Road Trip across Rajasthan — Life Beyond 9 to 5

13 days, 5 cities, 1 car, 2 adults and 1 toddler - we went resort and hotel hopping across Rajasthan for our Winter break. People thought it was a crazy idea of planning such a long trip with a toddler. And to be honest, first couple of days it did seem a bit tough because we did not know what to expect, it was our first time experiencing it. But it got so much better as the trip progressed. Both, us and she, were getting used to the routine of living out of the suitcase and waking up on a new bed every other day. I am sharing here all about my journey, the different places we stopped at during the course of our journey and some quick tips I followed throughout the trip to make it a little less stressful for my baby (17 months old) and for us.

Our journey covered below places

Ahmedabad —> Udaipur —> Kumbhalgarh —>Jodhpur —> Jaisalmer —> Ahmedabad

Day 1/13 - We had reached Ahmedabad from Pune via air. Since the timing of the flight was odd, we had to stay a night in Ahmedabad. While booking our accommodation, we looked for places closer to the Sabarmati Waterfront as we wanted to visit the much talked about Ahmedabad’s Waterfront and the new Atal walking Bridge. So we booked Four Points by Sheraton, a medium priced 4-star hotel 5-8 minutes away from the waterfront. Surprisingly, we found the hotel staff to be very courteous and the hospitality was top-notch. It was definitely worth every penny we paid for a night.

Day 2/13 - Udaipur is approximately 4 hours* (read the asterisk legend mentioned at the end of the blog) from Ahmedabad and thus we left at around 10 post our breakfast. We had packed kiddo’s lunch at Four Points, we were carrying chocolate pancakes for her. Fed her on the way (had to give some screen time because she was really cranky). We, adults, stopped once on the way to stretch our legs, have some chai, actually Nilesh had some chai and I had some buttermilk :) and use the washroom. Despite this 10 minute break, we reached bang on time for our check-in at The Leela Palace, Udaipur. I have so much to talk about each property that I stayed at, that I will be writing a separate blog about them.

Day 5/13 - After 3 nights in Udaipur, it was time for us to pick up our luggage and move to a different place. The next stop was Kumbhalgarh. Approx. 2 hours drive, but this drive surprised us. After driving the flat lands of Gujarat and Rajasthan, this one reminded me of drives in Maharashtra. The drive from Udaipur to Kumbhalgarh takes you from Aravalli hill ranges and thus through a lot of winding, curvy roads. Since this journey was super short, we did not stop on the way and it was a smooth drive for us and for the kid as she slept through most of the journey.

Tip - If you have time at hand, you can cover Eklingji, HaldiGhati Museum, Nathdwara Or/And Ranakpur on your way to Kumbhalgarh. All of these places have some historical importance in their own way. We had purposely not included so many stops in our journey because that would mean waking the kid up if she was sleeping and then settling her back in the car would have been a Herculean task.

Day 6/13 - We stayed at Kumbhalgarh just for a night and the next day we were on the road again. The next stop was The Blue City of Jodhpur. It takes approx. 3.5 hours to cover the distance between Kumbhalgarh and Jodhpur. Again, we did not take any break. Kiddo’s lunch was packed again and she was fed on the road. The roads are superb and the drives in Rajasthan are super peaceful. During this journey, the first 50-60 minutes, you will be in the Aravalli forests and you will for sure see a lot of Monkeys. We saw at least a hundred of them on our way. If your get lucky you may also see some deers or leopards. Yes, there are lot of leopards in this area.

Day 9/13 - We left Jodhpur for The Golden City of Jaisalmer. It takes approx. 4 hours to cover the distance between the two cities. It took a little over 4 hours for us because our property, Suryagarh, was further away in the desert. This drive between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer is full of adventures. Firstly, until you cross Pokhran, you will see a lot of Army convoys. We saw at least 5-6 of them on the way. Secondly, once you get closer to Jaisalmer, you may want to reduce your speeds or be vigilant. There were a lot of instances when we saw cattle crossing the roads, sitting and walking leisurely on the roads. Sometimes, there were one or two singled out animals here and there which is even more scarier as they get camouflaged really well in the desert background. So although while you enjoy your drive, make sure you drive safely.

Tip - You can add a pit stop on your way to Jaisalmer - Pokhran Fort.

Day 12/13 - After 4 nights of enjoying the beautiful Thar desert, we left from Jaisalmer for Jodhpur via the same route. Stayed a night in Jodhpur, did some shopping and relaxed for the next day’s journey.

Just me — Cow photobombing my milestone picture

Day 13/13 - Vacation comes to an end. Return flight from Jodhpur to Pune via Ahmedabad. Our car was picked up by our driver and he got it back to Pune safely.

Quick Road Travel Tips

The time taken to cover the most places is only between 3-5 hours. So for almost all our journeys, we left post breakfast from one place to reach the other by check-in time.
We included breakfast while booking all our accommodations.
We always had a really heavy breakfast before getting on the road so that we dint have to stop on the way for lunch.
We packed multiple options for the kid for mid-morning breakfast and lunch (milk, poha, upma, cut fruits, pancakes, dry snacks like khakra, biscuits, cheeselings, ghatiya, etc, bread toast, paratha, curd, etc.)
Even if you want to stop for food on the way, no worries. You will come across smaller towns every 50 to 60 minutes and also come across a lot of food malls, restaurants on the way. A quick tip that we follow is to stop at places where we see some parked vehicles, either state buses or private cars. Because the chances are that place will be half decent.
Check for tire pressure, etc. in the major cities. The ones on the highways were most of the time deserted.
Carry different types of toys and books for your kids or at least download her favorite content on tablet or phone to keep her occupied. For my kiddo, I carried her soft toys, wonder WoW reusable painting books and lots of picture books and yes a lot of non sensical videos on phone.
We were very strict about the baby car seat. No matter what, kiddo was sitting in her car seat ONLY. Initially, she was upset but she got used to sitting in her dedicated seat. It is safe and gives us a peace of mind that she is securely strapped incase of a mishap.
I sat in the rear seat with our baby in case she needed a bit of cuddling. Also feeding her, entertaining her was easier when I sat with her.
Keep all the baby essentials handy. Like food, water, wipes, toys, spare diapers.
Not just baby essentials, but even food and water for yourself. Keep them easily accessible.
Carry music on your phone. Because the radio networks are not the best on some roads. So you will need some entertainment when you are on the road.
(* asterisk explanation) Rajasthan roads are super super super well maintained. If Google shows 5 hours and if you have a decent car, you can cover the distance in only about 4 hours or less. So the times mentioned above are the actual times we took to cover the distance. Not what Google suggests.
What we noticed was for every major highway there was an alternate No-toll road. But the time taken would drastically increase. So it is a trade between time and money and you are free to decide the route. We opted for the fastest route.