What to see in Jaipur in 1 day

Jaipur owes its nickname Pink City to an edict from 1876, when the entire old centre was painted terracotta pink to welcome the Prince of Wales, a colour the city has kept ever since by law.

Capital of Rajasthan and vertex of the so-called Golden Triangle together with Delhi and Agra, it contains royal palaces, a monumental astronomical observatory and a fortress atop a hill at the edge of the city.

The Hawa Mahal, the Palace of Winds, opens the route: the pink honeycomb façade with nine hundred fifty-three small windows, built so that court women could observe the street life without being seen, remains the most photographed image of the city.

A few steps away is the City Palace, still partially the residence of the royal family, with its frescoed courtyards and collections of period weapons and clothing open to visitors.

Next to it rises the Jantar Mantar, the astronomical observatory built in the eighteenth century, UNESCO heritage, with stone and marble instruments including the largest stone sundial in the world.

For lunch, the restaurants around the City Palace or the Johari Bazaar offer the dishes of Rajasthani cuisine, from dal baati churma to laal maas.

From here on the day divides into two possible directions. One reaches the Amber Fort, on the hill just outside the city, reachable by jeep or elephant's back along the final ascent, with its mirror halls and courtyards overlooking an artificial lake.

The other climbs the bazaars of the old city, between the Johari Bazaar of jewelers and the Bapu Bazaar of textiles, where you can bargain for block-printed fabrics and semi-precious stones.

As evening falls, heading back to the center, the restaurants overlooking the Hawa Mahal become the point of reference for dinner, with the pink façade illuminated at sunset.

Hawa Mahal, City Palace, and Jantar Mantar are enough to show Jaipur's royal soul, while an afternoon choice between Amber Fort and the bazaars of the old city flanks it with the monumental or commercial side.

Nahargarh Fort, with its sunset view over the city, and a stop at Agra for the Taj Mahal remain chapters for a second journey. Watching the pink facade of Hawa Mahal light up at sunset remains the frame you take away from Jaipur.