Amber, Jaipur

	Amber, Jaipur
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On the crest of a rocky hill behind Maota Lake, 11km north of Jaipur, the Rajput stronghold of Amber was the capital of the Kuchwaha Rajputs from 1037 until 1728. Fortified by natural hills, high ramparts and a succession of gates along a cobbled road, Amber's magnificent palaces are distinctly Rajput, but it's clear that Moghul ideas crept in to influence the design. The practice of covering walls with mosaics of mirrors is purely Moghul, first introduced to India at Agra and Fatehpur Sikri.

It's worth visiting Amber independently, as there's so much to see; tour groups rarely get enough time to view the entire compound, let alone to scramble into the village behind it, dotted with fascinating temples and ruins.

To avoid the big bus parties, get here early in the day. Regular public buses to Amber (#113) leave from outside Jaipur's Hawa Mahal, stopping on the main road below the palaces, where there's a tourist office.

From there you can either enjoy a pleasant twenty-minute uphill walk, take a jeep for Rs75 (up to four people), or waddle like the royals of yesteryear on an elephant for Rs300 (again, four people). For a cheaper, longer elephant ride, wait around the entrance to the palace complex on the main road at end of the afternoon, when the mahoots head home to the "elephant sleeping place" near the Jal Mahal palace. You can hitch a ride with them, arriving at the lakeside shortly before sunset.
Amber Palace