Bikaner also hosts an International Camel festival that draws worldwide visitors. The delicacies such as Thandai, Bhujias, shopping items such as Ivory and Lacquer, and beautiful paintings are other major attractions. There are so many forts, palaces, and temples that a traveler can visit while traveling to Bikaner.

Tourist Attractions to see in Bikaner are:

Junagarh Fort: The most important and intricate place to visit in Bikaner is Junagarh fort. The magnificent fort was once called Chintamani and then renamed Junagarh fort. The fort houses several impressive palaces built in red sandstone and marble, and tourists can enjoy an enticing array of palaces, balconies, kiosks, and windows. The different palaces of Junagadh Fort are Karan Mahal, Phool Mahal, Anup Mahal, Chandra Mahal, Ganga Mahal, Bikaneri Havelis. The fort depicts the royal history and lifestyle of Maharajas of that time.

Karni Mata temple: The Karni Mata Temple also known as Rat Temple is located 30km away from Bikaner in a small city called Deshnoke. The Mata temple is called Rat Temple due to the presence of more than 25,000 black rats that are worshipped and food eaten by them is served as Prasad. The Karni Mata fair is held two times a year. The first and larger fair takes place from March to April and the second in October- November during the Navratras.

Lalgarh Palace: Another sightseeing of Bikaner is Lallgarh Palace situated in the city of Bikaner of Rajasthan. The palace is now a Heritage Hotel and works under the National Heritage Trust. The palace got its name as Lallgarh because it is built with red sandstone. The palace has drawing rooms, Grand Hallways and Halls, Royal Lounges and World’s fourth largest Library.

Bhandasar Jain Temple: Constructed by Bhandasa Oswal, the temple is dedicated to the 5th Tirthanakar Sumatinatha. The temple is the oldest in nature and famous for its mirror work and gold leaf paintings.

Ganga Government Museum: The state’s best museum displays the Harappan Civilisation and Gupta Dynasty artifacts. The museum has paintings, arts and crafts, woven carpets, clay pottery, ancient coins and Rajput weaponry on display for visitors. Another museum of the city is Prachina Museum in the Junagarh fort which hosts royal costumes, textiles, and royal accessories.

Gajner Palace: Gajner Palace is located on the banks of Gajner Lake. Maharaja Ganga Singh built the palace as a hunting ground for his family but now the place has been converted into heritage Hotel offering activities like boat rides, desert safaris, bird watching, and sports activities.

National Research center on Camel: For tourists having an interest in animals, National Research center on the camel is on their must to visit list. Here traveler can see variety of camels and their behavior. Camel riding and Camel Safari are the peculiar features of Bikaner. Every year a camel fair is celebrated in Bikaner in which tourists flock from everywhere. It is organized annually in January month. In the fair, camels dressed up in bright and colorful ornaments and reins.

To see the vibrant colors of Bikaner city, royal artifacts, historical palaces, to shop Bandhani dresses, and eat relish delicacies, a traveler must hire a guide to roam in the city. A guide can help you explore those areas that a traveler even can’t think of.

Ways to reach Bikaner

The city of Bikaner in Rajasthan is easily reachable by Road and Rail transport. Bikaner is well connected to the major cities of Rajasthan and other parts of India. The nearest airport to Bikaner is Jodhpur which is more than 200 km far away from Bikaner. It will take approx 4-5 hrs from the airport to reach Bikaner.

The best months to visit Bikaner are from October to February as in these months weather remains favorable to roam in the city and travellers can enjoy sand dune area. The camel fair occurs in the month of January only so tourists visiting during this time can enjoy the fair too. In other months apart from October to February, Bikaner experiences an extreme hot climate. However, to enjoy the camel ride, royal music, and folk dance while sitting in the sand dunes, these are the best months.

Starting on October 28, 2019, to 23rd February 2020, the three-month-long Rann Utsav presents the natural and cultural heritage of the district to the world.

Kutch’s Rann or Rann of Kutch is the world’s largest salt-built desert spread north and east in the city of Kutch in Gujarat, popularly known as ‘Rann of Kutch‘. Kutch is the place where one can find culture, art, and traditions. Here people of many communities can be seen with their diverse form of arts.

The Rann of Kutch is a vast region, which is a part of the Thar Desert. The special thing of this White Desert is that after the onset of monsoon, after summer, the water of the Gulf of Kutch enters this desert, which appears like a huge sea of ​​white sand. It is indeed amazing to see this salt desert. The Run Utsav held here every year is famous all over the world.

A huge tourist camp is situated near the village of Dhardo, in the middle of the vast plain of Rann, five kilometers from Bhuj, where tourists are accommodated in tents with all facilities. The artistic houses made of clay here are so beautiful that the tourists cannot stop themselves from admiring them by seeing those houses.

Seeing the desert in full moon is the special thing about this festival. The desert looks white in Full Moon Nights. Folk dance, local artists’ music shows, paramotoring, rifle shooting, star gauging, archery, camel rides, camel cart rides, local delicious food, and local art are all part of this festival. Colorful people and culture of Gujarat make this white desert even more beautiful.

About 350 luxury cottage tents are built every year on the 5,00,000 sq meter area for the convenience and enjoyment of tourists. Children’s zone, meditation hall, cafeteria and conference hall are also available. The tents made here have both AC and Non-AC tents which you can select according to your convenience and budget. Packages are available including tent stay, pickup, and dropoff from Bhuj, sightseeing in Kutch, lunch, breakfast, and dinner.

The sightseeing places or things that a traveller can do in Rann Of Kutch are Dholavira, Vijay Vilas Palace, Kala Dungar (The highest point in Kutch), Mandvi Beach, Bhujodi (Textile Handicrafts), The Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary and many more.

How to reach

From Bhuj, the Rann of Kutch falls 80 km (2 hours). From here there are buses of Gujarat tourism which will take you to the Rann of Kutch.

By Air:

Flights operate to Bhuj Airport from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Bangalore, Goa and Trivandrum.

By Train and by road, Bhuj is easily accessible to every main city of India.

For Booking for Rann Utsav Tent, Rann Utsav Tour packages, one can visit the official website https://www.rannutsav.com/rannutsav.php