Desert Festival of Jaisalmer, Rajasthan India

As the winters dawn in the beautiful city of Jaisalmer, the wait for of great “Desert Festival” begins as well. In the month of February, three days long festival begins and its craze and grandeur is one to envy. It completely enhances the beauty of empty yellow sands of the great grand “Thar Desert” as it fills the air with joy and festivity celebrations. The music, laughter and charm of desert festival are very much enjoyed by every tourist visiting Jaisalmer. This desert festival has lead to promotion of Jaisalmer tourism greatly. The festival is in fact organized by the Jaisalmer tourism authorities for the entertainment of tourist every year.

The tranquil sands of Jaisalmer glitter in molten gold. Rajasthan folk culture is on its all time high as rustic local men and women dressed in costumes sing and dance with great joy. Traditional music is played beautifully and tunes touch heart and souls of tourists. Horse and camel sports, traditional cousins, healthy competition, cultural craft stalls and a huge range of colorful desert belongings welcome you on the Jaisalmer festival tour. Due to all these cultural activities the Jaisalmer tourism is improving day by day.

There are different ways in which the visiting tourists are made part of the celebration. For the entertainment of tourists, dances, tug of war and turban tying competitions are held. The most entertaining and awaited is the Mr. Desert competition. It is so as it is judged on the length of moustaches of the participants. Along with these, the people of Jaisalmer entertained tourist by puppet shows and dance in the cultural songs. The people of Jaisalmer are friendly, calm and warmth and they always welcome tourist as their precious guest. One of the reason of improving or development of Jaisalmer tourism is Jaisalmer people’s nature.

Other highlights of the desert festival are presence of snake charmers, acrobats, puppeteers, and folk dancers. The camels, animals that are the part and parcel of life in desert also show up in the festival. The proud villagers participate with their camels in the camel dances. Camels compete in games like race, acrobats, polo and tug of war. The desert festival is three day show of music, festivity and color. Fire dancers and Gair swaying to conventional tunes are the part of frolic and fun.

All the proud villagers are dressed in their traditional dresses and look their best as they come and enjoy the festivities of desert festival of Jaisalmer. Every year lots of people from different countries like to spend their vacation on this Golden City of India. Spending vacation on Jaisalmer is one of the best and memorable vacations in the life of visitors.

Jaisalmer tourism has indeed made it the best attractions of Jaisalmer but the whole of Rajasthan.

Top 5 Places to See in Jaisalmer Rajasthan

A perfect concoction of intriguing history that is steeped into rich culture and wonderful beauty of the Thar Desert, Jaisalmer is one of the best tourist destinations in India. Nature lovers, history buffs, adventure enthusiasts, honeymoon, and vacation.  There is every ingredient to make you happy and overwhelmed. Unravel the well-kept secrets of Jaisalmer and get intrigued with this royal charm, rugged beauty and sheer efficacy. Listed here are top 5 places to see in Jaisalmer Rajasthan.

1. Jaisalmer Fort (Sonar Quila) Jaisalmer Rajasthan

Jaisalmer Fort locally known as Sonar Quila is one of the largest forts in the world located in Jaisalmer city in Rajasthan. It was built in 1156 AD by the Bhati Rajput ruler Rao Jaisal, from where it originates its name. This fort is popularly known as the Golden Fort by the local people and is one of the most magnificent monuments in the city of Jaisalmer. The fort is standing proudly in the middle of the unending golden sands of Thar Desert; Jaisalmer fort is one of the most prominent tourist attractions of Jaisalmer.

2. Bada Bagh Jaisalmer, Rajasthan

Bada bagh approximately 6 kilometers off Jaisalmer, Bada Bagh is a popular attraction that is frequented by tourists who come to visit the various chatters or royal cenotaphs which exist here. The Jait Sar Tank and the Jait Bandh are also popular attractions to check out while visiting Bada Bagh.

Bada Bagh, also called Barabagh is a garden complex about 6 km north of Jaisalmer on way to Ramgarh, and halfway between Jaisalmer and Lodhruva in the state of Rajasthan in India.

3. Salim Ji ki Haveli Jaisalmer, Rajasthan

Salim Ji ki Haveli is situated at the heart of the Jaisalmer city, near the Jaisalmer railway station. These 300 years old Haveli is named after its owner Salim Singh Mahto and was built on the remains of an older haveli, built in the late 17th century. Salim Singh Mahto was the then prime minister of the princely state with Jaisalmer as its capital. Presently a part of the Haveli is still occupied by the descendent of Salim Singh Mahto. The havelies is situated beside the hills near the Jaisalmer Fort and has a distinct architecture.

4. Village Kuldhara of Jaisalmer is Deserted

18 km west of Jaisalmer Kuldhara named as a village where nearly two centuries graveyard peace. Far from day to night in a single human being is afraid to enter houses ruins.

It is believed that around 120 kilometers Paliwal Brahmins Jaisalmer Kuldhara and 83 other villages in the area, spanning about 500 years was inhabited. Time to leave the village in 1825 the Paliwal Brahmins had cursed this place will be destroyed any inhabitant.

5. Jain Temples of Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer Fort houses 7 Jain temples within its walls; all of them were built between the 15th and 16th centuries. The temple spires are very prominent and can easily be picked out from anywhere in the Fort. Dedicated to different Tirthankars, all the temples are built from the golden-yellow Jaisalmer stone and are connected with each other making it quite confusing to the casual visitor to separate one temple from another. The temples dedicated to Chandraprabhu, Rishabhdev, Sambhavnath and Parsvanath are the among the largest and also with the most impressive carvings. The entrance to the Parsvanath Temple is particularly stunning.

Camel Safari in Jaisalmer, India

Jaisalmer is a small town, with population just over 18 000 it’s easy to explore on foot. A day will be enough to see all of its tourist attractions like the magnificent Jaisalmer fort and the lovely Haveli’s. Yet the reason why to stay in this town longer is camel safaris. There are many tour operators who will gladly arrange a tour in the Thar Desert. The camel safaris are cheap a day in the desert will cost somewhere around 1500 Rs for one person. They are well arranged and the only duty you will have is to enjoy your safari.

A typical camel safari lasts two days; you leave on the morning and come back next day on the afternoon, although a longer trip can be arranged. The good thing is that most hotels will not charge you for the night on safari and that your big backpack can be left in the hotel for safe keeping. There are a couple of popular safari routes in the desert that lead through some villages.

Rajasthan tour operators will show you pictures from the safari with huge sand dunes, don’t be fooled though. The Thar Desert around Jaisalmer is anything, but big sand dunes. Mostly you will see very rocky surface with some vegetation in form of shrubs, cactuses and camel trees. There are sand dunes but they are nowhere as magnificent as the dunes shown in pictures. On the safari most likely you will meet some locals, but they are quite used to western tourists, as the routes are very touristy and most likely you will meet other groups from different tour operators. There are some locals who go around the desert selling Coke and Pepsi at the popular safari rest places.

The longer safaris are most likely to go off the beaten track. The sleeping and eating on the safari is very well organized. When I was on the camel safari there I really enjoyed the food that was cooked on open fire and sleeping on the sand dune under the sky. The guides or camel men as they are sometimes called all speak English and most definitely will take good care of you.

The camels are well kept. Though it gets kind of annoying at the end of the second day to sit and dangle on the camel’s back and people with sea sickness probably will have problems adjusting. In case you can’t take the ride of camel’s back any more, you are free to walk.

The two day camel safari might not be the adventure of your life, still it is a well spent time. You will get to know a little piece of rural India. The nature of the desert is amazingly beautiful and the camel safari itself is a very enjoyable and relaxing activity. It is particularly good when tired of all the monuments, forts and museums the only thing you want is to get away from it all, the camel safari Jaisalmer is a good chance to relax and to get an insight on another side of Indian culture and lifestyle.