Our list at a glance
If you only have time for a few, start here. We have climbed every one of these more times than we can count, and each still surprises us.
If you see only one: Mehrangarh. It is the best-kept fort-palace in Rajasthan, and its museum is the finest in any fort.
If you are in Jaipur: Amber Fort at opening time, then Jaigarh above it and Nahargarh at sunset.
Facts to know
- Grandest
- Mehrangarh, Jodhpur
- Most beautiful setting
- Amber, above Maota Lake
- Most history
- Chittorgarh, three great sieges
- Longest wall
- Kumbhalgarh, about 36 km
- Still lived in
- Jaisalmer, about four thousand residents
- Finest interiors
- Junagarh, Bikaner
- If you want history that moves you: Chittorgarh Fort, where Mewar's story is written in towers, tanks and memorials.
- If you love landscape: Kumbhalgarh, its wall rolling over the Aravalli ridges like a stone serpent.
- If you want life, not ruins: Jaisalmer Fort, where families still hang washing on the bastions.
- If painted rooms are your weakness: Junagarh Fort in Bikaner, with gold-leaf ceilings and mirrored halls.
Local tip
Don't try to see more than one great fort in a day. Each needs a fresh morning, and the second one always feels like a chore.
The six hill forts on UNESCO's list
In 2013 UNESCO inscribed six forts together as the Hill Forts of Rajasthan. Not because each is the biggest, but because together they show how Rajput kings used hills, rivers, forests and desert to defend a kingdom.
Why these six: each shows a different kind of defence, from the water fort at Gagron to the desert citadel of Jaisalmer.
Facts to know
- Listed
- 2013, as one World Heritage Site
- Hill and plateau
- Chittorgarh, Kumbhalgarh
- Forest
- Ranthambore
- River
- Gagron, Jhalawar
- Hill palace
- Amber
- Desert
- Jaisalmer
- What the listing covers: not only walls and palaces, but the gates, the water systems, the temples and the towns inside.
- What's missing: Mehrangarh and Junagarh are not on the list. They are just as fine, and no less worth your morning.
- Read more: our journal on the UNESCO forts of Rajasthan goes through the listing fort by fort.
The great six we would never skip
These are the forts that make a journey. Each needs a morning of its own, and most deserve a night nearby so you can see them at both ends of the day.
Mehrangarh, Jodhpur
The story: founded by Rao Jodha on 12 May 1459, on a rock about 122 metres above the city, and raised over three centuries by his successors.
- What you see: seven gates, the sati handprints at Loha Pol, and the painted rooms of Phool Mahal, Moti Mahal and Takhat Vilas.
- Why it is special: the Mehrangarh Museum Trust keeps it beautifully, with galleries of howdahs, palanquins and arms.
- Best hour: opening time, then walk down through the Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park to Jaswant Thada.
Amber, above Jaipur
The story: begun in 1592 under Raja Man Singh I and added to by the Kachwaha kings for generations, 11 kilometres north of Jaipur.
- What you see: courts that climb from the Sun Gate to the private palace, the painted Ganesh Pol and the mirrored Sheesh Mahal.
- Why it is special: the finest blend of Rajput and Mughal design in Rajasthan, mirrored in Maota Lake below.
- Best hour: as the gates open, from October to March. Our sunrise at Amber Fort piece tells the morning.
Chittorgarh
The story: the seat of Mewar from the eighth century to 1568, besieged and taken in 1303, 1535 and 1568.
- What you see: about 280 hectares of plateau, seven gates, the nine-storey Vijay Stambha raised after Rana Kumbha's victory of 1440, and the twelfth-century Jain Kirti Stambha.
- Why it is special: few places in India hold so much memory. Guides lower their voices at the memorials, and so should we.
- Best hour: the last two hours of light, then again at opening time. Read Rani Padmini and Chittor before you go.
Kumbhalgarh
The story: built by Rana Kumbha of Mewar roughly between 1443 and 1458, about 1,100 metres above sea level in the Aravallis.
- What you see: a wall about 36 kilometres long, more than 300 temples by the usual count, and the Badal Mahal at the top.
- Why it is special: the birthplace of Maharana Pratap, and taken only once, in 1578.
- Best hour: walk a stretch of the wall in the first two hours after sunrise, and stay for the evening light show.
Jaisalmer
The story: founded by Rawal Jaisal of the Bhati Rajputs in 1156, on the three-peaked Trikuta hill.
- What you see: 99 bastions, three walls, the royal palace, seven Jain temples and lanes of carved yellow stone.
- Why it is special: about four thousand people still live inside. Read living inside Jaisalmer Fort.
- Best hour: a long morning inside, then the fort turning gold at dusk from Vyas Chhatri or Gadisar Lake.
Junagarh, Bikaner
The story: built for Raja Rai Singh between 1589 and 1594, overseen by his minister Karan Chand.
- What you see: red sandstone walls with 37 bastions, the gold-leaf Anup Mahal, the mirrored Phool Mahal and the painted Badal Mahal.
- Why it is special: it stands on the plain, not a hill, yet its walls held. The museum even has a First World War biplane.
- Best hour: opening time, with two to three hours and a good guide.
Local tip
At every great fort, hire the guide before you hire the car. A fort without its stories is just a lot of stairs.
Five more forts worth the detour
These see a fraction of the visitors. On a winter morning you may have a whole rampart to yourself, with only a langur and a priest for company.
Ranthambore Fort
The story: held for centuries by the Chauhan Rajputs. Its ruler Hammir Dev defied Alauddin Khalji, and the fort fell after a long siege in 1301.
- What you see: gates, ruined palaces, reservoirs and the Trinetra Ganesh temple, inside the tiger reserve.
- How we fit it in: between morning and afternoon drives. Our Ranthambore guide explains the timing.
Gagron, Jhalawar
The story: the great water fort of the UNESCO six, where the Ahu and Kali Sindh rivers meet. It fell to Hoshang Shah of Malwa in 1423.
- What you see: walls that rise straight from the water on three sides, and almost no other visitors.
- How we fit it in: a night in Jhalawar, or a day from Kota or Bundi.
Taragarh, Bundi
The story: traditionally dated to 1354 and the Hada Chauhan Rajputs, above the painted palace of Bundi.
- What you see: the Bhim Burj gun bastion, rock-cut reservoirs and a sweeping view of the blue town.
- How to climb: twenty to thirty steep minutes from the Garh Palace, at first light, with a stick for the monkeys. See our Taragarh guide.
Jaigarh and Nahargarh, Jaipur
Jaigarh: joined to Amber by walls along the ridge, it guarded the treasury, and holds the vast eighteenth-century Jaivana cannon. See Jaigarh Fort.
- Nahargarh: built in 1734 as a retreat and lookout, with the whole pink city spread below. See Nahargarh Fort.
- How we fit them in: Jaigarh after Amber in the morning, Nahargarh at sunset the same day.
Lohagarh, Bharatpur
- The story: built from 1732 by the Jat ruler Suraj Mal. Its thick earthen ramparts absorbed cannon fire and held off a British siege under Lord Lake in 1805.
- How we fit it in: a late afternoon at Bharatpur, between the Keoladeo wetland and the road to Jaipur.
Local tip
For more quiet ramparts, our journal on offbeat forts adds Nagaur, Jalore, Achalgarh and Ajabgarh.
How to read a Rajput fort
Once you know what to look for, every fort starts to talk. The gates, the angles and the water tanks were all designed by people who expected to be besieged.
The gates, or pols: most great forts have a chain of them, set at sharp angles so an army, or a war elephant, could never build up speed.
The spikes: iron spikes on the gate doors, at the height of an elephant's head. Look for them at Mehrangarh's Loha Pol.
The bastions, or burj: round towers that let defenders fire along the wall. Jaisalmer's 99 give the fort its scalloped outline.
- The water: no fort survived a siege without it. Chittorgarh's tanks, Gaumukh above all, and Taragarh's rock-cut reservoirs were the real defences.
- The palace at the top: public halls lower down, and the private apartments and the zenana, the women's quarters, at the highest and safest point.
- The screens: stone lattice called jali and balconies called jharokhas let royal women watch without being seen. Read what is a jharokha.
- The temples: almost every fort holds a shrine to its protecting goddess, often still in daily worship.
- The memorials: small domed chhatris mark where warriors fell. Our piece on what is a chhatri explains them.
- Jauhar and saka: the women's death by fire and the men's last charge. You will hear both words at Chittorgarh, Ranthambore and Gagron. Please listen quietly.
Local tip
Ask your guide to show you where the water came from. It is the question that unlocks every fort, and most visitors never ask it.
Which forts fit which journey
Rajasthan's forts are spread across the whole state, so the best way to see them is to let your route choose them for you.
A first journey through Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur
- The forts: Amber, Jaigarh and Nahargarh in Jaipur, Mehrangarh in Jodhpur, and Kumbhalgarh on the road to Udaipur.
- The journey: Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur, or the longer Royal Rajputana.
The desert
- The forts: Mehrangarh, Jaisalmer and Junagarh, with Nagaur on the road to Bikaner.
- The journey: our desert triangle of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner.
Mewar and Hadoti
- The forts: Chittorgarh, Kumbhalgarh, Taragarh and Gagron.
- The journey: Offbeat Rajasthan, through Bundi, Chittorgarh and Dungarpur.
Every great fort in one journey
- The forts: all six of our must-sees, plus Ranthambore and Bundi along the way.
- The journey: the forts and palaces grand tour, twelve nights at an unhurried pace.
Forts you can sleep in
There is nothing quite like closing the old gate behind you at night. Several forts are now heritage hotels, many still run by the families who built them.
Near Jaipur
- Alila Fort Bishangarh: a warrior fort of about 230 years on a granite hill, opened as a luxury hotel in 2017, about an hour and a half north of Jaipur.
- Neemrana Fort-Palace: a terraced Chauhan fort dating from 1464, rescued as a ruin and a hotel since 1991, on the road from Delhi.
In Marwar
- Khimsar Fort: begun in 1523 by a son of Rao Jodha, still the family's home, and partly a heritage hotel between Jodhpur and Nagaur.
- Rohet Garh: a lakeside fort south of Jodhpur, held by the same Rathore family since 1622, known for its Marwari horses.
In Mewar
- Castle Bijaipur: a sixteenth-century castle about 40 kilometres from Chittorgarh, our favourite base for seeing the fort at both ends of the day.
- Deogarh Mahal: the seventeenth-century palace of the Rawats of Deogarh, above a market town in northern Mewar, a good night between Jaipur and Udaipur.
Local tip
We don't book rooms inside Jaisalmer Fort. Its old drains and soft hillside can't take a hotel's water, so we stay outside the walls and spend generously inside them by day.
When to climb, and how long to allow
A fort at noon in May is a test of endurance. The same fort at seven on a February morning is the best hour of your trip.
October to March: comfortable days and clear light, the season for every fort on this list.
December and January: cold dawns at Kumbhalgarh and Jaisalmer, so bring a warm layer for the ramparts.
Facts to know
- Best months
- October to March
- Monsoon
- July to September, green, misty, slippery
- Hot season
- April to June, first light only
- Best hour
- Opening time, or the last two hours of light
- Allow
- Two to four hours, a full day at Chittorgarh
- The monsoon: Gagron, Taragarh and Kumbhalgarh are at their most beautiful when the hills turn green and the rivers fill. Our monsoon in Mewar journey is built for it.
- April to June: visit at opening time and be back in the shade by mid-morning. Midday on an exposed rampart is dangerous.
- Festivals at forts: the Kumbhalgarh Festival in early December, and the Marwar Festival and Rajasthan International Folk Festival at Mehrangarh.
How we visit, and what we won't do
Forts are monuments, but many are also temples, memorials and homes. How you behave on the walls matters to the people who live below them.
No elephant rides: we walk or drive guests up to Amber and never book elephants. Our ethical animal encounters page explains why.
Quiet at memorials: at sati handprints, jauhar grounds and chhatris, stand quietly and don't pose for photographs.
- Shoes off in temples: and leather left in the car at Jain temples, including those inside Jaisalmer Fort.
- Ask before photographing people: especially women at worship and families inside the living fort of Jaisalmer.
- Stay off unrailed walls: many ramparts have long drops and no barrier. Keep children close.
- Buy from the makers: inside Jaisalmer Fort, buy textiles and puppets directly from families, not from touts at the gate.
What most visitors miss
Most people walk the main route through each fort and leave. The corners we love best are a few minutes off it, and almost always empty.
Chokhelao garden at Mehrangarh: an old walled garden below the palace, replanted in the Rajput manner with terraces and water channels.
The painted floor of Takhat Vilas: in Mehrangarh's painted bedroom, look down as well as up.
- Jaigarh's view of Amber: from its ramparts you look straight down onto Amber Fort and Maota Lake, the best view of it anywhere.
- Gaumukh at dusk: at Chittorgarh, the spring-fed tank where local families feed the fish, with the plains turning gold to the west.
- The Kirti Stambha in quiet: Chittorgarh's older Jain tower sees a fraction of the crowds at the Vijay Stambha.
- Jain temples before the rituals end: inside Jaisalmer Fort, come early to hear the hymns and smell the sandalwood paste.
- Kumbhalgarh after dark: stay the night, and after the light show the walls and bastions stay lit for a while.
- Ranthambore's lakes from above: from the fort walls you can sometimes watch sambar wading in Padam Talao below.
Local tip
On the Vijay Stambha, many carved figures are named in old script. Ask your guide to read a few aloud, and a wall of carving becomes a cast of characters.
Which forts suit which travellers
Every fort on this list is worth seeing, but not every fort suits every traveller. This is how we match them.
History lovers
- Our pick: Chittorgarh first, then Kumbhalgarh and Ranthambore. Read Maharana Pratap and Haldighati on the way.
Lovers of palaces and painted rooms
- Our pick: Junagarh, Mehrangarh and Amber, where the finest interiors survive, and Bundi's painted Chitrashala below Taragarh.
Walkers
- Our pick: Kumbhalgarh's wall, the climb to Taragarh and the ridge walls between Amber and Jaigarh. Read our Kumbhalgarh wall walk.
Photographers
- Our pick: Jaisalmer at dusk, Mehrangarh from the blue lanes below and Amber in Maota Lake at dawn. See Rajasthan for photographers.
Travellers with limited mobility
- Our pick: Mehrangarh, with its lift for the upper climb, Junagarh, with no hill to climb, and a car to most monuments at Chittorgarh. Avoid Taragarh.
Before you go
A few small things make a fort morning easier. These are what we tell our own cousins.
Wear real shoes: worn stone ramps, steep stairs and uneven paths. Sandals slip.
Carry water and a hat: shade is scarce on most ramparts, and there is little to buy at Chittorgarh and Kumbhalgarh.
- Bring a torch: for dark stairways inside towers and palaces.
- Check access: some forts have lifts or car access to the upper courts, and some have none. Tell us in advance and we plan around it.
- Mind the monkeys: at Taragarh and Galtaji especially, carry nothing that looks like food.
- Read first: a little history turns stones into stories. Our short history of Rajasthan and the Rajput dynasties are a good start.