Jaipur is amazing. Period! It has humongous monuments that at once take people back to the glorious days of maharajas. Plus, its culture is well known to be among the richest and most vibrant in the country. Rajasthani handicrafts, folk songs and dances, puppet shows, attire and dishes have won hearts all over the world. So, if you haven’t already, make plans to visit this gem of a place today. And, don’t be held back by people telling you not to go there in summer because it’s too hot or whatever. Summer is as good a time to explore Jaipur as any, and perhaps better. Thinking how this could possibly be true? Then, here these are…reasons to visit Jaipur in summer:
Easy Availability of Tickets
Firstly, you should consider heading to the Pink City in summer because of better availability of tickets. Being the off season, fewer tourists venture there, resulting in an automatic decrease in the demand for air and rail tickets. Between November and March, which is the travel season, getting tickets is quite difficult. In such cases, our only hope is travel agents, who promise us reserved seats, but charge a hefty fee. In the off season, there is no need for being at the mercy of travel agents as seats are readily available on trains and flights.
Lower Airfares
While the fares of trains remain the same regardless of season, there is a rather noticeable difference in airfares. This is the result of the simple Demand & Supply principle; in winters the demand is high, so airlines increase the airfare, knowing that travellers will indeed purchase these. On the other hand, the demand for flights is way less in summers, so to attract as many flyers as possible, carriers reduce their air ticket prices. So, automatically, your trip comes within your budget, which is what we want anyway.
Cheap Hotels
As with the airfares, the room rates of hotels in Jaipur also come down in summers. During the peak travel season, it is hard to find hotels below INR 5000; the only option left is budget hotels that are overbooked. Come summer, the rates of luxury as well as budget hotels drop. The room prices of budget hotels are never too high in the peak travel season, and in summer these come down even further. You can easily make an online hotel booking in Jaipur in the hot season for less than INR 1000! In order to gain more customers, hotel chains also start coming up with offers like flat discounts and cashbacks.
Lesser Tourists; More Breathing Space
I personally hate going to a place to find it crawling with tourists. Tourists, tourists everywhere, not an inch of space to breathe…The roads of Jaipur are a lot less crowded and the atmosphere way calmer in summer as compared to winter. You don’t have to worry about wading through swarms of people, bumping into travellers, who are more into clicking photos and less on seeing where they are walking. You can roam around in peace and explore whatever attraction you want to the fullest.
Easier to Negotiate
It is not just the prices of hotels and flights that come down in the off season, but also those of non-branded things like handicrafts. Not that such things have a fixed price, it is just that seeing the hoard of tourists in winters that come with a hug appetite for shopping, local shopkeepers quote a higher price for their art pieces. If not Indians, then those coming from overseas will definitely be gouged into shelling big bucks, they know. In summer, there are fewer buyers, so in order to sell their items shop owners quote a lesser price. You can get handicrafts at an even lower rate by negotiating well, which is way easier in summer as compared to winter as considering the lesser number of customers shopkeepers will be willing to sell these for a lower price. Same is the case with auto-rickshaw drivers and rickshaw pullers.
Clearer Days
Yet another reason to throng Jaipur between April and September are the chances of experiencing clearer days. The northern and north-western parts of our country are notorious for their dense winter fog. The mountains, imposing forts and the characteristic pink buildings make Jaipur a great destination for observing scenic vistas and capturing them in the camera. If there is fog in winter, the whole view is destroyed. Many hotels boast on Amer Fort being visible from their rooms, but if it is foggy, what are you going to see? This is why summer is a great time to come here as the clear, fogless days give you uninterrupted views. Still wondering on why you should be visiting Jaipur in summer? Stop wondering and start planning your trip now! Read our next blog to know about the things to carry on a summer trip to Jaipur…