Visit to Hawa Mahal: “The Palace of Winds”, Jaipur
Anyone who is familiar with the must-visit places of Jaipur is also well aware that the name Hawa Mahal is synonymous as one of the iconic landmark of the city. So, when we sisters planned our very first trip to the Pink City of Jaipur, we had to visit Hawa Mahal, otherwise known as the Palace of Winds. We had only a day and a half in our hand to spend in Jaipur and unfortunately, there was a strike in the city the day we were visiting. Hence, we could only explore certain parts of the city and Hawa Mahal was one of the first stops on our tour.
Related Post: Top things to do in Pink City, Jaipur
History of Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal was built by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh in the year 1799 so that the royal women can enjoy the festivities and processions in the streets without being seen to the public. Hawa Mahal is located next to the City Palace, providing an easy access to the ladies from the Zenana (Women’s quarters).
The structure just like the majority of the historic buildings in Jaipur is built using red and pink sandstone. Hawa Mahal was designed by Lal Chand Ustad, a creative genius who gave this gorgeous building the shape of the crown of Lord Krishna. The five-storied structure has 953 intricate latticed Jharokhas (small windows) on the front façade giving it a honeycomb-like look. Hawa Mahal with its delicate meshlike windows also provides air conditioning to the building, thus keeping the place relatively cool during the summers.
Today, people from all over the world visit the Hawa Mahal, just to have a glimpse of the gorgeous pink façade. However, very few visitors are aware that one can also enter the Mahal and explore the interiors from the rear side. When we reached the palace premises we were awestruck by the sheer beauty of the palace. Watching from the main street, the tiny windows looked mesmerizing and dreamy to us.
The entry to the Palace is on the rear side of the building and as we stepped in we were quite surprised by the stark contrast between the exteriors and interiors of Hawa Mahal. The Mahal on the inside looked a little plain in comparison to its gorgeous pink exteriors. But that is not to say that the palace is not beautiful on the inside. It has its own beauty and inherent magic, giving you little glimpses of the old times where the ladies walked around the building decked up in their traditional attire. Lost in our imagination of the bygone era we wandered about the main courtyard area, where there is a fountain located in the center. There are several doors leading to various parts of the building and as we started exploring them, we realized there is nothing much to see in these ancient rooms.
One can use their vivid imagination to get an idea of how this palace was during the reign of the Jaipur royals. As we moved on to the next four floors, we learnt that apart from empty rooms and narrow labyrinth-like passageways, the place was shorn of fancy adornments that one typically finds in palaces or historic places in Rajasthan mainly. We walked around the endless maze of ramps and archways, taking in the innate charm of stained glass windows, countless pillars, pavilions, and jharokhas. The fascinating part of the structure is that you can see windows and little peepholes every corner you walk. We just couldn’t get over these cute windows that were used by the women of the royal family to watch the city’s festivities.
Our exploration got us up to the topmost floor of the Palace, which is called the Hawa Mandir. Here we were greeted with the uninterrupted view of Jaipur city with the busy bazaar on side and Jantar Mantar on the other. One can also view Nahargarh Fort standing majestically on the Aravalli Hills.
Hawa Mahal with its exquisite craftsmanship and old tales, made us immerse in its old-world beauty and completely lose track of time. Jaipur city has innumerable sights that will keep every history and architecture buff captivated with its beauty and one such magical place is the Hawa Mahal. We sisters highly recommend every traveler planning a trip to the Pink City of Jaipur to visit the gorgeous Hawa Mahal.
We hope you guys enjoyed our tour of the Hawa Mahal as much as we did, do leave a comment below to share your thoughts on this historic site. Also, do subscribe to get future updates on new posts through email.
That’s a great write up with beautiful pictures. While tourists are certainly unaware of the beauty hidden behind the facade of Hawa Mahal even city residents have no clue about it. I too visited Hawa Mahal for the first time very recently. I have chronicled it in a write up. Will leave the link here in case you want to have a look.
Here’s the link: https://jaipurthrumylens.com/2017/06/22/exploring-hawa-mahal-in-jaipur-iconic-tourist-attraction-of-the-pink-city-sawai-pratap-singh-pictures/
Lovely write up Arv! thanks for the share.
Wow! Such spectacular pictures! Rajasthan is long due in my list of ‘must visit’ places. I guess, I’ve to plan the travel soon. 🙂
Thanks for the virtual tour of Hawa Mahal.
Your welcome Saumy!
I have visited Hawa Mahal 3 years back. The idea of having so many windows in one building and the reason behind it intrigued me the most. It is indeed a must visit place when one is in Jaipur.
Completely agree with you Moumita!
Nicely clicked Jaipur
Thank you Tina!
Truly Amazing. Loved to read your post.
Thanks for all pics, Awesome.
Thank you!
I’ve never been to India, so know nothing about Jaipur. That said, this was an interesting read, and so incredible to look at. I always wonder how they even started building these stunning and colourful buildings in India. I’m reading about more places there that I’m bookmarking for when I do visit!
Haha, happy to help you add few more places to your list 🙂
To me, Hawa Mahal is a stunning piece of architecture. It even rivals the Taj Mahal in terms of detailing. It was one of our favorite places in Rajasthan and all of India.
It is indeed one of the best works from ancient Indian architecture.
What an interesting story behind this building! That’s great that the royal women could enjoy the festivities! And the exterior is so detailed!
Totally agree with you Marcie!
This is just awesome! I’m yet to see the Hawa Mahal with my own eyes! The yellow interiors are indeed a stark contrast to the pink exteriors. Those multi colored glass windows are the perfect amount of quirk to this interesting architecture!
Oh yes, the stained glass windows just changes the look of the entire place.
I’ve been to India but only visited New Delhi and Calcutta. Your photos are beautiful and makes me want to return so that I can visit the Hawa Mahal myself! Thanks for the virtual tour 🙂
Your welcome Susie!
Lovely captures!
Thank you!
Wow..awesome photographs !
Thanks Renu!
Omg I was just there a month ago! Your pictures came out much more better than the ones I took haha Its fascinating how much history this place radiates. Safe travels and enjoy! – Ella
Thank you for the love Ella :).
What an amazing blog post! I’ve seen people blog about the exterior of this building so many times, but to see and hear what it’s like inside is so fascinating. It’s amazing how much effort they put into the outward appearance of Hawa Mahal, but left the inside as the public wouldn’t see it. So clever how they used the small windows as air conditioning too! Plus they look so intricate and beautiful. I can’t wait to visit Jaipur, and when I do I’ll definitely be exploring the inside of Hawa Mahal. Thank you so much for sharing!
Yes, do not miss on taking the tour of the inside, they are a must to understand the overall concept of the building.
WOW, the Hawa Mahal is really impressive! Never heard of it, sorry – really a dummie when it comes to India – but this is on my list. It looks like straight from the 1001 nights. Jaipur it is when I go to India!
Oh, do visit Hawa Mahal when are in Jaipur, it’s a must!
We visited the Hawa Maha as part of a 3 week road trip through Rajasthan. What an amazing part of the world and what a very cool expose on this Mahal. I must admit – we didn’t go on the inside and just admired the facade – looks like we missed out. Thanks for sharing.
Your welcome, Dominic! The tour of the Hawa Mahal is often missed by a lot of people.We are glad you enjoyed the tour through our post.
I am so glad that you ventured into the Hawa Mahal. A lot of people don’t realize that you can get in as well. Those jharokhas are so cute -aren’t they? And all those pavillions where you can see the rest of the city. You got me all nostalgic with this post. Cheers
Glad our post brought back old memories:). The jharokhas are just exquisite, so much creativity and hard work gone into every detail.
Very nicely written 🙂
Thank you :).
I’d love to visits Hawa Mahal and see the road through the windows as the ladies had done. It’s facsinating that such idea could pop up in someone’s head. I love rooftop views and I’m sure I’d fall in love with these windows when I visit.
Oh yes, peeping through the little windows and looking down at the busy street was indeed a different experience, takes you back in time definitely.
One word for this post- WOW! You both are amazing and so your every trip. Pictures are awesome! Keep sharing your experiences.
Thank you Ashwin.
The reason why I love Jaipur is due to these beautiful landmarks. I paid a visit to Hawa Mahal in 2003 and still remember the much of this mahal! I would again love to check out Hawa Mahal after reading your post 😛 and amazing pictures 🙂 Thanks for this post.
Thank you for the sweet words Anushka :).
Wow what an impressive architectural design! Never benn to Jaipur but its on my list and that HAWA MAHAL is definitely a list to see
Oh yes, do not miss out on this landmark when you visit Jaipur in Future.
We are not really much into buildings, but we do appreciate traditional architecture. The intricate details mean that the builders put their heart and soul into it. We prefer traditional architecture rather than the cold, emotionless glass-and-steel buildings we have in modern cities.
Absolutely true! There is so much beauty and untold stories in these traditional structures.
Your words are steeped in poetry, it made the place come to life! I wish I had seen it en route to Udaipur but alas, time was not on my side. Thank you for helping bring inspiration to my future India trip with things I must do! The facade is indeed riveting!
Thank you Izzy! Hope you get an opportunity to visit this magnificent place on your next trip to India.
Wow what a stunning place to visit! Those colours make for amazing pictures; great job! I would love to visit India, it is on my bucketlist and I would definitely head to Jaipur!
Jaipur is a must visit if you are planning to visit India. Do try and include it in your itinerary.