Amer fort or Amber fort, the UNESCO World’s Heritage Sites in Rajasthan, India is located 11 kms from Jaipur city. This 16th century fortress built by Akbar’s trusted general Maan Singh is one of the most important tourist attractions of the city.
The architecture of Amber fort is a fusion of Hindu- Muslim style. This 17th century beauty is made of red and white marble.
Within the Amber fort there are lots of marvelous attractions.
- The entrance gate of Suraj Pol from where you can reach Jaleb Chowk. The Mughal army entered through this gate. Behind the chowk is a web of palaces, gardens and temples. Within the fort there is a famous temple of Goddess Kali constructed around 16th century. Another eye grabbing structure is the Diwan-i-Am, a place where the king held his court.
- Another entrance gate is the Ganesh Pol. This gate is a symbol of royalty and surrounded by beautiful mughal era style maze like garden. Entry within this area is restricted for public.
- Next is the Sheesh Mahal. You will be awestruck by its architectural beauty and grandeur. The palace is ornamented by thousands of pieces of mirror tiles on its walls, ceiling and pillars. You will see a thousand of reflections on these coloured glasses. Sheesh actually means seesha or mirror. One of the pillars is curved with deigns of flower. It is not only a master piece in structural beauty but from the surroundings you can get a glimpse of the rugged topography of Jaipur.
- Above Seesh Mahal is another hall , the Hall of Private Audience or Jas Mahal. It is adorned by intricate alabaster work, designer glass-tiles designs, and marble pattern. Within the fort there are museums, gardens and the Maota Lake.
- Jai Mandir is one of the most beautiful structure with a marbel covering on its floor and designed with royal styling. From here you can see the garden called Aram Bagh.
Every evening light and sound show takes place in Amber fort. You can see the history of RAjputana in this show. The show is both in Hindi and English language and is a 50 minutes program. The show timings are approximately between 6:30pm to 7:30 pm. The photography charges are Rs 100 for Indian and Rs. 200 for foreigners.
Within the fort there are hotels and restaurants that not only offers pure Rajasthani delicacies but also puppet show, songs that are sung by Rajasthani bhopas .
You can see here world’s largest collection of turbans in the Turban Museum. At the foothills of the palace lies the old township of Amber. Jagat Siromani temples, Narsingh temple, Panna Mian ki Baodi are some of the places of interest.
There are some other gigantic beautiful Rajput style gates like the Tripolia gate, Zenana quarters gate and the famous Lion Gate.
How to Reach
Jaipur is well connected to the train, bus and road. You can take a taxi to a Jaipur bus station to reach the destination. Trains are well connected to the major cities of India like Delhi. You can choose the Palace on Wheels train which is the most famous luxury train in India.
The fort is opened from 9 am till 6pm in the evening. Entrance Fee and Charges at the fort are:
- Foreigner – INR 550 per person
- Foreign Students – INR 100 per person
- Indians – INR 50 per person
- Indian Students – INR 10 rupees per person
- Elephant Ride – INR 1100 Single or per couple
So, pack your bags and book your trip. To Know more about the fares of Palace on Wheels train, you can visit ThePalaceonWheels.org
