In Udaipur, the visitor finds his dream of India come true for the city combines real beauty with picturesque associations of a great and glorious past. It stands in a valley, amid green hills on the banks of the wide blue lake Pichola. On little islands in the lake, from the water's edge rises marble Palace in pure white which glistens like a fairy castles. Crowning the ridge, in which the city clusters, along the shores of the lake is the Palace of the Maharana. Within the palace is all the magnificent views of the panorama below.

Udaipur is a city in Rajasthan, India. It is the historic capital of the former kingdom of Mewar, and the administrative headquarters of Udaipur District.Udaipur is famous around the world as the City Of Lakes or Venice of East. The Pichola Lake, Udai Sagar, Fateh Sagar and Swaroop Sagar in this city are considered some of the most beautiful lakes in the state.Fateh Sagar contains a small island, which contains USO, or Udaipur solar observatory.

It is known for its Rajput-era palaces. Particularly famous is the Lake Palace, which entirely covers a small island in the Pichola Lake. Many of the palaces, like Lake Palace and Fateh Prakash Palace, have been converted into luxury hotels.

Udaipur was the capital of the Rajput kingdom of Mewar, ruled by Ranas of the Sisodia clan. The ancient capital of Mewar was Chittor or Chittorgarh, located on the Banas River northeast of Udaipur. Legend has it that Rana Udai Singh II came upon a hermit while hunting in the foothills of the Aravalli Range. The hermit blessed the king and asked him to build a palace on the spot and it would be well protected. Udai Singh established a residence there. In 1568 the Mughal emperor Akbar captured Chittor, and Udai Singh moved the capital to the site of his residence, which became the city of Udaipur. As the Mughal empire weakened, the Sisodia ranas, and later maharanas, reasserted their independence and recaptured Chittor, but Udaipur remained the capital of the state, with became a princely state of British India in 1818. After India's Independence in 1947, the Maharaja of Udaipur acceded to the Government of India, and Mewar was integrated into India's Rajasthan state.

The City Palace

City Palace is imperial with its multicoloured mosaics, mirror work inlaid tiles and roof gardens. Courts, fountains, apartments and gardens embellish them and decorated with arabesques of coloured stones, they are startling pleasure palaces, a rich experience that can now be captured as they have been converted into modern resorts.

Lake Pichola

Maharana Udai Singh II extended the serene Lake Pichola and constructed a masonry dam (Badipol), about 4 km long and 3 km wide, it is not deep - it often dries up in times of severe summers. Fortunately, this doesn't happen often. The City Palace lies by the eastern shores of the Pichola. Here, you can wander along the bathing and washing ghats by the lakeside. Pichola has two islands - Jagniwas and Jagmandir. Boat shuttles to and from the City Palace jetty (Bansi Ghat) are popular.

Lake Pichola Lake Palace

Jag Niwas, the Lake Palace, is the most prominent of these and rivals one of the most luxurious apartments in the world. Laxmi Niwas and Shiv Niwas are smaller palaces, but exquisite in detail and idyllically located.

Other sightseeing of Udaipur includes visits to Sahelion ki Bari, a drive around Fateh Sagar Lake, Jagdish Temple and Gulab Niwas Garden.

By Air

Well connected with Delhi, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Mumbai, Aurangabad airports.

By Rail

The railhead here is well linked to Delhi, Ahmedabad, Chittaurgarh, Jaipur railheads.

By Road

Ahmedabad 262 km, Bombay 739 km, Delhi 670 km, Jaipur 407 km, Chittorgarh 115 km and Mount Abu 185 km. The roads are well connected.

Udaipur has countless shops and many interesting local crafts. Udaipur is famous for producing furniture covered with silver and inlaid with mother of pearl and bone. Traditional Rajput-Mughal-style miniature paintings in a variety of mediums, such as bone, paper, silk, marble, and wood are other major attractions. A plethora of items like folk toys, colourful tie-dye sarees and clothes, turbans, hand painted fabrics, silver Jewellery, wall hangings and miniature paintings in Rajput Style are the favourite buys. The beautiful images of Gods and Goddesses made in the nearby Molalla village near Nathdwara are not to be missed.