Holi Festival Tour In Jaipur  - 6 Days

Upon arrival at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, we will be greeted by a representative of Himalayan Glacier who will escort us to our designated hotel. After short relaxation and refreshment, upon our discretion, we will make a short excursion around the traditional bazaars as well as few historic and monumental sites in the Indian capital city. Overnight in Delhi.

Early in the morning, we will visit Laxmi Narayan Temple and the Giant Shiva Statue. Then we will come back to our hotel for breakfast. We will then drive to the ‘Eternal Pink City’ – Jaipur, the capital city of Rajasthan. On arrival at Jaipur, we will be transferred to our hotel. In the late afternoon, we will visit and shop at textile industry. Other attractions of Jaipur that we will see are the City Palace of Jaipur, Hawa Mahal (the Wind Palace), Central Museum, Jantar Mantar (Observatory) and Pink city bazaar. Overnight in Jaipur.

After breakfast, we will be transferred to Khasa Kothi to celebrate the festival of color, Holi. This is a Hindu spring festival in India, also known as the festival of sharing love, which signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, the end of winter, thanksgiving day for a good harvest and other bewildering reasons. The department of tourism of the Rajasthan government on this day organizes this festival so that the foreign tourists can enjoy this colorful festival in a safe environment, with live folk performances in the lawns of Khasa Kothi, Jaipur between 10.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. Holi festival lasts for two days starting on the full moon day, which falls somewhere between the end of February and the middle of March. The first day is known as Holika Dahan or Chhoti Holi and the second is called Rangwali Holi Dhuleti, Dhulandi or  Dhulivandan. The second day is celebrated by people throwing, or more politely exchanging colored powder and colored water at each other. Evening is our free leisure time. Overnight in Jaipur.

In the morning, we visit Amer fort, which is the best tourist attraction of Jaipur. The fort, which visitors are able to explore today dates back from the 16^th century and is situated on a natural ridge 11 km north of Jaipur. Then, we continue our scenic drive to Agra.  En route to Agra we will stopover at Fatehpur Sikri, the Mughal’s finest folly and the former imperial capital of the great emperor Akbar. This monument has been described as the world’s most preserved ghost towns. History has it, that Akbar had visited the village of Sikri to consult the Sufi saint Shaikh Salim Chisti, who predicted the birth of an heir to the Mughal throne. When the prophecy  came true and the emperor was blessed with three sons, Akbar built his new capital here, including a stunning mosque and three palaces, one for each of his favorite wives – one a Hindu, one a Muslim and one a Christian. Stroll around and marvel at such graceful buildings as the Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque), the tomb of Salim Chisti, Panch Mahal, Diwan –E – Khas and other palaces. The monuments are examples of the fusion of Islamic architecture with Hindu and Jain decorative art. After arrival in Agra, we will be transferred to our hotel. Overnight in Agra.

After breakfast today, we make a sightseeing tour of Agra, the majesty of the Taj, before driving to Delhi. We visit the legendary Taj Mahal built by the emperor Shah Jahan in loving memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz, who tragically died while giving birth. This wonder of the world is the finest amalgam of love and architecture and is described as the most extravagant monument ever built for love and remains one of India’s most enduring symbols. We also visit the impressive Agra Fort, which houses many fairy-tale palaces such as the Jahangir Palace, Khas Mahal, Diwan-E-Khas, Shish Mahal (Mirror Palace), Anguri Bagh and Nagina Masjid (Gem Mosque). After this, we drive to Delhi. On arrival in Delhi, we visit the popular monuments of Qutab Minar, Lotus temple, India Gate, Parliament House, Birla Temple and Raj Ghat. Transfer in the evening to our hotel. Overnight in Delhi

Our Holi festival tour concludes today. After breakfast at the hotel, a representative of Himalayan Glacier will drop us off to the Indira Gandhi International Airport (approximately two hours prior to our scheduled flight). In case we have an afternoon flight back to Kathmandu, we may do last minute shopping at the bazaars near the hotel premises.