The Pink City, Jaipur has some of India’s finest architectural masterpieces in the form of forts and palaces. Apart from the popular attractions such as Hawa Mahal, City Palace, Jal Mahal and Jantar Mantar, Jaipur also has three major forts in and around the city- Amer Fort, Jaigarh Fort and Nahargarh Fort. On the second day of our Jaipur trip, we decided to visit all these three forts. We started with Nahargarh Fort in the morning followed by Jaigarh Fort in the early afternoon and after having our lunch, we were all set for Amer Fort, the biggest and probably the oldest of all the Jaipur forts. So if you are wondering what should be the must visit place in Jaipur, don’t forget to include Amer Fort to your list.

Amer Fort, also known as Amber Fort is not only a fort but a huge palace and it used to be the royal residence of the rulers and their families before Jaipur became the capital. Located at a distance of 12 kilometres from the Jaipur city centre, Amer Fort is a UNESCO Heritage Site and because of its massive popularity and historical significance, Amer Fort definitely makes to the list of top things to see in Jaipur. Also, if you get sufficient time, you should also catch the glorious Amer Fort light and sound show in the evening. And if you are a movie buff, here’s a trivia before you visit Amer Fort. Two of the most iconic Bollywood movies, Jodha Akbar and Bajirao Mastani, were shot at this very location!.

HOW TO REACH AMER FORT

Jaipur is well connected with almost all major cities in India via flight, trains and buses. Amer Fort is at a distance of 12 kms from Jaipur main city centre and it roughly takes 30 minutes by road if there’s not too much of traffic. The easiest and the most comfortable way to reach Amer Fort is by hiring an Uber or Ola. You can also take tourist or government buses, few of which leave from near Hawa Mahal in Jaipur. Other options include hiring a local taxi or auto rickshaw or tuktuk. 

AMER FORT HISTORY

The region of Amer used to be ruled by the Meena tribal community of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh before the Kacchawa Rajputs came to the region and took over. Later, Raja Man Singh I, one of the Navaratnas (nine gems) of Mughal emperor Akbar’s court, became the ruler of Amer and redeveloped and expanded the ancient palace to this enormous, opulent masterpiece. The palace witnessed many subsequent expansions by his descendants till the capital shifted to present day Jaipur.

AMER FORT ARCHITECTURE

The beautiful Amer Fort, built using red sandstone and marble, is laid out on four different levels each with a courtyard and several gates. The fort structures and buildings show great example of the exquisite Rajput style of architecture. However, some of the works show influence of Mughal style of architecture too. This wonderful amalgamation of different styles of design makes it even more interesting.

THINGS TO SEE AT AMER FORT

The Amer Fort is literally huge. It takes a good 3-4 hours to explore the entire palace and the fort if you want to take the tour independently. However, I would suggest taking a guide service if you have limited time and want to hear from the experts about the historical significance of the different sections of the palace. Guided tours of Amer Fort are available right at the palace entrance. We met a very knowledgable guide upon arrival who took us through the stairs towards the main fort entrance. On the way to the entrance, we met this artist producing some lovely Rajasthani melodies with his Sarangi.

As we reached the main entry gate of the palace, our guide gave us this list of things to see in Amer Fort in the next couple of hours:

1. Suraj Pol and Jaleb Chowk
2. Ganesh Pol
3. Diwan-e-Aam
4. Sukh Niwas
5. Diwan-e-Khas
6. Sheesh Mahal
7. Zenana Mahal

SURAJ POL AND JALEB CHOWK

This is the main entrance of the palace from the east side and it witnesses the first sun ray of the day, hence the name Suraj Pol (‘Suraj‘ means sun and ‘Pol’ refers to a gate in the local dialect.). The king with his forces would enter the palace through this very gate celebrating victory after winning a battle. There are many small lattice windows on top of the palace through which the women living in the palace used to get a glimpse of the victory parade. 

If you enter the palace through Suraj Pol, you would enter the first courtyard of Amer Fort, called Jaleb Chowk. The victorious army would victory march right into this place. Jaleb Chowk arrives from an Arabic phrase which means assembly place for soldiers. This courtyard was built by Sawai Jai Singh.

GANESH POL

Ganesh Pol is the main and the most artistic gate of Amer Fort. This would be the entry point to the main palace area leading to the residential section and personal quarters of the kings and the queens. Named after Hindu God Ganesha, Ganesh Pol has a beautiful carving of Lord Ganesha and it is highly significant as it is very common to find an idol of Lord Ganesha at the entrance of Indian homes. 

The gate looks simply beautiful and is one of the most photographed areas in Amer Fort. The fine carvings and paintings were made using natural colours.

There are small lattice windows right above Ganesh Pol and the area above is known as Suhag Mandir. This is where the royal ladies would gather and watch the events performed in the courtyard through these latticed windows as they were not allowed to appear in public.

DIWAN-E-AAM

Right opposite Ganesh Pol is the Diwan-e-Aam, a raised platform at the centre of the courtyard for common people. This used to be the assembly place for the common audience and the king would often meet his representatives and hear the problems of the common people. 

SUKH NIWAS

As you enter the main palace area through Ganesh Pol, you’ll find the private resting quarters of the king, his queens and his acquaintances. This area is called Sukh Niwas meaning Happy Residence. There are beautiful designs on the walls with vase patterns showing heavy influence of Mughal style of design. Apart from the design, one remarkable thing about Sukh Niwas is that it has a mechanism to keep the quarters cool even during extreme summers by continuous circulation of water by the underlying pipelines connected from the Mughal style garden known as Chahar Bagh right in the centre of the courtyard.

DIWAN-E-KHAS

Diwan-e-Khas is part of the third courtyard and as the name suggests (‘Khas’ means important), it used to be the hall for private audiences. This is where the king would meet the important people and the VIP guests.

The upper part of the chamber is known as Jai Mandir. This place is quite attractive with intricate floral designs using glass and mirror. This was built by Raja Jai Singh and hence it is named after him.

Another important feature of the Diwan-e-Khas is the Magic Flower. This design is carved in such a way that you can see seven following elements depicted in one single flower: a fishtail, hooded cobra, elephant trunk, lotus, tail of a lion, a corn, and a scorpion.

The third part of Diwan-e-Khas leads to another architectural marvel, Sheesh Mahal.

SHEESH MAHAL

This portion of Diwan-e-Khas is the most interesting one. The entire room is made of thousands of small pieces of glass forming intricate floral designs and hence the name Sheesh Mahal (‘Sheesh’ means mirror).

A very interesting fact about this room is that only two candles are sufficient to light the entire room in the dark by creating infinite reflections on the glasses. The reflections on the walls resembled infinite twinkling stars in the night sky.

ZENANA MAHAL

This section of the palace was where the women used to reside and hence the name Zenana (‘Zenana’ means women). It comprises the queens’ quarters and it has a very interesting layout. The Zenana Mahal has several private passages and the men of the palace had limited access to these passages. Only the king could access these passages leading to the individuals rooms of the queens residing with their housemaids and close friends. It is believed that the King had twelve wives and these twelve private passages were connected to the king’s bedroom in such a way that whenever the king visited one of the queens, the others wouldn’t be able to know. We found it really interesting!

VISITING HOURS AND ENTRY FEES

The Amer Fort is open from 8 AM to 5:30 PM on all days of the week. The fort can also be visited at night from 7 PM to 10 PM.

The tickets for Amer Fort are available from the fort entrance and can also be purchased online. If you plan on visiting other attractions in Jaipur, you may purchase a Tourist Composite Ticket which includes Amer Fort as well.

SOME USEFUL TIPS

1. The best time for visiting Jaipur is October to February when the weather remains quite pleasant.
2. Try to visit Amer Fort around the morning hours as it is comparatively less crowded and temperatures remain pleasant.
3. If you have plans to see the Light and Sound Show, it is best to visit during the late afternoon.
4. Best way to reach Amer Fort from Jaipur is by hiring an Uber or Ola. 
5. You can also hire a cab for the entire day if you have plans to visit the other forts (Nahargarh Fort and Jaigarh Fort) too.
6. It is best to book the normal tickets or composite tickets online from the official tourism site instead of standing in the long queues at the offline ticket counters.
7. You can book the online tickets from here.
8. Keep at least 2 to 3 hours in your itinerary to enjoy the complete Amer Fort tour.
9. Instead of taking the tour independently, it would be best to take a certified guide available at the entrance. They would generally charge anywhere between 300-500 INR..
10. Carry enough water if you are visiting towards the afternoon as it remains pretty hot. Wear comfortable and loose cotton dresses to beat the heat.

Let us know in the comment section below if you liked our blog on Amer Fort. If you have already been to this amazing attraction in Jaipur, share your experience in the comment section below. You can also contact us if you need any information regarding trip to Jaipur or about Golden Triangle trip. Find more similar adventure stories here. THANK YOU!