As the winter season would be setting in Northern India shortly, planning a trip to Rajasthan is just the right time. I am receiving a lot of messages from people across the globe who would be interested in knowing the key attractions between Udaipur and Jodhpur highway (guess it is in demand 😉 ) and so I decided to write this guide which I hope will be useful for my readers, incase they are planning a road trip from Jodhpur to Udaipur or vice versa

For the love of road trips, I took to Jodhpur- Udaipur highway 4 years ago, to celebrate New Year with my family and I must confess it is one of the most scenic highways I have ever travelled on.

Rajasthan highways are popular for the scenic drives but incase you are not comfortable with the entire road tripping, I would suggest to atleast drive one way. I assure that you won’t regret it.

Here are my 5 top picks which you can visit while road tripping between Jodhpur-Udaipur highway:

‘Om’ Bullet Baba temple: The temple of bullet baba near Jodhpur is a legend where the god is a 350cc Royal Enfield ‘deity’.

The place is dedicated to a person called Om banna who died in a road accident during the 90’s. It is believed that the motorbike, which is currently placed at the temple, kept disappearing from the police station everyday, when it was kept under the custody.

The next day, locals would spot the bike at the same spot where Om Banna died. The news spread like a fire and soon people heard miracle stories of spotting a person on a bike to help them and disappearing suddenly. Thereon, the locals started worshipping the bike. Infact, almost every taxi and truck will have a picture of Om Banna in the vehicle. It’s a norm to pay homage at the temple, if you travelling through Pali-Jodhpur highway to avoid accidents. Sometimes the people offer beer at this temple.

Ranakpur Temple: Ranakpur temple is located at a distance of 90 kms from Udaipur in the Pali district of Rajasthan. This temple is pretty much known for its detailed intricate and fabulous architecture with which the temples are built.

The main temple of Ranakpur is said to be built by Seth Dharna Sah (a Jain businessman) with the help of Rana Kumbha, who ruled Mewar during the 15th century from where Ranakpur got its name. There are more than 1400 pillars to support the temple, which are beautifully designed with an eye-gazing work on the carvings.

The temple complex includes Parsavanath temple, Amba Mata Temple, Surya Temple, Chaumukha Temple being the main one. This temple is four-faced which is dedicated to the first Tirthankara of Jain’s, Lord Adinath. Parsavanath temple is another attraction worth visiting.

Haldighati: Located at a distance of 40 Kms from Udaipur, Haldighati holds an important historical relevance. 

It is yellow colored (Haldi- Turmeric and Ghati- Valley) mountain pass which connect the two district of Rajasthan namely Rajsamand and Pali.

Haldighati secretly preserves the memories of heroic battle of 1576 between Rana Pratap Singh of Mewar and Raja Man Singh of Amber. More so because it was at the same place that the loyal and fearless horse of Maharana Pratap, Chetak breathed his last after he rode his master to a safer place few kilometers away. A cenotaph (chattri) built in pure white marble is dedicated to Chetak as a sign of respect, where he is said to buried by Pratap. Around 20 minutes walk from cenotaph, a museum has been built which premieres the heroic life of Maharana Pratap  in a short 20 mins animated movie followed by a walk of 10 mins into the museum, where the guide will take your through certain significant incidents of Maharana’s life.

You can visit Balicha village famous for terracotta crafts and Badshahi Bagh renowned for ‘Chaitri-Gulab’.

Dilwara Temple: The Jain Dilwara temple complex is located 2.5 km from the Mount Abu town centre. It is a major sacred pilgrimage site for Jains worldwide and is Mount Abu’s most popular attraction. The temple complex is set in beautiful surroundings of mango trees and wooded hills – a walk around the complex is worth it. The Dilwara temple predates the town of Mount Abu by several centuries and was built when this site was just a remote mountain area. The complex contains five Jain temples which are known worldwide for their superb marble carvings. Vimal Vasahi and Luna Vasahi temples are the most famous among the five Jain Dilwara temples. It is believed that the artisans were paid according to the amount of dust they collected, encouraging them to carve ever more intricately

P.S. : I have no photograph of Dilwara Temple as the photography is not allowed here 🙂

Kumbhalgarh Fort: Kumbhalgarh Fort is the 2^nd largest fort of Rajasthan after Chittorgarh which is located at a distance of 64 Kms from Udaipur. Its construction is attributed to Rana Kumbha of 1443-1458 A.D. under the supervision of famous architect Mandan, on the site of an older castle which traditionally belonged to Samprati, a Jaina prince of 2^nd century BC.

Kumbhalgarh has 10 gates with several temples devoted to Hindu and Jain pantheon including Ganesha temple, Neelkanth Mahadev temple, Vedi temple, Parsavnath temple, Bawan Deori, Pitalia dev temple, Mamadev temple, Golerao group of temples and Jain temples.

The other monument within the fort includes Badal Mahal, Kumbha Mahal, Birth Place of Maharana Pratap, reservoirs and step wells. The whole fort is encircled by a strong fortification wall having perimeter of about 10 km. with 5 m width abutting wall on the inner side of the fortification supported by a series of round bastions. Kumbhalgarh is the great wall of China of India

So when are the roads of Rajasthan calling you? 🙂

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