| Day
01 |
| Travel from Ahmedabad
to Palitana (4 hours drive). Spend
the evening at the Jain museums
and handicraft markets of Palitana
town. Stay in spacious, antique-furnished
rooms of Vijay Vilas, a 1906 AD
palatial countryhouse owned and
run by the grandson of the Prince
of Palitana. The Indian meals
are home-cooked and supervised
by the royal family ensuring hygine
and quality. |
| Day 02 |
| Early morning ascend
to the Jain Temple complex atop
Shatrunjaya Hill over Palitana.
One of the most important Jain
pilgrimages in India, the Palitana
Jain Complex is an impressive
site with about 863 temples at
a single site. Tour the temples
and see intricately carved facades,
painted interiors and jeweled
idols. |
| Travel after lunch
to Gondal where you will stay
at Orchard Palace, a 19th century
palatial mansion of the Maharaja
of Gondal. Here, you can visit
the Naulakha Palace museum (The
Maharaja's private collection
of silverware, brassware, hand-painted
wooden toys, and other princely
relics are housed in this impressive
1748 AD palace), Swaminarayan
Temple, Bhuvaneshwari Temple,
Ayurvedic Pharmacy and Hospital,
handicraft emporia and the silver
bazaar. At the Orchard Palace,
see the Maharaja's fleet of vintage,
classic and sports cars, horse-drawn
carriages and royal rail saloon.
|
| Day 03
|
| Drive to the textile
town of Jetpur known for its block-prints
and then to Junagadh where you
can see the ancient Uparkot Fort,
the Maqbara royal mausoleum complexes,
two museums one of them housed
in a palace, Narsingh Mehta's
memorial, Buddhist caves and Ashoka's
rock eddicts. |
| Arrive at Gir and
stay at Maneland Jungle Lodge/Gir
Safari Lodge/Green Trails Lion
Safari Camp. |
| Day 04
|
| Morning and evening
drives in Gir to look for the
Asiatic lion, leopard, sambar
and spotted deer, antelopes and
gazelle, wild boar and marsh crocodile.
Gir is also known for its attractive
birds. Between the drives, visit
the temples of Somnath, including
one of the 12 jyotirlingas. Stay
as on day-3. |
| Day 05 |
| Morning visit to
Mt Girnar, a 3660-ft high peak
covered with Hindu and Jain Temples.
Return for evening drive in Gir.
Stay as on day-3 & 4. |
| Day 06 |
| Travel to Jamnagar
and visit the bandhini factories/shops
and the markets. Jamnagar has
many Jain and Hindu Temples. Enjoy
seeing the sunset at Khijadiya
Bird Sanctuary. Stay at Hotel
President. |
| Day 07 |
| Day trip to Dwarka,
one of the seven holy cities of
India and one of the four important
dham yatras. See the many temples
of Dwarka. Return to Hotel President.
|
| Day 08 |
| Travel to Dasada.
Enjoy the experience of a cross-desert
drive in open-jeeps over the saline
plains of the Rann of Kutch, a
geographically unique landscape,
and watch endangered wildlife
like the Asiatic wild ass, antelopes
and gazelles. Sunset at a lake
that attracts flamingos, pelicans
and cranes in flocks of several
thousand. Stay at Rann Riders,
a village-theme resort with a/c
cottages featuring attached baths.
|
| Day 09 |
| Drive from Dasada
to Danta via the Sun Temple of
Modhera, the Stepwell of Patan,
the historic town of Vadnagar
known for its torana, gateways,
temples, Tana-Riri memorial and
Naggar Brahmini havelis, and the
Jain temple of Taranga. Stay at
Bhavani Villa, a hilltop palatial
heritage hotel run by the Maharana
and Maharani of Danta. |
| Day 10 |
| Visit the Shaktipith
of Ambaji and the Jain complex
of Kumbhariyaji. Return to Ahmedabad.
|
Package Destinations: