suits a short evening when you have no time for the sanctuary drive.

• Saheliyon ki Bari: a pleasant fountain garden. Give it 20 to 30 minutes if you are already at Fateh Sagar.
• The Crystal Gallery at the City Palace: only if you have a real interest in crystal furniture.
• Shilpgram: a crafts village that is much livelier during its winter fair than the rest of the year.
• The Lake Palace: a hotel, best seen from a boat or from Ambrai Ghat.
• Painting "schools" that end in a sales pitch: watch the demonstration, and buy only if you want to.

Two days cover the City Palace, the lake, Dharohar and either Kumbhalgarh or the Monsoon Palace. This 2-day Udaipur itinerary lays out a train-friendly plan. Three to four days let you add the full Kumbhalgarh and Ranakpur loop and Badi Lake without rushing; the Udaipur 3-day itinerary is a good base. September to February is the best window, and the best time to visit Udaipur guide explains how the months differ. For tickets, boats and stays, see the Udaipur trip cost breakdown. Getting there and where to stay are covered in the Udaipur destination guide, and the trip planner will build the route around your dates.