Add another stop to the Golden Triangle of India tourism: Alwar – small town whose beauty and rich history offer a taste of Rajasthan
Delhi, Jaipur and Agra are known as India’s Golden Triangle, but it’s time to add Alwar to that itinerary; with its fort, palace, and former royal hunting ground, it’s the town where Rajasthan’s delights start to reveal themselves
It is time to amend the Golden Triangle. Visiting Delhi, Jaipur and Agra has been the holy grail of tourists to India but there is another place that has to be added to this classic itinerary: Alwar.
I am an inveterate hater of small towns in India. Most of them are stinky, ugly, congested. A journalist friend of mine who has seen too many of them in her travels aptly calls them “toilet towns”. So why am I urging visitors to add Alwar, a small town in the state of Rajasthan, to their itinerary?
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Alwar is different to others in that it is steeped in heritage. There is the fort that looms over the town, a palace that is been turned into a museum, and the Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary. This used to be the private hunting ground of the Alwar royals, but now visitors can enjoy the wildlife and birds. On the edge of the park is Siliserh Lake, where crocodiles lurk.
The attraction of Alwar is that it offers a tantalising foretaste of the delights that lie in wait in Rajasthan. It’s a question of pacing one’s pleasures, like seeing the English Lake District before reaching the mighty lochs and highlands of Scotland.
Around Alwar, small forts and palaces dot the countryside. Dazzling colours – so intense they look as if they could ignite on the spot – are worn by the women here. The Aravalli mountains, some of the oldest mountains in India, also start in Alwar.
In short, this is the town where Rajasthan starts to reveal itself, like a shy Indian bride lifting her veil just a fraction to allow a glimpse of her face. By the time you reach Jaipur, you get the full-bodied, untrammelled Rajasthan experience.
