Why we see our cities from a bicycle
A foreigner in the back of a large car is a customer. A foreigner on a bicycle, slightly out of breath and grinning, is a guest. Shopkeepers sweeping their steps call out, children race alongside, and the old men outside their houses want to know where you come from and whether you are married.
A car is too fast and too high: you see the traffic, the windscreen and the back of the driver's head.
- Length
- One to three hours
- Terrain
- Mostly flat, at an easy pace
- Support
- Guide in front, rider behind, car following
- Fitness
- Comfortable on a bicycle; no need to be fit
- Not
- A sporting or long-distance tour
- On foot you cover very little: you see a great deal, but by ten in the morning the heat has made the decision for you.
- A bicycle sits in the middle: it moves at the speed of the milkman and the schoolboy, covers the whole length of a bazaar, turns down a lane that looks interesting, stops for chai and is home before the shutters go up.
- The conversations: our guides know many of the people on the route by name, and half the pleasure of a ride is the talk at the stops.
- Built before cars: Jaipur's broad bazaars were laid out in 1727 for processions and bullock carts, and Jodhpur's blue lanes below Mehrangarh were made for people and camels.
- Bundi: its streets wind between havelis in a way no driver enjoys.
- At dawn: before the traffic, these cities become what they were designed to be, places to move through slowly, looking up.
- The car behind: it carries water, a first-aid kit and room for you and the bicycle if you decide you have had enough.
Where we ride, city by city
Jaipur, the length of the walled city
The route: from Chandpole Gate in the west as the light comes up, east along the spine of Sawai Jai Singh II's grid: Chandpole Bazaar, Choti Chaupar, Tripolia Bazaar and out to Badi Chaupar.
The distance: about two and a half kilometres of arcades that are almost empty at this hour.
- The stops: a temple as the priests open the doors, the flower sellers setting up, and chai from clay cups.
- The finish: beneath Hawa Mahal as the sun reaches its facade, the hour when it is at its most beautiful.
- The longer version: loops through Johari Bazaar and the craft lanes before the jewellers arrive.
Jodhpur, below the fort
When: a winter morning before eight, when the roads around the old city are quiet enough to ride.
- The route: past the gates in the city wall, the stepwell of Toorji ka Jhalra as first light falls into it, and the Clock Tower and Sardar Market as the spice sellers arrive.
- Brahmpuri on foot: the blue lanes are too steep and narrow for most riders, so we lock the bicycles and walk for half an hour before riding on.
- A longer morning: out on the road towards Kaylana Lake, west of the city, where the rock and scrub of the Marwar hills begin.
Udaipur, the lakes and the farms
Around, not through: the old city is hilly and crowded, so we ride around it.
- Fateh Sagar: a favourite route follows the embankment of Fateh Sagar at sunrise, when rowers are on the water and walkers have the road.
- Into the farms: another leaves on country lanes, past maize and wheat on terraced fields and women carrying water from the wells, with a stop at a village temple and a stepwell.
- Good for children: it is gentle and suits older children well.
Bundi, the lakes below the palace
Why Bundi: small, slow and one of the most pleasant towns in Rajasthan for a bicycle.
- The route: from the old town past Raniji ki Baori, the great stepwell, to Jait Sagar and the small Sukh Mahal pavilion where Rudyard Kipling stayed.
- The cenotaph: on to the domed Chaurasi Khambon ki Chhatri, the cenotaph of eighty-four pillars.
- Through the year: in the cool months the lakes are full of herons and egrets, and after the monsoon the hills are green.
Shekhawati, the painted towns
Mandawa at dawn: before the shops open, the sandy lanes of Mandawa are almost empty.
- An hour's ride: past the frescoed havelis and out to the edge of town, with tea at a roadside stall. The low morning light is the best of the day for the painted facades.
- Into the fields: in Nawalgarh and around Alsisar, the lanes run out into millet and mustard, which flowers yellow across the region in January and February.
Keoladeo, the bird park on two wheels
No motors: in Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur, motor vehicles are kept out of the heart of the park, and bicycles can be hired at the gate.
- The ride: the main road is flat and shaded, and a bicycle lets you stop wherever a kingfisher lands and go further into the quieter side paths.
- In winter: when the migrant birds are in, there are few better mornings in India.
Jaisalmer, around the lake and out to the cenotaphs
Not in the fort: the lanes inside the fort are for walking, but the town below has two good dawn rides.
- Gadisar: circle Gadisar Lake, the old reservoir with its carved gateway and pavilions, as the sun lifts over the water.
- Bada Bagh: about six kilometres north to the royal cenotaphs of Bada Bagh, where the domes stand in rows on a ridge. We ride out early and drive back once it warms up.
Village Marwar, with the Bishnoi and the blackbuck
From Rohet: at Rohet, south of Jodhpur, we ride farm tracks to Bishnoi villages, where blackbuck graze close to the houses because the community has protected them for centuries.
- Birds too: it is birdwatching as much as cycling, and the family that runs Rohet Garh has long welcomed guests who prefer a bicycle to a horse.
- Read more: our page on the Bishnoi villages explains the community.
Pushkar, out among the rose fields
Never on the ghats: the lanes of Pushkar around the holy lake are for walking.
- The rose fields: outside town, country tracks run between fields of roses grown for the temples and for rose water, with the stony Aravalli hills on one side and the first dunes of the Thar on the other.
- A quiet counterweight: an early ride, ending with breakfast back at your hotel, balances the intensity of the ghats.
Orchha and Khajuraho, beyond Rajasthan
- Orchha: in Madhya Pradesh, the land around Orchha is flat enough for an easy morning loop past outlying temples, chhatris and fields along the Betwa.
- Khajuraho: in Khajuraho, the eastern and southern groups of temples sit among villages a short ride from the western group, and a bicycle is the nicest way to reach them.
A morning on the bicycle, hour by hour
- Meet
- Half past five, in the hotel lobby
- Start
- Six o'clock, at the walled city
- Finish
- Hawa Mahal, about half past seven
- Back
- By eight, for breakfast
- Wear
- Helmet, light jacket, scarf in December
Half past five, a knock and a cup of tea
Never on an empty stomach: your guide meets you in the lobby with a flask of tea and something small to eat.
- Bicycles ready: brought to the hotel the evening before, checked and adjusted to your height.
- Wrap up: a helmet, a light jacket and a scarf, because December dawns in Jaipur are cold.
Six o'clock, through the gate
The start: the car drops you at the edge of the walled city, or you ride there if your hotel is close.
- Still shuttered: a few tea stalls are lit, the milkmen arrive on motorbikes with steel cans and pigeons are fed at the squares.
- Settling in: the first few hundred metres are spent getting used to the bicycle and the road, at walking pace.
Half past six, temples and flowers
The bells: they ring from the small temples along the bazaar as the morning prayers begin.
- The aarti: we stop where the priest knows us, take off our shoes and watch the aarti, the lamp ceremony, for a few minutes.
- The garlands: outside, flower sellers thread marigolds and roses for the day's worship.
Seven o'clock, chai at the square
The chaupar: a tea stall at the great square where two bazaars meet.
- What to order: cutting chai, half a glass, strong and sweet, with a hot kachori if you are hungry.
- The talk: this is where the conversations happen, and where your guide explains how the city's grid was planned and why each lane belongs to a trade.
Half past seven, the facade in the sun
- The last stretch: to Hawa Mahal just as the sun reaches its pink windows. Park, take your photographs and climb into the car.
- By eight: back at the hotel as the traffic begins in earnest, with a proper breakfast waiting and the day ahead of you.
What an old city does before breakfast
The bells, then the pigeons: at Jaipur's great squares men scatter grain from sacks, a daily act of merit families have paid for over generations, and the birds rise in a grey cloud whenever a motorbike passes.
The milk: steel cans clank on motorbikes as dairymen come in from the villages, stopping at the sweet shops that will turn the milk into rabri and kalakand by noon.
The cows: every lane has its regulars, and many households keep the first roti of the day for them, handed over at the door.
- The sweepers and the shops: sweepers work the arcades with long brooms, and shopkeepers wash their steps and light incense at the small shrine above the counter.
- Against the evil eye: a string of lemon and green chillies is hung over the shop door.
- The school run: children in ties and plaits wait for cycle rickshaws, while a man in a white dhoti reads the paper aloud to three friends outside a tea stall.
- Half past seven: the vegetable carts are out, the fried-snack sellers light their stoves and the first buses push through the gates. That is the moment to turn for home.
- What you take away: a city most of its visitors never meet, a few photographs and a taste for kachori at dawn.
- What the guides point out: the date carved over a haveli door, a faded Ganesh above an arch, the old neighbourhood well, the shop that has sold the same brass lamps for four generations.
- More at walking pace: our heritage walks go deeper into the lanes.
The best season and the best hour
October and November: fresh mornings, and days still warm.
December and January: cold dawns, sometimes close to freezing in the desert and in Shekhawati. We start at first light rather than before it, and ask you to bring gloves and a warm layer.
Fog: in Bharatpur, Agra and Delhi winter mornings can bring thick fog, atmospheric on foot but no fun on a bicycle near traffic. We adjust the plan on the day.
- Season
- October to March
- Finest weeks
- February and March
- Coldest
- December and January
- Hot months
- April to June, under an hour
- Avoid
- Holi, Makar Sankranti, Diwali bazaars
- February and March: for most riders the finest weeks, with long golden mornings and mustard in flower.
- April to June: the heat comes quickly. A short ride is possible from first light until about half past seven, kept under an hour.
- The monsoon: July to September turns the hills around Udaipur and Bundi green for beautiful country rides, but rain is unpredictable, roads can flood and potholes hide under puddles, so we plan day by day.
- Holi: on Holi nobody should be riding through an old city.
- Makar Sankranti: on Makar Sankranti, 14 January, kite strings across Jaipur's lanes are a real hazard to cyclists.
- Diwali and weddings: on Diwali the bazaars are crowded day and night. Wedding season, November to February, can close streets in the evening, but rarely at dawn.
- The months in detail: our guide to the best time to visit Rajasthan.
Bicycles, safety and the road
The bicycles
Well kept: good bicycles from trusted local operators, usually hybrids or mountain bikes with gears and proper brakes, in a range of frame sizes, with helmets and lights.
- On request: children's bicycles and, in some cities, electric bicycles, if we know in advance.
- Tell us: your height and how often you ride, and we match the bicycle and the route to you.
How Indian traffic works
On the left: traffic in India drives on the left, and on a busy road it follows its own unwritten rules.
Size wins: larger vehicles have priority.
- The horn: it means I am here, not get out of my way.
- Animals first: cows, dogs and goats wander as they please and are given right of way by everyone.
- How we ride: at dawn, on chosen routes, with a guide in front setting the pace and someone behind. We cross major roads together on foot when it is easier, and often walk narrow lanes.
Our rules for every rider
Wear the helmet: every time.
Follow the guide: stay behind your guide and keep to the left.
- No headphones: you need to hear the lane.
- Stop, don't swerve: if an animal or child steps out.
- Drink: carry water, and drink it.
- Stop when you like: the car is never more than a few minutes away, and climbing into it is no failure.
Who will love it, and who won't
The curious and the restless
- For you if: you want to see how a city works before it puts on its face for visitors.
- Repeat visitors: those who have seen the great forts often tell us a dawn ride showed them more of Jaipur than their whole first trip.
Couples
- A shared morning: a ride at first light, chai in a square and breakfast back at the palace, leaving the afternoon free for a spa or a sleep.
- On our journey: on Rajasthan for Two we often build one into the Jaipur days.
Families with older children
Ten and over: children who ride confidently usually love it, especially in Udaipur's farmland and in Keoladeo.
- Younger children: they can ride in a cycle rickshaw alongside.
- Built in: our family adventure journey includes a dawn ride as a matter of course.
Solo travellers
- Easy company: a ride with a guide is one of the easiest ways to meet people when you travel alone, and it gives a shape to the morning.
- More ideas: our page on Rajasthan for solo travellers.
Who should choose something else
- Nervous riders: if you are nervous on a bicycle at home, an Indian city at any hour will not be relaxing. A heritage walk gives you the same streets at walking pace.
- Knees, backs and late risers: the same goes for anyone with knee or back problems, or anyone who simply hates early starts.
Etiquette on two wheels
Greet people as you pass: ram ram in the villages and namaste in the towns will always be returned, and in Marwar khamma ghani will earn you a smile.
Dress modestly: loose trousers or long shorts below the knee, and a shirt that covers the shoulders. Padded cycling shorts can go underneath.
- Ask before photographs: especially of women and anyone at prayer, and accept a refusal with a smile.
- At temples: take your shoes off before entering, and leave the bicycle where your guide suggests, never against the temple wall.
- Nothing for children: don't hand out sweets, pens or money to children who run alongside. It teaches them to ask strangers for things. To help, ask us about schools and charities we know.
- Pay the stalls: buy your chai and kachori where you stop, and pay the price asked. It is small, and it is part of the day.
- Be patient: ring your bell and smile. In an Indian lane, patience is the right of way.
How we arrange a ride
Private, not a group tour: we choose cities and routes that suit your pace, your fitness and the season.
The right mornings: rides never follow a long drive or a late dinner.
- Format
- Private, as part of your journey
- How often
- Once or twice on a two-week trip
- Usual cities
- Jaipur, and Udaipur or Bundi
- Shops
- Never; our guides don't sell
- Prices
- Quoted after one conversation
- The evening before: your guide checks the route for roadworks, weddings and processions, confirms the bicycles and arranges the car.
- On the morning: you are collected from your hotel, ride for one to three hours with tea and stops, and are back for breakfast.
- Never a shop: our guides are paid to guide and never to sell, so a ride never ends at a shop.
- In Jaipur, pair it with: a heritage walk through the craft lanes on another day, or a hot-air balloon flight over Amer in the cool season.
- In Udaipur: follow a ride with a late breakfast and a boat on Lake Pichola in the evening.
- Quotes: we don't publish prices. After one conversation we send a quote and a day-by-day plan, and you can begin on our plan my journey page.