Travelling to
Jaipur
Rajasthan
Loading…Hawa Mahal
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Photos: Chainwit. (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Vabinik (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Status: Listed 09:00-17:00 daily (India Guide, 2026); no closure noted.
Jaipur's signature honeycomb facade of pink sandstone with 953 small windows, built so royal women could watch street life unseen.
Sawai Pratap Singh commissioned Hawa Mahal in 1799 as an extension of the City Palace zenana. Its five-storey street front is only one room deep in places, and its latticed jharokhas let air circulate. The entrance is from the rear, off Tripolia Bazaar side lanes, and ramps lead up to the top floors. The best view of the facade is from cafes across Badi Chaupar road.
Highlights
- 953 jharokha windows
- Top-floor views of Jantar Mantar and City Palace
- Coloured-glass chambers
- Facade view from opposite rooftop cafes
Tips
- Entrance is at the back, not on the facade road
- Photograph the facade from a rooftop cafe opposite
Around it
Within 1 km of Hawa Mahal.
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Best places nearby
Govind Dev Ji Temple
Krishna temple in Jaipur's City Palace complex, the city's most beloved shrine with set jhanki darshans.
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Albert Hall Museum
Rajasthan's oldest museum, an Indo-Saracenic landmark in Ram Niwas Garden with art, crafts and an Egyptian mummy.
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Nahargarh Fort
Aravalli-ridge fort overlooking Jaipur, popular for sunset views and the Madhavendra Bhawan suites built for royal queens.
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Jal Mahal
Palace that appears to float in Man Sagar Lake on the Jaipur–Amer road; viewed from the lakeside promenade only.
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Jaigarh Fort
Ridge-top military fort above Amber that guarded the Kachhwaha capital; home to the huge Jaivana cannon and long views over Amer.
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Jantar Mantar
UNESCO-listed 18th-century astronomical observatory with the world's largest stone sundial, beside the City Palace.
Photo: UPAL KUMAR BHATTACHARYA
Tripolia Bazaar
Walled-city bazaar near Tripolia Gate known for lac bangles, handloom and household goods; on the Gangaur and Teej procession route.
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Amber Fort
Hilltop Rajput-Mughal palace-fort above Maota Lake in Amer, about 11 km north of Jaipur, best known for its mirror-work halls and ramparts.
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