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the reserve entrance. Bring a mosquito net or repellent. Sariska Tiger Heaven HOTEL $$ (%224815; www.sariskatigerheaven.com; s/d with full board ₹3500/4000, with AC ₹4000/5000; as) This is an isolated place about 3km
R A JASTHAN E A S T E R N R A J A S T H A N
west of the bus stop at Thanagazi village and free pick-up is on offer. Rooms are set in stone-and-tile cottages and have big beds and windowed alcoves. Staff can arrange jeeps and guides to the park and pick-up from Jaipur (₹1200).
8 Getting There & Away
NAWALGARH
% 01594 / POP 60,000
Nawalgarh is a small town almost at the very centre of the region, and thus makes a great base for exploring. It boasts several fine havelis, a colourful, mostly pedestrianised bazaar and some excellent accommodation options.
1 Sights
Dr Ramnath A Poddar Haveli MUSEUM Museum (www.poddarhavelimuseum.org; admission ₹100, camera ₹30; h8.30am-6.30pm) Built in 1902
Sariska is 35km from Alwar, a convenient town from which to approach the reserve. There are frequent (and crowded) buses from Alwar (₹21, one to 1½ hours, at least hourly) and on to Jaipur (₹75). Buses stop in front of the Forest Reception Office.
on the eastern side of town, this is one of the region’s few buildings to have been thoroughly restored. The paintings of this haveli are defined in strong colours, as they must have looked when new. On the ground floor are several galleries on Rajasthani culture, including examples of different schools of Rajasthani painting, turbans, tablas and polystyrene forts.
Shekhawati
T Tours
Far less visited than other parts of Rajasthan, the Shekhawati region is most famous for its extraordinary painted havelis (traditional, ornately decorated residences), highlighted with dazzling, often whimsical, murals. Part of the region’s appeal and mystique is due to these works of art being found in tiny towns, connected to each other by single-track roads that run through lonely, arid countryside. Today it seems curious that such care, attention and financing was lavished on these out-of-the-way houses, but from the 14th century onwards, Shekhawati’s towns were important trading posts on the caravan routes from Gujarati ports. What makes the artwork on Shekhawati’s havelis so fascinating is the manner in which their artists combined traditional subjects, such as mythology, religious scenes and images of the family, with contemporary concerns, including brand-new inventions and accounts of current events, many of which these isolated painters rendered straight from their imagination.
8 Getting Around The Shekhawati region is crisscrossed by narrow, dusty roads and all towns are served by government or private buses and jampacked shared jeeps. To zip from town to town more speedily and in greater comfort, hire a taxi for the day. The usual rate for a non-AC taxi is ₹5 to ₹7 per kilometre with a minimum charge of 250km per day.
Ramesh Jangid at Apani Dhani (%222239; www.apanidhani.com) and his son Rajesh at Ramesh Jangid’s Tourist Pension (%224060; www.touristpension.com) are keen to
promote sustainable rural tourism, in part by organising village treks, camel-cart safaris and informative guided tours.
4 Sleeping & Eating
oApani Dhani
GUESTHOUSE $$
(%222239; www.apanidhani.com; s/d from ₹995/1350) This award-winning ecotourism
venture is a delightful and relaxing place. Rooms are in traditional, cosy mud-hut bungalows, enhanced by thatched roofs and comfortable beds, around a bougainvilleashaded courtyard. It’s on the west side of the Jaipur road. Multilingual Ramesh Jangid runs the show and 5% of the room tariff goes to community projects.
oRamesh Jangid’s
GUESTHOUSE $ Tourist Pension (%224060; www.touristpension.com; s/d from ₹400/450) The guesthouse, run by genial
Rajesh, Ramesh’s son, offers homey, clean accommodation in spacious rooms with big beds. Pure veg meals, made with organic ingredients, are available (including a delectable vegetable thali for ₹180). The family also arranges all sorts of tours around Shekhawati.