How we pace a day in Ajmer
The dargah's two best hours: calmest soon after the gates open, most moving after sunset, when the lamps are lit and the qawwals begin.
Monuments in the morning: they are best in soft early light.
- Early morning
- The dargah, soon after it opens
- Mid-morning
- Monuments in soft light
- Midday
- Museum, Soniji ki Nasiyan, then rest
- Sunset
- Ana Sagar
- After dark
- Lamp-lighting and qawwali
- Indoors at midday: the museum in Akbar's fort and the golden hall of Soniji ki Nasiyan are perfect for the hot middle of the day.
- A long rest: lunch and a pause between, ideally at a Pushkar resort with a pool or a lakeside terrace in Kishangarh.
- The week: Thursday evenings bring the most intense qawwali and densest crowds, and Friday middays fill the mosques for congregational prayer.
- The year: the Urs and the Pushkar fair transform the whole district. Our guide to the best time to visit Ajmer explains, and our Ajmer travel guide tells the history behind each stop.
- Where you sleep: Ajmer has few hotels our guests would call luxurious, so we usually base you in Pushkar, about fifteen kilometres over Nag Pahar, or Kishangarh, about thirty kilometres north-east.
- Honest advice: our guide to luxury hotels in Ajmer explains the choice.
One day in Ajmer
Early morning, the dargah and the degs
Arrive: soon after it opens, head covered, shoes left at a stall outside and almost nothing in your pockets.
- Walk in slowly: through the Nizam Gate and the Buland Darwaza.
- The degs: pause by the great cauldrons given by Akbar and Jahangir, and if the cooks are at work, watch them stir the sweet rice with long paddles.
- At the tomb: offer rose petals, tie a thread if you wish, and spend a few quiet minutes in the courtyard. Our page on Ajmer Sharif Dargah explains what you are seeing.
Mid-morning, the mosque of two and a half days
Five minutes uphill: Adhai Din ka Jhonpra, begun in 1192 on the site of a Sanskrit college, while the light is still low on its screen of arches.
- Look closely: at the reused temple pillars, stacked to make tall columns. Our Adhai Din ka Jhonpra page tells its story.
- Breakfast: kadhi kachori and sweet tea at a busy counter, if you are adventurous, or a proper breakfast in the car on the way to the museum.
Late morning, Akbar's fort and the hall of gold
Akbar's fort: built in 1570, where Jahangir held court and received Sir Thomas Roe in 1616. Spend most of your time with the stone sculpture in its museum.
- Soniji ki Nasiyan: climb to the gallery above its gilded model of the Jain universe, a room that astonishes almost everyone.
- Why now: both are indoors, right for the hottest part of the day.
Afternoon, lunch and a long rest
Over the ridge: to your hotel in Pushkar, about half an hour, or Kishangarh, under an hour, for lunch and a rest through the heat.
- Not a luxury: this pause is what lets you enjoy the evening, the best part of the day.
- Glad of it: at seven in the evening, when the courtyards of the dargah fill with music.
Evening, Ana Sagar and the qawwali
On the way back: drive past the white marble main building of Mayo College.
- Sunset: walk along the Ana Sagar embankment to Shah Jahan's marble Baradari.
- The lamps: return to the dargah for the Dua-e-Roshni, the lamp-lighting prayer, and stay for an hour of qawwali.
- On the way out: a tin of sohan halwa, then home for a late dinner.
Two days, with Pushkar
Day one, Pushkar's lake and aarti
Arrive: in Pushkar by lunchtime from Jaipur or Jodhpur, check in and rest through the afternoon.
- Late afternoon: walk the ghats with a guide, shoes off as you step towards the water, and visit the temple of Brahma, one of the very few in India to the creator god.
- Sunset: a quiet step for the evening aarti, when lamps are circled and floated on the lake.
- Dinner: at your hotel. Our pages on Pushkar Lake and its ghats and the Brahma temple have the details.
Day two, Ajmer from dawn to dusk
Early: over the Nag Pahar ridge for the one-day plan: the dargah and degs at first light, Adhai Din ka Jhonpra, the museum and Soniji ki Nasiyan.
- Midday: back to Pushkar for lunch, a swim and a rest.
- Late afternoon: return to Ajmer for sunset at the Baradari, the lamp-lighting at the dargah and the qawwali, then home over the ridge.
- The whole point: the contrast between the aarti of the first night and the qawwali of the second.
Three days, adding Kishangarh
Day one, arrive in Pushkar
As in the two-day plan: arrive by lunch, rest, walk the ghats in the late afternoon and watch the aarti at sunset.
- After dark: wander the main bazaar for a hot malpua, the fried, syrup-soaked pancake that is Pushkar's signature sweet.
- Early night: tomorrow begins before sunrise, and the drive over the ridge in the blue light of dawn, with tea stalls lighting their stoves, is part of the experience.
Day two, Ajmer in full
The Ajmer day: as above.
- Add Taragarh: a morning drive up for the view from the old Chauhan fort and the shrine of Miran Sahib, with a stop at the Prithviraj Smarak on the way down.
- Evening: the lake and the qawwali.
Day three, Kishangarh's painters and lake
Drive: to Kishangarh, about an hour from Pushkar, after breakfast.
A painter's studio: watch pigments ground and fine outlines laid in the style of the eighteenth-century court that created Bani Thani.
- The marble yards: walk through one with someone in the trade.
- Phool Mahal Palace: check in on Gundolav lake for lunch and a rest, and at sunset sit on the terrace as the lake turns rose and silver.
- Next morning: a short drive to Kishangarh Airport, or under two hours to Jaipur.
Four days in Ajmer, Pushkar and beyond
Day one, Pushkar at sunset
- Keep it simple: arrive, rest and walk the ghats for the evening aarti. Pushkar at dusk needs no help.
- If you arrive early: an hour on your hotel terrace with tea, watching the light change on the Aravallis, is the best introduction to a slower pace.
Day two, Savitri hill and the bazaar
Before dawn: climb to the Savitri temple on its hill and watch the sun rise over the lake and dunes.
- Morning: malpua and lassi, then the bazaar for rose products and gulkand, the sweet preserve of rose petals.
- Afternoon: the spa or the pool.
- Dusk: a gentle drive into the dunes west of town. Our things to do in Pushkar page has more ideas.
Day three, Ajmer from dawn to dusk
- The full day: Taragarh in the morning, the dargah, Adhai Din ka Jhonpra, the museum and Soniji ki Nasiyan, a midday rest, and the lake and qawwali in the evening.
- Mayo College: for a particular interest in the history of the princes, we can request permission for a visit.
Day four, Kishangarh and Sambhar Lake
Morning: Kishangarh, for a painter's studio and the marble yards.
- Then north: to Sambhar Lake, India's largest inland salt lake, for a picnic lunch among the salt pans.
- In winter: look for flamingos in the shallows.
- Sunset: over the salt flats, then on to Jaipur, under two hours away, or back to Phool Mahal for the night.
Ajmer as a long day from Jaipur
- Leave
- About seven
- Drive
- About two and a half hours
- Optional stop
- Kishangarh, adds an hour
- Home
- After sunset, or after qawwali
Leave at seven, stop at Kishangarh or not
- Early start: tea and a breakfast box in the car on the fast highway west.
- Kishangarh: for painting or marble, a short stop adds an hour and a great deal of interest. Otherwise, drive straight to the old city.
Late morning to early afternoon, the essentials
- In order: the dargah, Adhai Din ka Jhonpra, the museum in Akbar's fort and Soniji ki Nasiyan.
- Lunch: at a hotel rather than in the bazaar, with an hour's rest in its garden if you can.
Late afternoon, the lake and home
Sunset: walk to the Baradari on Ana Sagar and leave after sunset, back in Jaipur for a late dinner.
- Or stay: for the lamp-lighting and qawwali, and drive home in the dark.
- Long days, safely: our guide to road distances and drive times explains how we plan them.
Ajmer during the Pushkar fair
The district fills: trains into Ajmer Junction are full of pilgrims, the road over Nag Pahar is slow, and every good room is taken.
Earlier at the dargah: we still go, but before the fair traffic builds.
- When
- Kartik, usually October or November
- Trains
- Full of pilgrims
- Nag Pahar road
- Slow
- Fair-first trips
- Three days fair, one morning Ajmer
- Afternoon at the fair: back to Pushkar for the fairground, when the camel trading is most photogenic.
- The evening: Ajmer's qawwali may give way to the fair's own music and lights.
- If the fair is the point: a luxury camp or a Pushkar resort, three days for the fair and one morning for Ajmer.
- If not: move your Ajmer days a week or two either side.
- Read more: our Pushkar fair guide explains the days of the fair, from the trading to the full moon bath.
Adjusting the plan by season
In the cool months
November to February: you can be more relaxed and start the dargah a little later, after a proper breakfast.
- Midday: use the warm hours for Taragarh or a walk in the old railway quarter.
- Evening: a warm layer for the lake and the drive back over the ridge after the qawwali.
In the hot months
April to June: start at first light and be back at your hotel by eleven.
- Socks: essential, because the dargah marble burns bare feet by mid-morning.
- Afternoons: the pool, then out only after five. Sunset at Ana Sagar and the qawwali become the main event.
In the monsoon
July to September: carry an umbrella and washable sandals, and keep plans flexible.
- Short showers: heavy ones usually pass within an hour, and the green hills and full lake make up for any delay.
- Taragarh after rain: beautiful, when the air is clear and the city washed clean.
Eating along the way
Ajmer mornings: kadhi kachori and sweet tea at a busy counter, or something lighter in the car.
Lunch: best at your hotel, eaten slowly in the shade.
- Ajmer breakfast
- Kadhi kachori and sweet tea
- Lunch
- At your hotel, in the shade
- Ajmer evening
- Biryani, kebabs, sheermal
- Pushkar
- Strictly vegetarian
- Kishangarh dinner
- Dal baati, ker sangri
- After the qawwali: the lanes of the dargah quarter serve biryani, kebabs and sheermal bread, the only meals on these itineraries where meat is easy to find.
- Pushkar mornings: a hot malpua in the main bazaar.
- Pushkar lunch: a Rajasthani thali of dal, kadhi, seasonal vegetables and bajra roti.
- Pushkar afternoons: rose-flavoured lassi.
- In Kishangarh: ask Phool Mahal's kitchen for dal baati and ker sangri, the dish of desert beans and berries.
- Read more: our Rajasthani food guide and our food of Pushkar page.
Where Ajmer fits in a longer journey
Between Jaipur and Jodhpur: leave the Pink City after breakfast, stop at Kishangarh or Sambhar, spend two nights in Pushkar with a day in Ajmer, then continue west to Jodhpur.
Our spine: this is the heart of our Royal Rajputana journey and many ten-day and two-week plans.
- From Jaipur
- About two and a half hours
- To Jodhpur
- About four hours from Pushkar
- Kishangarh Airport
- About 27 km, flights to Delhi
- Ajmer Junction
- Fast trains to Jaipur and Delhi
- For faith and sacred architecture: Ajmer and Pushkar open our Sacred Rajasthan journey, which continues to Nathdwara, home of Shrinathji, and the marble temple of Ranakpur.
- In Kartik: the Pushkar Camel Fair journey builds the trip around the fair, with a day in Ajmer as a counterpoint to the camels.
- A gateway: Kishangarh Airport has flights to Delhi and a few other cities, and Ajmer Junction has fast trains.
- Short of time: arrive by train or plane, spend two nights in Pushkar and leave the same way. Our guide to trains in Rajasthan explains the options.
Variations for different travellers
For families
The dargah: early, when crowds are thinner, and short. Children are usually fascinated by the giant degs.
Hot hours: at a Pushkar resort with a pool.
- Evening: a boat on Ana Sagar, and sweets chosen by the children at a bazaar shop.
- A hit with all ages: the golden hall at Soniji ki Nasiyan.
- Qawwali: skip it with very young children, or watch a little from the edge of the courtyard. Our page on travelling with children has more.
For couples
Where: a villa at a Pushkar resort, with one night at the lake to wake to the bells of the ghats.
- Evenings: sunset at the Baradari, the qawwali after dark and a late dinner on a terrace.
- A third day: a night at Phool Mahal in Kishangarh, quiet, old-fashioned and romantic.
For repeat visitors
Go deeper: a conversation with someone from a family of khadims about the shrine's traditions, or a morning with the museum's sculpture.
- The railway quarter: drive it with a guide who knows its history.
- Barefoot College: at Tilonia, in the Ajmer countryside, it has trained rural women and men as solar engineers and craftspeople since 1972.
- Evening: choose a quieter night for qawwali and listen properly.
For pilgrims and the Urs
Plan differently: stay as close to Ajmer as comfort allows, and expect roads to be closed or jammed.
- A guide who knows: the crowds and the routes open that day.
- Pace: visit at the hours your guide suggests, rest often and keep the rest of the programme light. Our page on the Urs at Ajmer Sharif explains what to expect.
For older travellers
The walk: short but crowded from the car to the dargah gate, with much standing on hard marble.
- Our plan: a single well-timed visit, the car to the nearest permitted point, and a hotel with level paths and ground-floor rooms.
- Steps: the museum and Soniji ki Nasiyan both have them, and our guide will point them out in advance.
Swaps and add-ons
Nareli at dusk: on the Jaipur road out of the city, a modern complex of Jain shrines in pale stone climbs a rocky hillside and glows gold in the evening light, a calm antidote to the old city.
Foy Sagar instead of the crowds: a smaller lake on the western edge of the city, built as a famine relief work, quieter than Ana Sagar and framed by hills. We like it with a flask of tea.
- Calm at dusk
- Nareli Jain temples
- Quiet lake
- Foy Sagar, built 1892
- Shady garden
- Daulat Bagh
- With children
- A boat on Ana Sagar
- Daulat Bagh: the garden Jahangir laid out below the Ana Sagar embankment, shady and pleasant, popular with families and morning walkers.
- A boat on Ana Sagar: boats go out in the evenings, and after a strong monsoon the lake is wide and full. Simple and old-fashioned, which is why children enjoy it.
- Ramadan evenings: if your dates fall in Ramadan, walk the dargah lanes after the fast is broken, when the food stalls stay open late.
- The Prithviraj Smarak: a modern memorial with a statue of the king on horseback, where Ajmer families bring children to hear his story.
Practical notes for every itinerary
Head and feet: carry a scarf or cap for the dargah, and wear shoes you can slip off in a second. Socks help on hot or cold marble.
Leave in the car: bags, cameras and valuables. Photography is not allowed inside the tomb, and the crowds attract pickpockets.
- Donations: agree any donation before a ritual at the dargah, or let our guide handle it quietly.
- Meat and alcohol: keep them for Ajmer or your hotel. Pushkar is a vegetarian holy town.
- Timing: avoid Friday middays, and come on Thursday evening only for the most intense qawwali and the crowds that come with it.
- The ridge: allow about half an hour between Ajmer and Pushkar, more at fair time.
- In the car: a flask of water and a light snack. Our guide to health and safety in Rajasthan has more.
