Jaipur sits at the centre of a circle of places a day away: the shrine and the lake to the west, the tiger reserves to the south-east and north-east, the stepwell on the Agra road, the painted towns of Shekhawati to the north, and the craft towns on its own edge. Trains serve Ajmer, Sawai Madhopur and Agra; the rest is by road. Distances are from the walled city and times are for a car in normal traffic.
| Place | Distance | Why go |
|---|---|---|
| Ajmer & Pushkar | 135 km west, 2.5 hours | The Dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer, and Pushkar’s Brahma temple and lake; the camel fair in November. |
| Ranthambore | 180 km south-east, 3.5 hours | The tiger reserve; safaris morning and evening; trains to Sawai Madhopur from Jaipur. |
| Abhaneri | 95 km east, 1.5 hours | Chand Baori, the deepest stepwell in India, on the Agra road; the Harshat Mata temple beside it. |
| Sambhar Lake | 80 km west, 1.5 hours | India’s largest inland salt lake; the salt works and the flamingos in winter. |
| Shekhawati | Nawalgarh 140 km, Mandawa 170 km | The painted havelis of the merchant towns; a long day or an overnight. |
| Samode | 40 km north, 1 hour | The Samode Palace hotel and the painted village; a half day. |
| Bagru | 32 km west, under an hour | The block-printing town on the Ajmer road. |
| Sanganer | 16 km south, half an hour | Block printing, handmade paper and the Jain temple. |
| Bhangarh | 85 km south-east, 2 hours | The ruined seventeenth-century town on the Sariska edge; famous for its ghost stories. |
| Sariska | 110 km north-east, 2.5 hours | The tiger reserve near Alwar; the Kankwari fort inside. |
| Tonk | 100 km south, 2 hours | The Nawab’s town; the Sunehri Kothi and the Arabic–Persian research institute. |
| Agra | 240 km east, 4 hours | The Taj Mahal; a long day by road or the train from Jaipur Junction. |
Worth knowing
- Ranthambore safaris need advance booking; the Jaipur–Sawai Madhopur trains take about two hours.
- Pushkar’s camel fair is in Kartik (October–November); book months ahead.
- Abhaneri is on the way to Agra; stop on the road.
- Shekhawati is better as an overnight; Mandawa and Nawalgarh have haveli hotels.
- Start early for anything over a hundred kilometres; the city takes an hour to leave at peak times.
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