Why we go at first light
The light: the low sun warms the sandstone from pale yellow to honey, and the lake below is usually still enough to hold the fort's reflection.
The quiet: in the first hour you share the courts with a few early visitors and the people who open the doors and light the temple lamps.
- The light
- Low and golden, falling on the eastern walls
- The crowds
- Light for the first hour, heavy from about ten
- The air
- Cool stone, crisp mornings in winter
- The sound
- Temple bells, peacocks and brooms
- UNESCO
- 2013, one of the Hill Forts of Rajasthan
- The Sheesh Mahal: the mirrored hall is a different place without a crowd. You can stand in it and hear your own footsteps.
- The cool: the old stone holds the night's cold, so the ramp and the stairs are easy work at dawn and hard work at noon.
- The day after: an early Amber morning leaves you the afternoon to rest, and the evening for Nahargarh at sunset.
The story you are watching the sun rise on
Before the fort: the Kachwahas took the valley of Amer from the Meena chiefs who held it, and ruled from a modest hill town guarded by forts on the ridge.
The turning point: in 1562 Raja Bharmal gave his daughter in marriage to Akbar, making the Kachwahas the Mughals' closest Rajput partners.
- The dynasty
- The Kachwaha Rajputs
- The alliance
- 1562, Raja Bharmal and the emperor Akbar
- The builder
- Raja Man Singh I, from 1592
- The grand courts
- Mirza Raja Jai Singh I, seventeenth century
- The court left
- 1727, for the new city of Jaipur
- A general's palace: his grandson Man Singh I commanded imperial armies from Kabul to Bengal, and began the fort above Maota Lake in 1592.
- The jewel box: Mirza Raja Jai Singh I added the painted Ganesh Pol, the mirrored halls and the Mughal garden in the seventeenth century.
- The move: in 1727 Sawai Jai Singh II moved the court down to his new city of Jaipur. The goddess Shila Devi stayed, and so did the family's love for its first home.
- Read more: our Jaipur royal family and Mughal and Rajput history pieces.
Before the gates open
Leaving the city in the dark
When to leave: about forty minutes before sunrise from the walled city, a little more from the palace hotels to the south.
- The road: north out of the walled city past the old Zorawar Singh Gate, then along Man Sagar Lake towards the Aravalli hills.
- What you'll see: milk sellers on bicycles, tea stalls lighting their stoves and the first temple bells of the day.
Jal Mahal at first light
Where: the water palace in the middle of Man Sagar Lake, beside the Amer road. See our Jal Mahal guide.
- Why stop: from the promenade the water is still, the hills behind are blue, and in winter the lake fills with migrant ducks.
- How long: ten minutes is enough. It is a view, not a visit, because the palace is not open to the public.
Maota Lake and the reflection
The lake: Maota was the fort's reservoir, and its level rises and falls with the monsoon.
- Kesar Kyari: the garden of star-shaped beds in the lake, said to have been planted with saffron.
- The view: from the road on the far shore, the walls of the fort are reflected whole in the still water. It is the best photograph in Amer.
- The moment: watch the line of sun creep down the walls from the ridge to the water. It takes only a few minutes.
The first hour inside
Up the old ramp to Suraj Pol
The walk: about fifteen minutes up the stone ramp from below, in the cool of the morning.
- The Sun Gate: Suraj Pol faces east, towards the sunrise. It was the gate of ceremony, for the king and his processions.
- The bend: see how the ramp turns before the gate, so no army or elephant could build up speed against the doors.
Jaleb Chowk and the temple of Shila Devi
The square: the great court where the army paraded, ringed by rooms for soldiers and horses.
- The goddess: in the corner, steps lead up to Shila Devi, the Kachwahas' protective goddess, behind doors of embossed silver.
- Why early matters: devotees come every morning. Shoes off, shoulders covered, and no photographs inside the temple.
Ganesh Pol and the garden court
The gate: the most beautiful in the fort, painted in soft colours under Mirza Raja Jai Singh I, with Ganesh above the arch.
- The screens above: from behind the lattice of the Suhag Mandir, the royal women watched the court below.
- The garden: a Mughal-style court of geometric beds and a fountain, between the Jai Mandir and the Sukh Niwas.
The Sheesh Mahal, in near silence
What it is: the inner rooms of the Jai Mandir, the king's hall, set with convex mirror and coloured glass.
- The trick: a single flame is reflected thousands of times, like a sky full of stars.
- The magic flower: ask your guide to show you the small marble carving that becomes a fish, a cobra or a scorpion as you cover it with your hands.
The palace of Man Singh I
The oldest part: completed in 1599, at the very back of the fort, around a pillared pavilion called a baradari.
- The queens' rooms: linked by narrow corridors and stairways so the household could move unseen.
- Why we finish here: it is plainer and more intimate than the courts in front. On a quiet morning it is our favourite place in Amber.
What most early visitors miss
The lamps at Shila Devi: in the first hour, priests light the temple lamps and devotees arrive before work. Stand quietly at the back.
The elephant brackets: in the Diwan-i-Aam, the hall of public audience, the columns are topped with carved elephants. Look up as you pass.
- The cooling channel: in the Sukh Niwas, water once flowed through a channel in the floor to cool the hall. An air conditioner made of marble and wind.
- The zenana corridors: the narrow passages that twist between the queens' rooms in Man Singh's palace. Ask your guide to take you through them.
- The back windows: small windows look over the rooftops of old Amer and up to the walls of Jaigarh on the ridge.
- The walls on the ridge: from the lake shore, follow the fortified walls with your eye as they climb from Amber to Jaigarh. At dawn they glow first.
Light and photography
The reflection: from the far shore of Maota Lake, the whole fort in still water. Shoot in the first golden minutes, before a breeze ripples the lake.
The ramparts from below: the walls snaking up the ridge to Jaigarh, catching the first sun.
- Ganesh Pol: soft, even light in the second courtyard early on. By midday it is crowded and harsh.
- The Sheesh Mahal: no flash is needed. Let your eyes and the camera settle, and the mirrors do the work.
- The back windows: from Man Singh's palace, small windows frame the old town of Amer and its temples below.
- People: ask before photographing anyone at close range, and never inside the Shila Devi temple.
- Kit: a wide lens for the courts, a short telephoto for the reflection and a light tripod if the rules on the day allow it.
- Read more: our Jaipur photo spots and Rajasthan for photographers.
The best months for an Amber sunrise
October and November: the lake is full after the rains and the hills still green. Some of the finest reflections of the year.
December and January: crisp, clear and cold. Bring a warm layer, a hat and gloves. Mist sometimes lies on the lake.
- Best months
- October to March
- Coldest dawns
- December and January, near freezing
- Hot season
- April to June, opening time only
- Monsoon
- July to September, a full lake and green hills
- Busiest days
- Christmas, New Year, Diwali and Navratri
- February and March: warm days, cool dawns and soft light. Our favourite balance.
- April to June: come at opening time and be back in the car before the heat. Midday on the ramps is punishing.
- July to September: our secret season. Maota fills, the Aravallis turn green and peacocks dance on the walls, though some mornings are cloudy.
- Navratri: in spring and autumn, crowds of devotees climb to Shila Devi. Lovely to see, but not a quiet morning. Read about Navratri.
- Month by month: our guide to the best time to visit Jaipur.
How you get up to the fort
On foot: about fifteen minutes up the old ramp to Suraj Pol. The gates only make sense when you walk through them in order.
By jeep: to the upper gate near Jaleb Chowk, for anyone who would rather save their knees for the palace stairs.
- Never by elephant: we don't book elephant rides. Our piece on why we don't offer elephant rides explains why, and our ethical encounters page lists better ways to meet animals.
- Limited mobility: Amber has steep ramps, uneven stone and many steps. A jeep and a patient guide make the main courts manageable for many guests. See our accessible travel guide.
- Ignore the touts: at the car park, people offer shortcuts, photographs and shops. Your guide handles everything.
Breakfast and the rest of the morning
A late breakfast
- Inside the fort: 1135 AD serves a royal Rajasthani menu in painted rooms above Jaleb Chowk. It is the one meal we book inside Amber.
- In the town: small shops fry kachori and jalebi in the morning, and the chai stalls on the fort road make a fine cup.
Panna Meena ka Kund
- What it is: a geometric stepwell of criss-cross stairs, a few minutes' walk below the fort.
- Why after sunrise: the light falls into the steps by mid-morning. See our Panna Meena ka Kund guide and stepwells of Rajasthan.
The Anokhi Museum and Jagat Shiromani
The museum: the Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing, in a restored haveli, a small, perfect introduction to block printing.
- The temple: the carved gateway of Jagat Shiromani, in the lanes of old Amer. Shoes off, and a quiet moment.
- Go deeper: our block printing in Bagru morning takes you to the printers themselves.
An Amber day from dawn to dusk
Jaigarh: the soldiers' fort directly above Amber, linked to it by walls. Its ramparts give the best view of the courts you walked in the morning, and it holds the vast Jaivana cannon. See Jaigarh Fort.
Nahargarh: follow the ridge road to Nahargarh Fort for sunset, with the whole grid of Jaipur turning gold below.
- Sunrise
- Maota Lake, then Amber at opening time
- Late morning
- Panna Meena ka Kund and old Amer
- Midday
- Lunch and a rest at your hotel
- Late afternoon
- Jaigarh, for the view down onto Amber
- Sunset
- Nahargarh, above the pink city
- Dinner: back down to a haveli courtyard with folk musicians, or a quiet table on your palace lawn.
- The bigger picture: this is day two of our Jaipur in three nights journey, and of our Jaipur itinerary.
- More forts: our guide to the best forts of Rajasthan ranks Amber among the six we would never skip.
Where to stay for an early start
Closest to Amer
- The Raj Palace and Samode Haveli: on the Amer side of the walled city, which saves valuable minutes before dawn.
- Fairmont Jaipur: on the Delhi road just north of Amer, the closest of the large luxury hotels.
The great garden palaces
- Rambagh Palace and Jai Mahal Palace: further south, so leave a little earlier. Worth it for the gardens you come back to.
- The Oberoi Rajvilas: outside the city to the east, calm and spacious, with a longer drive at dawn.
Amber at sunrise with children
Make it an adventure: torches, a flask of hot chocolate and a promise of jalebi afterwards work wonders.
The best bits for them: the bending ramp, the soldiers' square, the mirror room and the maze of the queens' corridors.
- Keep it short: two hours inside is plenty for young children. Save Jaigarh's cannon for the afternoon.
- Mind the edges: some terraces and ramparts have long drops and low walls. Hold small hands.
- Read more: our Rajasthan with children and travelling with children guides.
Before you go
Buy the composite ticket: one state ticket covers Amber, Hawa Mahal, Jantar Mantar, Albert Hall and Nahargarh, valid for two days. Jaigarh is separate.
Book a licensed guide: almost nothing inside is labelled, and the stories are half the experience.
- Wear shoes with grip: the ramps and floors are polished smooth and slippery when wet.
- Dress for the temple: shoulders and knees covered, and a scarf in your bag.
- Layers in winter: a shawl or jacket for the lake shore, off by nine.
- Water and a hat: for the walk down and the stepwell afterwards.
- Leave the afternoon empty: a sunrise start deserves a long lunch and a rest. Our a Jaipur morning piece has more slow mornings in the city.