Day trip to Chittorgarh from Udaipur
If you are looking for a day trip to Chittorgarh from Udaipur, you are in the right place. This post covers everything on Udaipur to Chittorgarh day trip.
CHITTORGARH (literary meaning the Fort (Garh) of Chittor), is connected by National Highway (NH27 and 48), at a driving distance of 2.5hrs one way, a day trip to Chittorgarh from Udaipur can be easily managed. Amongst the day trips from Udaipur the two most recommended ones are Mt Abu and Chittorgarh. Its a UNESCO world Heritage site and provides a crash course in Mewar history so a highly recommended trip. Its said that when looked at from a bird’s eye view, the fort is seen in the shape of a fish on a hilltop.
We did not do Udaipur to Chittorgarh day trip, rather we started our journey from Kota (place famous for Kota sarees and IIT coaching). Chittorgarh was our first stop on the Rajasthan road trip, en route to Udaipur. The roads are in pretty good shape and flanked by arid deserts on both sides. With limited habitation throughout the way, we met a lot of trucks and bullock carts travelling on the wrong side of the road, probably with a belief that these roads are less travelled.
The little boy from Chittorgarh
We shared a small part of our journey (around 5km) with a small boy who was studying in 4th Class in one of the government schools in a nearby village. He was walking on the road, all ready for going to school and was waving to us in a hope to hitch hike his way to school that day. Apparently his jeep which is supposed to take him to school had gone on another errand so he was planning on walking down 5 km to school. We dropped him close to his school where he could walk down within minutes. What caught our attention was the way he was speaking to us in whatever English he knew. Usage of words like ‘Thank You’ and ‘4th Class’ were spoken in a pretty proper accent. A good start to the journey.
Best time to visit
As is true with almost all of Rajasthan, winters is the best time for Udaipur to Chittorgarh day trip. In fact for any day trips from Udaipur. However, if you want to avoid crowds and steep rates, book in the shoulder season which is October. The weather is pleasant enough to drive with windows rolled down in the early morning and late evening. Most of the places are just beginning to see the tourist inflow and yet to get fully occupied. So in short, its best of both worlds.
If you’re planning to do a longer Rajasthan trip, make sure to check out my posts on Jodhpur and Jaisalmer. You can also explore other day trips from Udaipur like Mt Abu.
History of Chittorgarh
Chittor was the capital of Mewar, ruled primarily by Sisodias and abandoned after it was under siege by Akbar. Its history can be encapsulated almost entirely in the 3 acts of Jauhar that were performed by the Rajput women in this fortress. The first time by Rani Padmini (wife of Rana Ratan Singh fighting against Allaudin Khilji), second time by Rani Karnavati (wife of Rana Bikramjeet Singh) and the last and final time by all the Rajput women when Akbar attacked.
The first Jauhar, by Rani Padmini has some other folklore attached to it around how Allaudin Khilji had actually waged the whole war for Rani Padmini, after being lured by her beauty.
The second jauhar of Chittor is also associated with the incident of Rani Karnavati sending rakhi to Humayun and requesting his help as a brother, when Bahadur Shah (of Gujarat) had besieged the fort. But apparently the help arrived too late and the women performed Jauhar.
Chittorgarh is also famous for its association with some very widely known historical figures of India. The first is, Meera Bai, the famous female Hindu spiritual poetess whose compositions are still popular throughout North India, who was married into the Chittorgarh ruling clan, to Raja Bhojraj.
Another widely revered figure is Panna Dhay – the history goes, that when Panna Dhay (the governess of young Maharana Udai Singh) got to know that his life is in grave danger, she did the heroic act of replacing her own son in place of the prince & carried away the prince to safety in a fruit basket. Consequently it was her own son instead of the prince who got killed by Banbir.
And when one is talking about Rajputs, no discussion can be complete without Maharana Pratap the greatest hero in the eyes of Rajputs of Mewar. He was the son of Rana Udai Singh II and is regarded as a personification of the values Rajputs cherish and die for. He took an oath to spend his life living in the jungles and fighting until he could realize his dream of reconquering Chittorgarh from Akbar (and thus reclaiming the glory of Mewar).
Fort Architecture:
Just like all the forts in Rajasthan, Chittorgarh too has many gates – seven to be precise, also known as Pol (the rajasthani term for a gate)– Padan Pol, Bhairon Pol, Hanuman Pol, Ganesh Pol, Jodla Pol, Laxman Pol and the main entry gate of Ram Pol, which are part of the huge circular wall that surrounds the whole of Chittorgarh fort.
The other key parts of the fort include –
Vijay Stambha –
The huge nine storey tower was built by Maharana Kumbha to commemorate his victory over the Muslim rulers of Malwa and Gujarat in 1440. The tower is 122 ft high and stands on a 10 ft high base. There are sculptures and carvings on the exterior walls of the tower. The tower is visible from any section of the town below. And from the tower top after climbing 157 steps, there is a great view of the surroundings. The inside walls of the tower are carved with images of Gods, weapons and has text in Sanskrit.
Kirti Stambh –
Kirti Stambh is a tower is dedicated to Adinatha, the first of the Jain Tirthankar. It was built by a merchant and is decorated with figures form the Jain pantheon.
Rana Kumbha’s Palace –
Situated near the Vijay Stambh, this is the birthplace of Maharana Udai Singh the founder of Udaipur. His was the life that was heroically saved by the maid Panna Dhay. Rani Meera Bai also lived in this palace. This is the place where Rani Padmini committed jauhar with the other ladies in one of the underground cellars.
Rani Padmini’s Palace –
Rani Padmini’s Palace is the one from which Alauddin Khilji was allowed to watch a reflection of the Rani
Besides these there is a Jain temple in the fort as well (as with almost every other fort city in Rajasthan).
What more to see in Chittorgarh:
Fateh Prakash palace museum within Chittorgarh fort is worthwhile if you have the time
There is also a Meera Temple and Kalika Mata Temple. While we did not visit the temples as we wanted to reach Udaipur in daylight, if you do have time on hand, you can make the most of it and visit Kalika Mata temple, known for its ornate architecture.
Check out this post to know more about the beautiful Jain temples of Rajasthan.
Travel Tips
Time and duration of visit: The fort opens at 9:30am so try to be there as early as possible. Since most of the fort is open, it gets extremely hot and uncomfortable to walk around the fort in the afternoon. Its a 3 hour trip including Fateh Prakash Museum and thus can be done either early morning or evening.
Light and Sound Show: Held daily At 7pm, the visit to fort can be combined with this as well. You can plan to reach the fort after lunch, start with the Fateh Prakash museum first (as its all indoors) and then move onto visiting the fort ending the the 60min long light and sound show. The only challenge is your comfort in driving back to Udaipur after 8:30/9pm in the night.
Guide: Taking a guide for Chittorgarh would help to associate some history and folklore with each of the precincts in the fort, especially if one doesn’t have the time to peer through the guide book.
Note: Due to some unfortunate circumstances, I lost most of the photos from my Chittorgarh trip and the title photo you see on this blog has been taken from the internet.
