Sawai Jai Singh II moved his capital off the hill in 1727 and laid out a city by treatise — wide avenues, walled blocks, and an observatory in the middle of it.
1592
Amber
The Kachwaha capital in the hills.
1727
Jaipur founded
A grid city on the plain below.
1734
Jantar Mantar
Masonry instruments for the sky.
1876
Pink city
Painted terracotta for a royal visit.
On Makar Sankranti the sky over the old city fills with kites, a pastime the Jaipur court is said to have patronized. For weeks beforehand the bazaar lanes near Hawa Mahal are stacked with kites and spools of manja string.
Held on 14 January (occasionally the 15th). Book a rooftop guesthouse or café in the old city; the day ends with paper lanterns and fireworks. The glass-coated manja cuts hands, so wear gloves if you join in.
4 hrs
Two women's festivals the former royal household still leads. At Gangaur in spring and Teej in the monsoon, an image of the goddess Parvati is carried out of the City Palace's Zenani Deodhi and through Tripolia Bazaar with palanquins, elephants, camels and folk musicians.
Gangaur falls in March or April, Teej in July or August; check the year's dates. Processions leave in the late afternoon — find a spot on Tripolia Bazaar early, or a terrace above it.
2 hrs
Following the nine blocks of the 1727 plan, each gate and bazaar assigned to a trade that in places still holds it.
Start at Sanganeri Gate in the early morning, before the traffic.
2 hrs
From the 1799 Hawa Mahal through Tripolia Bazaar, trading for nearly 300 years, to the City Palace gates.
Look up at the balconies and the temple facades above the shopfronts.
2 hrs
The lac-bangle makers' lane, where bangles are heated, shaped and set with glass in open shopfronts.
You can have a set made to fit while you wait.
45 min
The ramparts of the 1734 hill fort, walked for the clearest view of how deliberately the grid below was drawn.
Walk the wall from Nahargarh towards Jaigarh in the cool of the afternoon.
2 hrs
Two block-printing towns outside Jaipur where families still print cotton by hand with carved wooden blocks and natural dyes.
Visit a workshop on a weekday morning; Anokhi and local cooperatives can arrange visits.
Half day