Garland welcome on arrival and bottle of water & transfer to your hotel with assistance. Check in hotel freshen up and relax, after lunch evening walk in the bustling town.

Overnight in Ahmedabad

After breakfast, we plan to visit the textile museum, Gandhi Ashram, with its Calico collection. The places are limited but we will book our tickets in advance. In the afternoon, we will have time to explore the city at our leisure before an early dinner. After dinner, we will head for the night walk of the historic city, a fully guided tour, which will take us through some really old places of the city. We will pass through narrow, congested alleyways, monuments and old Havelis and finally we will reach at the food court of Manek Chawk, where we will get to experience an ancient tradition which is almost 600 years old, drummers who will signal the regular closing of the city gates, crowded yet promising.

Overnight in Ahmedabad

Note: Calico Textile Museum is closed on every Wednesday and public holidays.

Today, we will take a drive to the west, through the staggering step-well at Patan and then to a demonstration of Ikat textile weaving and then we will head to the famous ancient Modhera Temples. Situated on the banks of the Pushpavati River, Modhera is famous for its millennium-old Sun temple. This temple, built in 1026 AD by Bhimadeva of the Solanki Rajput clan, is dedicated to Lord Surya, the sun god. It was destroyed by Muhammad Ghaznavi and rex`built later. The temple was designed so that at the time of the equinoxes, the first rays of the sun fell on the image of Surya. Today, the temples stand in ruined condition but even after passing so much time, these temples are still looked upon as an architectural masterpiece. We will head to Dasada after lunch where we will stay for the next two nights.

Overnight in Dasada

This day is dedicated to full day excursion of Little Rann of Kutch. After it rains, this extraordinary landmass which is vastly desiccated, covered with dark silt with salt encrustation, turns into an incredible coastal wetland. We will get to see indigenous wild asses and several other wild animals. We will also get to witness the women of Banjania, Rabari and Mihir tribes who are known for weaving the finest textiles.

Overnight in Dasada

Today we leave early to head to the capital of the Kutch region, Bhuj. Here we have lunch and get our permits to visit the villages of the Great Rann. We will head north to Hodka where we will get to stay and we will also get to access the tribal village from here.

Overnight in Hodka

After having breakfast, this day will be spent exploring the northern villages located in remote area. However, Rann of Kutch is mostly known for its wildlife, we will also get to visit a Jat community which is known for its embroidery and handwork. We will keep moving to the edge of Great Rann to witness the mirage over salt flats on the horizon, also called ‘White Sands.’

Overnight Rann of Kutch

We will leave early to back to Bhuj, the capital of Kutch region. Unfortunately, the devastating earthquake of 2001 destroyed a large part of Bhuj however Aina Mahal is still standing here and is worth a visit which houses a wonderful tribal museum. After this, we will move to the coasts and the Arabian Sea. Arriving early afternoon, we check into our luxury tents and spend the rest of the day enjoying this relaxing setting. Since this is a private beach which belongs to Maharaja of Kutch whose surreal palace is located rather forlornly next door, we will find no one else which will let us enjoy our time and will have the run of the place. We can pay a visit to the palace as well as the town where you will find lots of handicraft shops and women dhow building industries. Evening on the beach!

Overnight in Mandvi

After breakfast and a final swim, we drive on to Gondal on a trip that will take about 7 to 8 hours. Gondal is a testimony to the great visionary ruler Sir Bhagwat Singh Ji who was the torchbearer of social reforms and he also chalked out the development of this town. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, he also developed a model state of Saurashtra. The capital of the former princely state of Gondal, the Jadeja Rajput clan ruled over this place which ended when India got freedom. This is a fortified town which is located on Gondali River and has three majestic palaces and we will stay in one of them, which has an amazing collection of classic cars owned by Maharaja. We will also visit many palaces and forts and the lovely old, pretty and quite old town which puts Udaipur or Bundi in one’s mind some 20 years ago.

Overnight in Gondal

After breakfast, we visit the famous city palace, with its owner’s classic and vintage car collection. We can also see some spinning and weaving of Khadi cloth. In the late afternoon will visit the local market and famous temple to participate in the evening aarti.

Overnight in Gondal

We spend this morning seeing more of the sites of Gondal before taking lunch and heading on to another heritage property and home to the royal family of Palitana. Arriving in the late afternoon we have a leisurely evening and dinner.

Overnight in Palitana

We will wake up early today to visit the splendid Jain Temples built on Mount Shetrunjaya, crossing around 3500 steps. This exceptionally beautiful temple always remains the chief highlight of any Indian tour. After lunch, we will drive on to Velveadar where we will have the afternoon to relax and enjoy the rustic nature in the beautiful lodge.

Overnight in Velveadar

Morning game drive in We will drive to Vadodra. Along with Kashmir, Hyderabad, Gwalior and Mysore, in British time Baroda was a ’21 gun salute’ state as it is incredibly wealthy with an exceptional palace. We will reach Baroda city late morning. After lunch, we will head to visit the Laxmi Vilas Palace as well as Fatehsingh Museum.

Overnight in Vadodra

Today we visit the UNESCO World Heritage site at Champaner. Champaner is an ancient fort located at the foothills of Pavagadh. Muhammad Begada decided to establish the new capital of Gujarat at this place in 1484 AD and changed the name of the town to Muhammadabad. The construction took around 23 years and it is believed that there was a meteoric rise to fame which attained the glory being a great Western Indian town. During years, the construction of many edifices took place including town squares, mosques, water structures, bazaars, royal gardens, etc. It also became a major trading centre producing fine silk, woven and dyed textiles and sword manufacturing. You will see ruins of fort walls covering the landscape for miles as well as tombs in ruined form, pillars, gardens, well, etc. We will return Ahmedabad for our international flight.