Things to do
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Jaswant Thada
Thin sheets of white marble face this royal cenotaph, built in 1899 for Maharaja Jaswant Singh the second and still the cremation memorial ground of the Rathore rulers. It stands above a small lake a short walk downhill from Mehrangarh, with terraces that look straight back at the fort walls. Forty minutes is enough, though the marble takes late light and holds visitors longer.
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Mandore Gardens
Nine kilometres north of the modern city stands the old Marwar capital, left behind when Rao Jodha shifted his seat in the fifteenth century. Red sandstone cenotaphs of Jodhpur's rulers fill the gardens, built in the form of temples, and a rock face nearby carries the painted figures of the Hall of Heroes. Entry is free and langurs are resident, so food is best kept out of sight.
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Mehrangarh Fort
Rao Jodha began the fort in 1459, on a rock escarpment standing about one hundred and twenty metres above the blue houses of the old town. Ramparts enclose a museum of Marwar palanquins, howdahs and miniature painting, with decorated apartments opening off linked courtyards. Half a day is realistic, and the approach ramp is steep in desert heat.
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Umaid Bhawan Palace
Completed in 1943 after fifteen years of famine relief work, the sandstone palace was raised in interlocking blocks laid without mortar, to a design by Henry Vaughan Lanchester. Part of it is still a royal residence and part a hotel, so visitors who are not staying see the museum wing, with its vintage cars and clocks. That wing takes about an hour, and the gardens are in view from it.
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Toorji Ka Jhalra
Maharani Toorji, queen consort of Maharaja Abhay Singh, had this stepwell cut in the 1740s, and its symmetrical flights of Jodhpur sandstone drop seven storeys to the water. Debris and disuse buried it for generations until a recent clearance reopened the steps. Cafes and shops now ring the rim, which makes it one of the easier sights to reach on foot from the old town.
