Jaipur's four seasons, in a sentence each
Where Jaipur sits: on a semi-arid plain at the eastern edge of the Thar, ringed by the low Aravalli hills, at around 430 metres above the sea.
A climate of big swings: hot days and cold nights in winter, fierce heat in early summer, a short and patchy monsoon, and a glorious autumn when everything has just been washed clean.
Winter, November to February: the classic season. Days are sunny and warm, often in the low to mid twenties, and mornings can be properly cold in December and January.
- Winter
- November to February, sunny, cold dawns
- Spring
- March, warming fast, Holi and Gangaur
- Summer
- April to June, often above 40°C
- Monsoon
- Early July to mid-September
- Autumn
- October, clear skies, festivals begin
- Altitude
- Around 430 metres
- Spring, March: warms quickly and brings Holi and Gangaur.
- Summer, April to June: hot and dry, with temperatures that regularly pass 40°C and dusty winds before the rain.
- Monsoon, early July to mid-September: short heavy showers, humidity and a sudden green.
- Then October: the rains are gone, the sky is clear, and the festival season begins.
- For long days of sightseeing: choose November to February.
- For calm, space and lower rates: consider September, early October or March.
- For colour and celebration: plan around a festival.
- The wider picture: our guide to the best time to visit Rajasthan sets Jaipur against the rest of the state, and our weather and climate guide covers the desert's moods.
Jaipur through the year, month by month
- Most comfortable
- February and November
- Festive peaks
- January kites, Holi, Teej, Diwali
- Hottest
- May
- Wettest
- August, usually
- Best value
- The monsoon months and September
January, kites and cold mornings
Weather: Jaipur's coldest month. Days are sunny and pleasant, usually around twenty degrees, but dawn at Amber can be close to freezing.
Pack: a down jacket or a heavy shawl for the early starts.
- Travel note: fog sometimes slows the drive from Delhi and delays morning flights.
- Kites on 14 January: the whole city celebrates Makar Sankranti from its rooftops, and the sky over the walled city is unforgettable.
- Later in the month: the Jaipur Literature Festival brings writers and readers from around the world, and the polo season is in full swing.
- Crowds: high wedding season too, so January is busy and expensive. Book early. It is one of our favourite months all the same.
February, the perfect month
Weather: the most comfortable of the year. Mornings are crisp rather than cold, afternoons are warm.
The light: honey-gold in the evening on Nahargarh.
- The country: mustard fields around Amber and Samode turn yellow, and palace hotel gardens are in bloom.
- Festivals: Basant Panchami, the festival of spring, sometimes falls in late January or in February, and the city wears yellow. Polo continues.
- Crowds: steady but less intense than at New Year.
- Our pick: our first choice for flexible guests who want to see everything in comfort. See Rajasthan in February.
March, Holi and the first heat
Weather: days warm fast, into the low thirties by month's end, though mornings and evenings stay lovely.
Holi: the festival of colours falls in late February or March, on the full moon of the month of Phalgun. In the walled city it is wild and joyful.
- How we celebrate: usually inside a hotel or a family courtyard, where the colours are gentle and the sweets are homemade.
- Gangaur: the women's festival of the goddess Gauri begins the day after Holi and lasts about eighteen days, ending with a royal procession from the City Palace through Tripolia Gate. It sometimes falls in early April.
- Rates: slightly lower than in winter, and a fine month to visit.
April, the season turns
Weather: serious heat, with afternoons in the high thirties and sometimes over forty.
Crowds and rates: crowds thin, rates drop, and the palace hotels feel spacious and calm.
- Gangaur: if it falls in early April, you'll see the procession and the women of the city in their finest.
- How we plan the day: a fort at opening time, back by eleven, lunch and the pool, then a late-afternoon City Palace tour or the bazaars as the heat eases.
- Good for: travellers who don't mind warmth and love having places to themselves.
May, the hottest days
Weather: Jaipur's hottest month, often reaching the mid-forties in the afternoon, with hot winds called loo blowing off the desert.
How locals live: indoors through the middle of the day, with buttermilk and mangoes, out again after dark.
- Our view: not a month we suggest for a first visit.
- If you must come: choose a resort with deep shade and a large pool, such as The Oberoi Rajvilas, see the sights only at dawn, and save evenings for rooftop dinners.
- Rates: at their lowest. Our piece on summer in Rajasthan has more tips for the heat.
June, waiting for the rain
Weather: early June is still very hot, often with evening dust storms that turn the sky orange.
- The first rain: usually towards month's end, pre-monsoon showers arrive and the whole city goes out to stand in them.
- A family memory: the smell of first rain on hot earth, which our grandmother called the scent of the desert breathing, is one of the great pleasures of a Jaipur year.
- Crowds: a quiet month for tourism. The end of June rewards those who love empty monuments and don't mind heat.
July, the green arrives
Weather: the monsoon usually settles in early July, with short heavy bursts, often in the afternoon, and bright hours between.
Temperatures: fall into the low to mid thirties, though humidity rises.
- The change: within days the bare Aravallis turn green, Maota Lake below Amber fills, and peacocks dance on the ramparts.
- Teej: the festival of the monsoon and of married women usually falls in July or August. Swings hang from trees and women wear green and Jaipur's wave-patterned leheriya saris.
- The procession: the goddess is carried from the City Palace. Our Teej page has the details.
- Ghevar: the only season for the honeycomb sweet the city waits for all year.
August, rain, sweets and family festivals
Weather: usually the wettest month, though rain still comes in bursts rather than days of grey.
The hills: Nahargarh and Jaigarh are at their greenest, waterfalls run down the ridge after a heavy shower, and Galtaji's tanks are full.
- Festivals: Raksha Bandhan, when sisters tie threads on their brothers' wrists, and Janmashtami, Krishna's birthday, fill the temples and sweet shops.
- Crowds and rates: monuments are quiet and rates are low. The light after rain is extraordinary for photographs.
- Pack: an umbrella, light quick-drying clothes and shoes with good grip, because wet stone at Amber is slippery. See Rajasthan in August.
September, the quiet before the season
Weather: the rains taper off and days grow clearer, though it can still be warm and humid.
- Ganesh Chaturthi: the birthday of the elephant-headed god brings huge crowds to the Moti Dungri Ganesh temple, and sweet shops sell mountains of laddoos.
- Value: one of the best of the year, with green hills, few visitors and hotels at their quietest.
- Good for: repeat visitors, and anyone who wants Jaipur to themselves.
October, the festival season begins
Weather: clear sky, dust washed from the air, and evenings starting to cool. Days are still warm, often in the low thirties.
Nine nights of the goddess: Navratri fills the temples and the Shila Devi shrine at Amber.
- Dussehra: ends Navratri, with effigies of the demon king Ravana burnt across the city. See Dussehra.
- Diwali: in some years it falls at the end of the month.
- Crowds: a lovely time to come, before the winter crowds.
November, Diwali and the golden weeks
Diwali: the festival of lights usually falls in late October or November. In our view it is the most beautiful week of the Jaipur year.
Diwali nights: bazaars lit end to end, oil lamps outside every house, families in the streets until late. From Nahargarh, the whole city glitters.
- Weather after Diwali: some of the best of the year, with warm, dry days and cool evenings.
- Nearby fair: the Pushkar Camel Fair, a few hours away, often falls this month too.
- Crowds: the wedding season begins, so book well ahead. Our Diwali in Jaipur journey is built around the festival.
December, crisp days and a full house
Weather: cold mornings, sunny afternoons and early dusk.
The light: low and soft all day, which photographers love.
- Crowds and rates: Christmas and New Year are the busiest, most expensive weeks in Jaipur's palace hotels, many of which hold gala dinners. The polo season gathers pace.
- Plan ahead: for the holidays, book six months or more ahead and see the big sights on weekday mornings.
- Ideas: our guide to Christmas and New Year in Rajasthan and the Christmas and New Year in a palace journey.
How a Jaipur day changes with the season
- Winter start
- After sunrise, at Amber's opening
- Summer start
- First light, around 5.30 or 6
- Winter dusk
- Around 5.30
- Monsoon rule
- Keep the plan loose
A winter day
Let the sun rise first: in December and January, Amber at six in the morning is bitterly cold and the light is still grey.
At the gates: we reach the fort as it opens, wrapped in shawls. By ten the courtyards are warm enough to sit in.
- Lunch: long and outdoors, on a lawn or a terrace in the sun.
- Early evening: dusk comes around half past five, so Nahargarh is an early-evening plan.
- Dinner: by a fire or a heater in a courtyard.
A summer day
Start at first light: from April to June, around half past five or six, and finish the forts by ten.
Then indoors: a cool museum, a long lunch, a swim and a sleep through the worst of the heat.
- Out again at five: for the bazaars, a temple or the Albert Hall.
- Dinner: late on a rooftop when the breeze picks up.
- Essentials: water everywhere, and a car with strong air conditioning.
A monsoon day
Start early anyway: mornings are often clear and fresh.
- Wait out a storm: over chai in a haveli or on a palace verandah, watching the water pour off the roofs, then go out again when it passes.
- Best light of the year: just after rain, for photographs.
- Safety: we avoid the steepest ramps at Amber and Jaigarh when the stone is wet, and always carry a spare pair of shoes.
Crowds, rates and the weeks to avoid
The busiest periods: the week from Christmas to New Year, the second half of January, Diwali week and the long weekends of the Indian calendar, when families drive in from Delhi.
What that means: big monuments crowded even at opening time, slow roads to Amer, and the best rooms sold out months ahead.
- Busiest
- Christmas to New Year, late January, Diwali week
- Also busy
- Indian long weekends
- Highest rates
- About October to March
- Best value
- April to September, the monsoon above all
- Wedding season
- Mostly November to February
- Still worth it: if those dates are all you have, we simply plan earlier starts, private tours and quieter alternatives.
- Prices follow the weather: palace hotels charge their highest rates from about October to March, with peaks over the holidays, and drop them sharply from April to September.
- The best value: the monsoon months, and in our view the most underrated.
- Wedding season: Hindu weddings follow auspicious dates, mostly between November and February.
- On the big dates: palace gardens host enormous celebrations with bands, horses and fireworks. Wonderful to glimpse, and can be loud at night.
- We check for you: we look at the hotel's calendar, as our luxury hotels in Jaipur guide explains.
Light, and when Jaipur photographs best
After the rains: the clearest light of the year comes in October and November, when the air is washed clean and the hills are sharp on the horizon.
Winter: from December to February the sun is low all day, and the long golden hours make the facades glow.
- Clearest air
- October and November
- Golden hours
- December to February
- Haze
- April and May, shoot dawn and dusk only
- Biggest skies
- The monsoon
- Hawa Mahal
- First hour after sunrise, it faces east
- Hot months: in April and May a haze of dust softens everything and the noon light is harsh, so we shoot only at dawn and dusk.
- Monsoon: the most dramatic skies of all, with towering clouds behind Nahargarh and wet streets reflecting the lamps.
- Hawa Mahal: it faces east, so photograph the facade in the first hour after sunrise.
- Amber: best from across Maota Lake in the early morning.
- Nahargarh: a sunset place.
- More detail: our best photo spots in Jaipur and photography tips.
The right season for the way you travel
Families with children
School holidays: often Christmas, Easter and the European and American summer.
Christmas: lovely but crowded.
- Easter: usually March or April, warm but manageable if the days start early.
- July and August: the monsoon cools the city a little, rates are low and the green hills delight children. Choose a hotel with space and a pool.
- More ideas: our guide to travelling with children.
Couples and honeymooners
The perfect season: many couples come after winter weddings, between November and March.
- For a quieter Jaipur: late February, or the monsoon, when palace gardens are green and you may have a whole lawn to yourselves at breakfast.
- Our journey for two: Rajasthan for Two works well in both.
Photographers and painters
When to come: late October and November for the clearest air, winter for long golden hours, the monsoon for cloud and wet reflections.
- When not to: April and May, when the haze flattens everything.
- People pictures: festivals give the best, but always ask before photographing anyone up close.
Wildlife and birds
Winter birds: migrant ducks on Man Sagar Lake beside Jal Mahal, and flamingos at Sambhar Lake.
- Jhalana's leopards: often easier to see in the dry months, when the scrub thins and the animals come to water.
- Adding tigers at Ranthambore: its core zones close for the monsoon.
- Tiger sightings: the hot months before the rains are when tigers are most often seen at the waterholes.
What to pack for each season
November to February: light layers for the day, a warm jacket or heavy shawl for dawn and evening, and something smart for dinners in the palace hotels.
March and October: cotton and linen, a light layer for the evening, and a scarf to cover your head or shoulders in temples.
- November to February
- Layers, a warm jacket, something smart
- March and October
- Cotton, linen, a scarf
- April to June
- Long sleeves, hat, sunscreen
- July to September
- Umbrella, grippy sandals, repellent
- April to June: loose, light, long-sleeved cotton, a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, high-factor sunscreen and a refillable water bottle.
- July to September: quick-drying clothes, a compact umbrella, sandals that grip on wet stone and insect repellent for the evenings.
- All year: shoes you can slip off at temples, modest clothes that cover shoulders and knees, and a small torch for dark haveli corners.
- The full list: our packing guide.
Fitting Jaipur into a longer journey by season
November to February: the whole state is open. Pair Jaipur with the desert, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and a night under the stars in the dunes, when days are warm and nights sharply cold.
The painted towns: winter is also the season for Shekhawati, a few hours north, where the frescoes read best in the soft light.
- Cool months
- Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, the dunes, Shekhawati
- March, October
- Mewar's lakes and Ranthambore
- Monsoon
- Udaipur and the green Aravallis
- Hottest months
- One palace, short early drives
- From Delhi
- About four to five hours by road
- March and October: as the heat builds or eases, we lean towards the lakes and hills of Mewar.
- Ranthambore: reopens for safaris in October after the rains.
- Monsoon: Udaipur and the green Aravallis are at their most romantic. Our Monsoon in Mewar journey begins or ends in Jaipur.
- Hottest months: keep the route short and the drives early. We often suggest a longer stay in one palace rather than a tour.
- Getting here: Jaipur is about four to five hours by road from Delhi.
- First visit: the Golden Triangle with Udaipur remains the most popular way to see it.
How we would choose your dates
First visit: come in February or November, with October and March close behind, for comfortable weather, long days of sightseeing and the full life of the city.
Catch a festival: bend your dates if you can, for the kites in January, Holi in March, Teej in the monsoon or Diwali in the autumn. A festival day shows you a Jaipur no monument can.
- Second visit: try the monsoon. Arrive in August, sleep in a palace whose garden has turned green overnight, eat ghevar from Johari Bazaar and watch the rain from a verandah.
- Our favourite: it is the season the families of Jaipur love most, and almost no visitors see it.
- The shape of the day: matters more than the date. Our Jaipur itinerary guide builds days around the light and the heat.
- The best hour for each sight: our list of things to do in Jaipur.
