Arrive Mumbai

Arrive Mumbai Airport and transfer to the hotel

Overnight stay

Mumbai – Vadodara by flight

After Breakfast, we transfer back to the airport for our flight to Vadodara, the capital of the princely Gaekwad state prior to Independence.

During our two-day stay here we will visit the Palace Museum, the prehistoric collection at the University Museum and spend a day visiting Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This amazing landscape encompasses prehistoric sites, the remains of the 16th-century capital of the state of Gujarat, fortifications, palaces, religious buildings, and residential buildings from the 8th to 14th centuries. It is the only intact Islamic pre-Mughal city.

Overnight stay

Vadodara

Today we revisit Champaner – Pavagadh Archeological Park

Afternoon visit Vadodara Palace, the official residence of the erstwhile Maharajas of Vadodara famous for its Venetian glass, crystal chandeliers, Italian marble, mosaic and statues. Also visit Shahr and Nagina Masjid.

Overnight stay

Vadodara – Ahmedabad by surface (approx. 95 Kms / 2 ½ Hrs)

This morning, we drive west through India’s famous cotton-growing region to the port of Khambhat (Cambay), from which this precious commodity was traded in antiquity to ports as remote as Babylon. We will visit the Jumma Masjid (Friday Mosque), one of the earliest mosques in Gujarat, and the bead-makers quarter, where beads are still shaped and drilled using ancient techniques.

Later continue to Ahmedabad, the new capital of Gujarat.

After lunch visit Sabarmati Gandhi Ashram, on the quite peaceful stretch, Mahatma Gandhi set up a simple retreat in 1915, his satyagarha Ashram and for many years it remained the nerve center of India’s Freedom Movement, today it’s a national monument and preserved as it used to be in Mahatma’s Time.

Late afternoon pay a visit to Utensil Museum, showcasing and preserving the delicate masterpieces of local brass craftsmen.

Overnight stay

Ahmedabad

Founded in 1411 by Ahmed Shah, Ahmedabad continues its rich tradition of textile manufacturing and trade. City Orientation tour includes visiting the Calico Textile Museum, the 15th-century Bhadra fortress; Rani Sipri Mausoleumand Mosque, where we find extraordinarily delicate pierced-stone windows in typical Gujarati style and the Great Masjid Mosque, housing Ahmed Shah’s mausoleum.

Overnight Stay

Ahmedabad –Modhera – Patan - Ahmedabad

Today’s excursion brings us to Modhera. The shrines and chapels of the 11th-century Surya Sun Temple form an impressive complex, which is a forerunner of the famous Sun Temple at Konark built 200 years later. The nearby ancient Hindu capital, Anahilvad, has been replaced largely by the 16th-century Jain city of Patan. We will see the older district’s beautifully carved wooden houses as well as the lovely Rani-ki-Vav step-well.

Time permitting, we will find examples of the legendary patola weaves produced by Patan’s master weavers.

Overnight stay

Ahmedabad – Lothal - Bhavnagar

Leaving Ahmedabad, we travel southwest to Lothal – A perfect place to get an insight of the Indus Valley civilization. Dated to the end of the 3rd millennium BCE, Lothal is one of the four most important Indus culture cities (Mohenjo-daro and Harappa in Pakistan and Kalibangan in India). Excavations have revealed large-scale public and private buildings, a well-ordered grid of paved streets, granaries and a gigantic water storage tank, testifying to the city’s high level of organization.

Later we continue to the port city of Bhavnagar.

Overnight stay

Bhavnagar

An early morning departure for Palitana, from which we will climb the more than 3,000 steps (doolie swing chairs are available) to Shatrunjaya, one of Jainism’s holiest pilgrimage places. Over a period of 900 years, 863 white marble temples have been built here, giving their benefactors great merit. Some of the larger temples, such as Adinath and Chaumukh, are veritable cities within cities, each with its own protective walls. This fabulous experience will be enhanced by white-clad pilgrims circumambulating the mountain in solemn processions.

Shatrunjaya (the place of victory) Hill is considered to be one of the holiest pilgrimage sites for the Jains. The temples are dedicated to the Jain Tirthankars and even the priests leave the temples at dusk. The hilltops are bounded by sturdy walls and the temples have been grouped into nine tunks (enclosures)-each having several minor temples clustered around a central temple.

Among the most important temples here, is the Chaumukh temple with its four-faced deity of Adinath enshrined on a marble pedestal in a shrine open on all four sides (an aberration in itself). The Adishwar temple is probably the most profusely decorated in Palitana. Its ornate pillars and roofs are decorated with intricately cut marble in the shape of dragons.

Overnight stay

Bhavnagar - Sasangir by surface (approx. 195 Kms / 4 ½ Hrs)

We drive south, turning inland we continue to the Gir Forest Lodge in the Sasan-Gir Lion Sanctuary. We will have a jungle safari in hopes of seeing some of the nearly extinct Asiatic lions and leopards as well as the four-horned Indian antelope and many bird species unique to India.

Overnight stay

Sasangir – Gondal

Early morning enjoy a jeep safari in the park

Breakfast at lodge and drive for Gondal

We will spend the day in Junagadh, where archaeological finds have established its early history to pre-Indus times. We will see edicts, similar to those found in northern Pakistan, inscribed on a boulder by the emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE, as well as ancient Buddhist caves dug and carved with the image of Buddha at least 1,500 years ago. The Mahabat Maqbara mausoleum with its lovely silver doors and intricate architecture, and the old Junagadh Fort, from which the city took its name, can be viewed from the outside. At the end of this very full day we continue to Gondal, where we will occupy two converted palaces for the night.

Overnight stay

Gondal – Bhuj by surface (approx. 270 Kms / 6 ½ Hrs)

This Morning, a fascinating drive brings us to Bhuj, a walled city that until recently locked its gates at night.
Late afternoon visit the old palaces (Aina & Prag Mahal) and richly decorated temples, and comb the bazaars for the best Gujarat bandhana embroidery and silver.

Overnight stay

Bhuj

Today we will at the largely unexcavated Harappan site of Shikarpur, which is situated on the edge of the ancient coastline. During our stay here we will have ample time to explore Bhuj’s maze-like streets and alleys overhung with elaborately carved balconies, as well as the Kutch Museum (closed on Wednesdays and 2nd /4th Saturdays), renowned for its large collection of Indo-Scythian inscriptions.

Overnight stay

Bhuj

Today traveling into the Rann of Kutch, we will visit the newly excavated Harappan site of Kanmer and the much larger city of Dholavira (Kotada), one of the major cities of the Indus civilization. Excavations, still in progress, have revealed the city’s fine stone architecture, monumental gateways and broad streets, large reservoirs as well as its extensive drainage system. The touring brings us into the countryside to visit villages, each specializing in a unique craft. Our farewell dinner of Kutchi specialties will be accompanied by Kutchi music.

Ovenight stay

Bhuj – Mumbai by Flight

After a morning at leisure, we fly back to Mumbai. We will relax in our day rooms (available until 9:00pm) at airport hotel as our flights home depart late tonight.

Depart Mumbai

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