Why these three cities belong together
Jodhpur in red: red sandstone on a lone ridge, its houses washed blue below.
Jaisalmer in yellow: yellow sandstone on a three-peaked hill, so golden at four in the afternoon that the whole town takes its colour from it.
Bikaner in Dulmera red: a fort built on flat ground and carved inside as finely as a jewel box.
- Nights
- Nine, as a loop from Jodhpur
- Pace
- Long drives, each followed by two nights or a soft landing
- Best months
- October to March
- Good for
- Lovers of forts, open space, food and silence
- Starts
- Jodhpur
- Ends
- Khimsar, two hours from Jodhpur Airport
- One desert, three cities: drive between them and you see how different they became.
- Rao Jodha: in 1459 the Rathore chief founded Jodhpur under the fort he called Mehrangarh.
- Rao Bika: his son rode north into the wild country of Jangladesh and founded Bikaner in 1488. Bikaner families still say he did it to answer a joke his father made in open court.
- Rao Karamsji: another son built the fort at Khimsar in 1523, where this journey ends.
- A different clan: Jaisalmer belongs to the Bhati Rajputs, who began their fort in 1156 and grew rich on caravans crossing between Sindh, Persia and the markets of the east.
- Trade routes first: the caravans that made Jaisalmer rich also fed the merchant houses of Bikaner, and the roads between the three were trade routes long before they were highways.
- Still marked: by wells, temples and the chhatris of local heroes.
- The people you meet: the Bishnois who protect the blackbuck, the Manganiyar singers who once sang for Rajput patrons, the camel herders of Bikaner, and the cooks who turned dried desert berries into one of Rajasthan's great dishes.
- Really a loop: fly into Jodhpur, drive west to Jaisalmer and the dunes, north-east to Bikaner, then south through Deshnoke and Nagaur to a last night at Khimsar.
- The secret of the Thar: each long drive ends in a place worth waking up in.
Day by day, at the hour each place is best
- Jodhpur to Jaisalmer
- About five hours
- Jaisalmer to Sam
- About an hour
- Jaisalmer to Bikaner
- Five to six hours, the longest day
- Bikaner to Deshnoke
- About 30 km
- Nagaur to Khimsar
- Under an hour
- Khimsar to Jodhpur Airport
- About two hours
Days 1 to 3: Jodhpur
Arrival: fly in from Delhi or Mumbai. We meet you at arrivals, and you are at your hotel within half an hour.
First evening: rest, then Jaswant Thada, the white marble memorial below the fort, in the late light, when the thin Makrana marble glows.
Dinner: on your hotel terrace with Mehrangarh floodlit above you.
- Mehrangarh at opening: be at Mehrangarh before the coach groups and climb through the seven gates with our guide, pausing at the handprints by Loha Pol.
- A whole morning inside: for the museum and the painted palaces, then down through the Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park while the air is still cool.
- Blue lanes at dusk: a guide who grew up in Brahmpuri walks you to the clock tower and Sardar Market for a hot mirchi bada, a chilli stuffed with spiced potato and fried, and a glass of makhaniya lassi.
- Bishnoi villages: on day three, early, to the south, where blackbuck graze beside the houses and potters and durrie weavers work in their courtyards.
- Umaid Bhawan: the Umaid Bhawan Palace Museum before a long lunch.
- Osian at sunset: about ninety minutes north to the temples of Osian, among the oldest in Rajasthan, and sunset from its small dunes.
- Or stay close: Mandore and its red cenotaphs are nearer.
Days 4 and 5: Jaisalmer
A quiet stepwell: start at Toorji ka Jhalra before leaving mid-morning.
The drive west: about five hours through farming villages and scrub, past Pokaran, with a lunch stop.
Timed for gold: you reach Jaisalmer in the late afternoon, when the fort turns the colour of honey. Our notes on the Jodhpur to Jaisalmer route describe the road.
- Gadisar at sunrise: a rowing boat and tea on the ghats.
- The fort as it wakes: walk up into Jaisalmer Fort with schoolchildren coming down the ramp and women sweeping doorsteps.
- Inside: the Jain temples during morning worship, and the Raj Mahal for the view over the roofs to the desert.
- Haveli lanes: in the late afternoon, from Patwon ki Haveli to Salim Singh ki Haveli.
- Bada Bagh: finish at Bada Bagh as the sun drops behind the royal cenotaphs.
- Evening music: Manganiyar musicians in a courtyard, paid properly and choosing their own songs.
Day 6: Into the Thar at Sam
A slow morning: then out by way of Amar Sagar, the abandoned Paliwal village of Kuldhara and the ruined fort of Khaba.
Camp by four: near Sam, about an hour west of Jaisalmer, resting in the shade until the heat eases.
- Walk the other way: at sunset the main dunes by the road fill with jeeps and loudspeakers, so we take you onto a ridge of your own.
- By the fire: dinner, with a singer if you like, then blankets on the sand.
- Stars: on a moonless night the Milky Way rises over the dunes.
Days 7 and 8: Bikaner
The longest day: back past Jaisalmer and north-east across open desert, five to six hours from town and a little more from the dunes.
Made easy: a packed picnic, chai in a village, and tea on the terrace at Lalgarh as its red stone turns the colour of rose petals.
- Junagarh at opening: Junagarh Fort was built between 1589 and 1594 on flat ground and never taken by siege, so its rooms were never looted.
- The interiors: the gold of the Anup Mahal and the painted rain clouds of the Badal Mahal are among the finest in Rajasthan.
- The old city: after lunch and a rest, the carved Rampuria havelis and the Bhandasar Jain temple, with bhujia hot from the pan.
- Camels at dusk: watch the herds come home at the National Research Centre on Camel and taste camel-milk tea, which children never forget.
Day 9: Deshnoke, Nagaur and Khimsar
Karni Mata early: the Karni Mata temple at Deshnoke, about thirty kilometres south, while it is quiet.
Bring socks: you enter barefoot among the sacred rats.
- Nagaur: at Nagaur, Ahhichatragarh, the fort of the hooded cobra, has been restored with great care by the Mehrangarh Museum Trust. Give its painted palaces and water channels a couple of hours.
- Khimsar: under an hour beyond, for a late lunch at the fort and sleep through the afternoon heat.
- Blackbuck at dusk: out to the dunes as they come into the fields, a calm last night after a week of big sights.
Day 10: Home from Jodhpur
Breakfast on the ramparts: slowly.
- To the airport: about two hours by road to Jodhpur Airport for your flight to Delhi or Mumbai and on home.
- A late flight: we keep a room or a table for you in Jodhpur so the last afternoon is not spent waiting.
What you see from the car
West of Jodhpur: the farms thin out and the land opens into scrub, with the khejri tree standing alone in the fields.
The khejri: the tree the desert depends on, for fodder, shade and the long sangri beans that go into ker sangri.
On the road: women in bright odhnis carrying water, herds of goats crossing with a boy behind them, and village tanks where camels stop to drink.
- Our drivers: know the dhabas with the cleanest kitchens and the best chai, and when to stop for a photograph without being asked.
- Jaisalmer to Bikaner, the emptiest road: long stretches of sand and grass with nothing but a few wind turbines, then a village of round huts, then nothing again.
- Where the Thar makes sense: many guests tell us afterwards that this was the day they understood it.
- The final leg: from Bikaner south through Deshnoke and Nagaur is cattle and farming country, home of the white Nagauri bullock and the fenugreek Indian kitchens call kasuri methi.
- Never in the dark: drives begin after an early sight and a good breakfast, and lunch is a proper stop.
- The car: quiet and air-conditioned, with water, snacks and a driver who has made the journey many times.
- The numbers: our guide to road distances and drive times, and our page on private chauffeur journeys for how we choose drivers.
Where you'll stay
Jodhpur: a maharaja's home or a haveli under the fort
Umaid Bhawan Palace: built between 1929 and 1943 and still the royal family's home in one wing. Art Deco rooms, gardens and a long view to the fort make it the grandest start.
- RAAS Jodhpur: directly under the walls of Mehrangarh, a few minutes on foot from the stepwell and the clock tower.
- Ajit Bhawan: a family-run palace with an easy, homely feel.
- Bal Samand Lake Palace: for families who want gardens to roam.
Jaisalmer: a modern fort or a desert camp
Not inside the fort: the water used by hotels there seeps into the hill and has damaged its foundations.
- Suryagarh: a fort built in the old manner on the Sam road about thirteen kilometres from town, with courtyards, a pool and a spa. For families and anyone who wants space near town.
- The Serai: SUJAN's camp on private desert scrub off the Jodhpur road, about forty minutes out. For couples and guests who want silence and firelight.
Sam: one night on the sand
Camps vary enormously: from rows of tents beside the road to a handful of large suites spaced across the dunes.
- Only those we've checked: set back from the main road, with private bathrooms and hot water, fresh food, acoustic music that ends at a civilised hour, and staff from the surrounding villages.
- The most romantic night: a private camp on a dune with a cook, a fire and proper beds.
- What we look for: our guide to luxury desert camps.
Bikaner: palaces without the crowds
Laxmi Niwas Palace: part of the Lalgarh complex built by Sir Samuel Swinton Jacob, the grandest stay in the city, with carved red sandstone and period rooms.
- Narendra Bhawan: once the home of the last maharaja, stylish and theatrical, with a rooftop pool.
- Bhanwar Niwas: a Rampuria family haveli in the old city, so you sleep inside the carved stone you came to see.
Khimsar: a fort to close the loop
Khimsar Fort: at the edge of the desert since 1523, run as a heritage hotel with the family.
- A comfortable last night: its pool, gardens and newer rooms, and the dunes nearby for one more desert sunset.
- Smaller forts: Rohet Garh and Chandelao Garh are both an easy drive from the airport.
When to go, and what each month trades
The only time we run it: October to March.
October and November: warm by day and clear, with the monsoon dust washed out of the air.
December and January: cold at night, close to freezing in the dunes. Pack a down jacket for the camp and a shawl for the fort ramparts at dawn.
- Season
- October to March only
- Our favourite
- February and early March
- Coldest
- December and January, below zero recorded in Bikaner
- Hottest
- May and June, Bikaner has hit 49.5 degrees
- Busiest
- Christmas and New Year
- February and early March: warm days, mild nights and the softest light of the year for photographs.
- From April: the heat builds fast. In May and June Jaisalmer regularly passes 45 degrees, most camps close and the drives become hard on everyone.
- The monsoon: brings little rain this far west. The desert turns briefly green, but it is humid and many camps stay shut until autumn.
- Month by month: our best time to visit Rajasthan guide and the city pages for Jodhpur and Jaisalmer.
- October festivals: the Rajasthan International Folk Festival fills Mehrangarh with music close to the full moon, and the Marwar Festival follows at Sharad Purnima.
- January: the Bikaner Camel Festival brings decorated camels, races and a famous moustache contest.
- January or February: the Nagaur Cattle Fair is held in the Hindu month of Magh, and Khimsar makes a calm base for it.
- February: the Jaisalmer Desert Festival runs for three days around the Magh full moon, ending on the dunes at Sam. Rooms sell out early.
- Christmas and New Year: the busiest weeks of the year for desert camps, booked months ahead.
Make it yours
With less time
Seven nights: drop the night at Khimsar and one night in Jodhpur.
- Or a gentler week: our Under the Thar Sky breaks the drive to Jaisalmer with a night at the dunes of Manvar.
- No shorter: the desert punishes a rushed timetable.
With more time
Twelve nights or more: add a day in the Desert National Park for the great Indian bustard.
- Quieter dunes: a night at Khuri instead of Sam.
- Via Barmer: travel from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer by way of Barmer, for the Kiradu temples and the appliqué work of its villages.
- Leave the loop: from Bikaner go east through Tal Chhapar and the painted towns of Shekhawati to Jaipur or Delhi.
For families
What children love: the cannon and the armoury at Mehrangarh, the biplane in Junagarh, the camel farm, and the rats of Deshnoke if they are not squeamish.
- Kind camel walks: short and gentle, on the dunes with owners we know.
- Easier days: hotels with pools, and a longer stop to split the Jaisalmer to Bikaner day.
- More: our page on travelling with children.
For couples
A room facing the fort: at Umaid Bhawan.
- Two nights at The Serai: instead of Jaisalmer and Sam.
- A dune of your own: a private dinner with a fire and a Manganiyar singer, well away from the camps.
- Stars: our stargazing evening with a telescope on a moonless night.
For repeat visitors
Slow down in the villages: a morning with the Bishnoi families.
- Horses and weavers: ride Marwari horses at Rohet, and sit with the durrie weavers of Salawas.
- Raptors in winter: vultures and steppe eagles at Jorbeer outside Bikaner.
- The Nagaur fair: time the trip for it and you will see a Rajasthan few visitors meet.
How we look after you
One chauffeur, the whole loop: the same calm person drives you from the first morning to the last, in a private car.
Local guides: a Brahmpuri man for Jodhpur's lanes, a Jaisalmer guide whose family still visits friends inside the fort, and a Bikaner guide who knows which havelis open their doors.
Airport to airport: we meet you at Jodhpur Airport and see you off there at the end.
- Flights and trains when they help: Jaisalmer's airport runs seasonal winter flights, and overnight trains connect it with Jaipur and Delhi, so guests short of time can fly or sleep their way out of the desert.
- Booked in advance: every permit, safari and festival seat.
- Chosen ourselves: the camel owners, musicians and camps.
- Your planner on WhatsApp: from the first conversation to the drive home.
- No published prices: no two journeys are the same. Tell us how you like to travel, and we send a quote after one conversation.
- How we plan: our pages on getting around Rajasthan and what a luxury Rajasthan journey costs.
Before you go
Carry your passport: or a copy. The roads west lead towards border areas, and checkpoints may ask for identity documents.
Daylight driving only: cattle rest on warm tarmac at night, and camels and nilgai cross without warning, so every long leg ends before dark.
- Jodhpur to Osian
- About 69 km, ninety minutes
- Jodhpur to Rohet
- About 40 km, under an hour
- Jodhpur to Manvar
- About 110 km, two hours
- Jaisalmer to Khuri
- About 45 km, an hour
- Kuldhara
- About 18 km from Jaisalmer
- Pack for two climates: a down jacket for the camp and the ramparts at dawn, light layers for noon.
- A large scarf: for the sun and the wind-blown sand.
- Temple manners: leave shoes at the door, leather outside the Jain temples, and bring socks for Karni Mata.
- Ask before photographing: people in the villages and the camel herders, and offer to show them the picture.
- Kind camel rides: short, gentle and with owners we know. Decline the cheap offers by the roadside dunes.
Who will love it, and who should choose another journey
Big skies and old stone: you are moved by both.
Food and people: you like to eat well and talk to people.
A fair trade: you are happy to swap a few long drives for nights in places very few travellers see properly.
- Who it suits: photographers, couples who like silence, families with curious children, and anyone who has done the Golden Triangle and wants to see where the Rajput kingdoms began.
- Not right if: you want lakes and romance, dislike time in a car, or this is your only trip to India and you want the Taj Mahal.
- For water and palaces: choose Mewar Lakes and Temples.
- For a first look at India: choose Golden Triangle and Udaipur.
- The desert in a shorter week: choose Under the Thar Sky.
- Unsure: tell us, and we will say honestly which one suits you.
