Best places to visit in Jaisalmer

This post covers the best places to visit in Jaisalmer, a UNESCO world heritage site and a beautiful one at that, with yellow sandstone Shonar Kila (Jaisalmer fort) surrounded by old havelis  and temple complexes with intricate lattice work and carvings.

This post includes best things to do in Jaisalmer incuding the desert safari in Jaisalmer:

1. How to reach Jaisalmer
2. Places to visit
3. Going around in Jaisalmer
4. Places to eat
5. Where to stay
6. Shopping
7. Experiencing culture 

Our route: Jodhpur – Ossian – Jaisalmer – Tanot – Jodhpur

This trip was part of our longer road trip in Rajasthan where we covered Jaipur, Ajmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Kota, Mt Abu, Ranakpur, Dilwara, Ossian and Jaisalmer.

In the northern part of India, Jaisalmer could very well be a successful example of electrification through Wind mills. The electrification of far flung villages amidst the desert has been made possible by means of the wind mills to a great extent. Similar to the power story, canal water is providing for the water requirements of this arid desert.

How to reach Jaisalmer

Direct flights have started from Delhi and Jaipur to Jaisalmer airport (17km from the main city/ fort).
Other way to reach would be to fly to Jodhpur airport which is well connected with Mumbai, Delhi, Udaipur, Bangalore amongst other cities, through regular flights. You can easily find a lot of cab rental service on sites like Makemytrip etc and even local taxi drivers if you happen to know any, for the trip from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer.
There are other self driving options in Rajasthan like zoomcar which can be hired starting from Jaipur/ Jodhpur and works all across the state

Places Visited

• Ossian Temple (dedicated to Goddess Ossian): You could skip this one if short on time
• Sunset Desert safari in the sand dunes
• Jaisalmer Fort
• Patwon ki haveli
• Lodurva Jain Temples
• Drive to Tanot Rai and Tanot temple (dedicated to Goddess Tanot)

Ossian Mata Mandir –

This temple complex is not one of the best places to visit in Jaisalmer, and I have included it more because of historical significance of this temple. The ‘kuldevi’ of many a Rajasthani households, the Ossian Temple complex actually has two main temples – the Ossian Mata temple and the Sun temple (made with an inspiration from the Sun temple at Konark). While the Ossian temple is very well maintained due to a huge influx of worshippers, the Sun temple has been deserted and left to perish in one corner alongside with stray herd. So much so, that people have built their houses having the walls adjoining the Sun temple. The sight ensures the onlooker that India’s cultural and religious heritage is in peril (Mandore Gardens, Jaisalmer’s sinking Shonar Killa and now the Sun temple at Ossian).

Sunset desert safari at the Sam sand dunes –

The desert safari in Jaisalmer is definitely one of the best things to do in Jaisalmer. There are 2 options in the desert safari: camel back and a jeep. It is an open jeep safari and is quite a bumpy ride so may not be suitable for people with back issues.
A camel back sunset safari is also a good way to experience the dunes (albeit smaller ones) at a slow pace. Preferable to stay in the desert camp for one night to experience the full breadth (folk entertainment of Kalbelia, local delicacies, experience of camping in a desert).
One can plan to reach Jaisalmer in the afternoon, check in the camp, start with the safari and stay overnight here.

Jaisalmer Fort – Shonar Killa (The Golden Fort)

Made famous by Satyajit Ray, Shonar Killa has to be the best place to visit in Jaisalmer. If you are into history and forts, this fort will not disappoint you. Almost a 3hr walk, the fort is not exactly stroller friendly so if you’re with an infant, a baby carrier is better.
Both an audio guide and a regular guide do justice to the fort. Either would cover the good view points, history, photography points and details about the architecture and the fort. Known as “Shonar Killa” after the famous Satyajit Ray movie around this fort, the fort is entirely made of yellow sandstone.
The Jaisalmer fort is a living fort (people still reside inside the fort and not just that there are hotels, shops and restaurants inside the fort). This fact combined with the fact that yellow sandstone is a soft stone (due to lack of proper drainage to keep the fort safe) is leading to the Jaisalmer fort sinking. A government intervention is critical to preserve this fortress. Hence while walking around in this fortress is one of the best things to do in Jaisalmer, besides the deser safari in Jaisalmer’s Thar Desert, too many tourists will not do good to this sinking fort.

The yellow sandstone, being a soft stone that it is, is very easy to work on. Thus one sees beautiful lattice work in Jharokhas all over Jaisalmer (fort, temples, old havelis and almost every other window one looks at). Carving, so intricate, just takes your breath away.

Within the fort premises, is a Jain temple (as must have been expected by now), which again is a thing of beauty and hence a joy to visit. Opens early in the morning (when there is practically no tourist rush, thus a good time to visit). These temples date back to the 12^th – 15^th Century and are dedicated to two Tirthankars – Rishabhdevji and Sambhavdevji. The whole complex houses temples of both marble and yellow sandstone. Unlike the other Jain temples in the region, these open only upto 12:00 noon.

Patwon ki Haveli – Depicting erstwhile splendour of Indian merchants

Two of the most famous havelis in Jaisalmer include Patwon ki haveli and Salim Singh ji ki haveli. The latter is now closed to tourists. The former is almost a mini palatial palace in itself. The Patwon ki haveli has 5 mini havelis, of which one is still being used by the owners for residential purposes. The rest have been converted into museums. The Patwon ki haveli no more has the paintings on its walls that most of the websites talk about. Rather most of it has been or is being re done. The true treasures in these havelis are the everyday items used by the people in old days – the utensils, wide variety of strong, very creative and yet artistic locks, centuries old sewing machine, ornately carved furniture, game of Chaupar (the game of Ancient India – played since the Mahabharata times) and the architectural splendour of these havelis. Taking a guide is recommended as they can bring the history alive and make it enjoyable.

Lodurva Jain Temples – Timeless Beauty in Yellow Sandstone

Made in the shape of a giant lantern, this Jain temple complex is entirely carved out of yellow sandstone and similar to the other architectural beauties of Jaisalmer, this temple is also full of lattice work.

While most of the Jain temples seen so far, had a carving depicting the Kalpa Vriksha in the main sanctum somewhere, this temple has a whole structure outside the main chamber, dedicated to the Kalpavriksha.

Tanot Temple –  Protector of the realm

Just 20km from the Indo Pak border, this temple is the last point (from the side of Jaisalmer) upto which the civilians can go. It is around a 2.5 – 3 hr drive from Jaisalmer, the road is in excellent condition and most of it is deserted except for the occasional presence of military vehicles. The whole way from Jaisalmer to Tanot, is flanked by huge sand dunes (part of the Thar Desert) on both the sides. There are very few establishments some of which seem to be nomadic.

This place is also very close to the battle site of Longewala of Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The local people and the military both have a staunch faith in the temple and the deity of the temple, which stems from the incident which had happened in the Indo Pak war. During the war, Pakistani Army dropped several bombs targeting the temple but none of the bombs could fall on the temple and the ones in the vicinity of the temple did not explode.

After the war the temple management was handed over to Border Security Force of India. Till date Border Security Force Jawans man the temple. The jawans check the visitors for some identification proof. The temple also has a museum which has collections of the unexploded bombs dropped by Pakistan.

Going around Jaisalmer

The Jaisalmer Fort and Patwon ki haveli are walking distance (500mts) from each other. The desert safari camp is around 2km from the fort. Lodurva Jain temple complex is a bit farther away (16km) from the fort and Tanot Rai temple is around 120km from the fort (2hrs driving distance)

Stay

Rajasthan Desert Safari camp on the first day at the sand dunes – the camp was good but its more enjoyable if stayed in a group as then one can enjoy more activities apart from just the kalbelia dance and camel back ride. Jaisalmer is dotted with small haveli homestays within the fort and we stayed in one such place to get a homely feel and to be close to the local culture. Hotel Srinathji Palace – this hotel is located within the Jaisalmer fort and was an erstwhile haveli of one of the businessmen in the state of Marwar

Restaurants

Trio – a good covered roof top restaurant, good food and nice ambience. Trying to find something out of ordinary (in terms of food) especially for vegetarians was futile and Trio was a good find.

Shopping – 

You can shop for exquisite handicrafts with very fine craftsmanship, particular to Jaisalmer, from dozens of shops within the narrow lanes of Jaisalmer fort. I have created a list below from my own experiences of shopping in Jaisalmer:

Yellow fossil stone: Known for its cooling properties and health quotient (not sure where it gets that from). Hawkers sell these stones in myriad shapes (pyramidal, regular stone, circle etc) and you can even find small utensils (like bowls) made of this stone. The usage spectrum goes from placing it in the house for peace and prosperity to making yogurt in the bowl for healing properties. Camel leather bags and footwear (jutti), Carved objects in wood, marble and metal: We had shopped for a lot of this in Udaipur already so I did not buy much from Jaisalmer.

Silver jewellery: some of the best that you will find here. Be ready to see really large neck pieces, earrings and hand bracelets inspired from the nomadic culture of Thar. Motifs largely remain the same throughout Rajasthan along with small bells on the sides and intricate jaali work. A lot of silver jewellery is in antique finish especially the ones with the most intricate work

This list however shouldn’t stop you from looking for more. Bargaining is a rule (as with all street markets in Asia).

Experiencing Culture

Food, folk entertainment and home-stays are just some of the ways of experiencing culture.

On our way to Tanot from Jaisalmer, we picked one of the desert huts we found and randomly decided to go inside and meet with the people staying there. The 2 minute chat was an experience in itself as it gave us a peek into their lives and their uncomplicated warmth.

As with all other places in Rajasthan, Jaisalmer the living fort, is an enigma and beauty, rolled into one.