The Golden City

Jaisalmer Tour Packages

1156

Fort founded

40 km

To Sam dunes

Oct–Mar

Best season

A city built entirely of golden sandstone, on the last road before the Thar takes over. Jaisalmer's fort is not a monument you tour and leave — several thousand people still live inside it. Below the walls stand merchant havelis carved like lacework, and forty kilometres west the dunes begin.

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Most Booked · Marwar & Thar

4 Days Jodhpur & Jaisalmer Tour Package

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from ₹9,999Double SharingView →

The Classic Route

Jaipur, Jodhpur & Jaisalmer Tour Package

Pink, blue, gold — the three cities that made Rajasthan famous, in one clean westward line. …

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Places to visit in Rajasthan — a Rajput fort palace at golden hour

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Rangeelo Rajasthan

The colour
behind the forts

Sandstone and indigo photograph beautifully — but this is what the place feels like.

Sonar Qila — the golden sandstone Jaisalmer Fort at sunset

Carved sandstone facade of a merchant haveli in Jaisalmer

Camel silhouettes on the Sam sand dunes of the Thar desert

Swiss tents at a desert camp near Jaisalmer at dusk

A camel caravan crossing the dunes at sunset

Sonar Qila

A fort where
people still live

Rawal Jaisal founded the fort on Trikuta Hill in 1156, and it never emptied. Roughly three to four thousand people live inside the walls today — in houses, temples, guesthouses and shops packed along lanes barely wide enough for a motorbike. Walking in at seven in the morning, before the shops open, is one of the great experiences in India.

It is also fragile. The fort was built for a few hundred residents and its medieval drainage was never meant to carry modern water use; conservationists have flagged the strain for years. Tread lightly, buy from the shops inside if you want to help, and remember you are walking through somebody's street.

The havelis

Carved sandstone
in the lanes below

Jaisalmer's merchants grew rich on the caravan routes and spent it on stone. Patwon Ki Haveli is not one mansion but a cluster of five, built in the early 19th century by a brocade trader for his sons, and its façades are the most photographed in the city.

Salim Singh Ki Haveli, with its distinctive arched upper storey, and Nathmal Ki Haveli, carved by two brothers who worked from opposite ends and never quite matched in the middle, are both worth the short walk. Go in the late afternoon when the sandstone turns amber.

✓Patwon Ki Haveli — a cluster of five early-19th-century mansions
✓Salim Singh Ki Haveli — the famous arched upper storey
✓Nathmal Ki Haveli — two brothers, two halves, deliberately mismatched
✓Gadisar Lake — the old rainwater reservoir, ringed with shrines

The desert

Sam, Khuri
and the dunes

Everyone ends up on a dune. Sam, about 40 km west, is the big one: large camps, camel and jeep rides, folk musicians and dancers, and a proper crowd for sunset. Khuri, about 45 to 50 km south-west, is quieter, more of a village, with smaller camps and space to hear the wind.

Beyond the dunes are Kuldhara, the village about 18 km away that was abandoned overnight in the 19th century and left standing, and Bada Bagh, a hillside of royal cenotaphs about 6 km north that is best at sunrise. Longewala and the Tanot Mata temple lie further out towards the border; they need permits and identification and are subject to army clearance, so tell us early if you want them.

Place	Distance from Jaisalmer	Why go
Sam Sand Dunes	about 40 km	Camel and jeep safari, folk music, desert camps, sunset
Khuri Dunes	about 45–50 km	Quieter village setting, smaller camps, fewer people
Kuldhara	about 18 km	Abandoned 19th-century village, left standing
Bada Bagh	about 6 km	Royal cenotaphs on a hillside — go at sunrise

Sam Sand Dunes

Distance from Jaisalmer: about 40 km
Why go: Camel and jeep safari, folk music, desert camps, sunset

Khuri Dunes

Distance from Jaisalmer: about 45–50 km
Why go: Quieter village setting, smaller camps, fewer people

Kuldhara

Distance from Jaisalmer: about 18 km
Why go: Abandoned 19th-century village, left standing

Bada Bagh

Distance from Jaisalmer: about 6 km
Why go: Royal cenotaphs on a hillside — go at sunrise

Most people pair Jaisalmer with Jodhpur. Our most-booked package gives you both cities, the havelis and a Sam dunes sunset in four days.

See the 4-day Jodhpur–Jaisalmer package →

Getting here

How to reach
Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer has an active railway station with overnight services from Delhi and Jaipur, and the trains are the civilised way to arrive. The city also has an airport, but commercial flights are seasonal — they typically run only through the winter months — so check current schedules before you build a plan around flying in.

By road it is about 285 km from Jodhpur, roughly five hours on an excellent, empty highway. That drive is the standard approach and it is genuinely enjoyable.

A local Rajasthan team

Drivers and guides from Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Udaipur who know which fort gate to enter first and when the light on the sandstone is best.

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Good to Know

Questions,
answered

Two full days is right: one for the fort, the havelis and Gadisar Lake, and one for the dunes with a desert-camp night, plus a morning for Kuldhara and Bada Bagh. Most people arrive from Jodhpur, which makes a comfortable four-day trip in total.

Yes, and one of very few in the world. Founded in 1156 by Rawal Jaisal, Sonar Qila still houses roughly three to four thousand residents inside its walls. Its medieval drainage is under real strain from modern water use, so visit gently.

Sam, about 40 km away, is the classic — large camps, camel and jeep rides, folk music and a crowd at sunset. Khuri, about 45 to 50 km out, is quieter and more village-like. First-timers and families generally prefer Sam; couples and photographers often prefer Khuri.

Sometimes. Jaisalmer has an airport, but commercial passenger flights are seasonal and typically operate only through the winter months, so do not assume a year-round service. The railway station is active and well connected, and the overnight trains from Delhi and Jaipur are a good option.

It is held each February, around the full moon. Expect camel races, folk performances and a very full city — book accommodation well in advance if your dates fall in that window.

They sit close to the border and require permits and photo identification, and access is subject to army clearance that can change at short notice. We can arrange it, but tell us early and treat it as provisional rather than guaranteed.

October to March. The Thar is brutally hot from April to June. December and January are pleasant by day and genuinely cold at night, so pack a warm layer if you are sleeping at a dune camp.

From ₹9,999 per person on double sharing. What moves the figure is your camp and hotel category — a standard Swiss tent and a luxury dune camp are very different things — along with group size and season. Send us your dates for an exact quote.

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