Nathdwara, Eklingji and the Sas Bahu temples at Nagda
Udaipur · 9 hrs · Cab included · Pickup from your stay
From ₹3050 for the whole vehicle, up to 8 people. The price is per car, not per person.
Vehicles
- Swift Dzire: Sedan. Best for a couple or a small family. ₹3050 for the vehicle.
- Tata Sumo: Rugged 8-seater. The most room for the money. ₹3500 for the vehicle.
- Innova or Ertiga: The comfortable one on a long hill day. ₹4800 for the vehicle.
A day built backwards from the darshan boards
This is the day that goes wrong most often when people attempt it alone. Eklingji opens for darshan in windows and shuts between them. Shrinathji at Nathdwara runs on a sequence of darshan slots with gaps in between, and phones are not allowed past the gate. Arrive at the wrong hour at either and you see a closed door.
The route runs north to Eklingji and Nagda first, then on to Nathdwara, and the whole day is built backwards from the darshan boards. The driver knows the current timings, which shift seasonally and move again on festival days.
Nagda is the quiet surprise: two 10th century temples beside a tank, carved to a standard people travel a long way for, with almost nobody there.
Your day, stop by stop
1. Eklingji Temple, Kailashpuri
The tutelary deity of the Mewar rulers: a 15th century complex of 108 shrines around a four faced black marble Shiva. Darshan happens in windows, and no phones or cameras go inside.
Phones and cameras must be left outside
2. Sas Bahu temples and Adbhutji, Nagda
Two 10th century Vaishnavite temples beside a tank, ten minutes from Eklingji, carved end to end. The name means mother in law and daughter in law, and there is rarely anyone else there.
3. Shrinathji Temple, Nathdwara
The seven year old Krishna, brought from Vrindavan in 1672 and never moved since. Darshan runs as a sequence of slots through the day, each a few minutes long and intensely crowded. No phones past the gate.
Special darshan ticket if you want one, prasad, and a locker if you carry a bag
4. Nathdwara's pichwai workshops
The painted cloth backdrops made for the temple, and the lanes of workshops that still produce them. Twenty minutes, and the one souvenir here worth carrying home.
Anything you buy
5. Vishwas Swaroopam, the Statue of Belief
The 369 ft Shiva statue on the hill outside town, visible from the highway long before you reach it, with a viewing gallery part way up. Dropped if darshan ran long.
Entry ticket
In your price
- Private vehicle with driver for the full day
- Pickup and drop at your stay in Udaipur
- Fuel, tolls, driver allowance and parking
- The day sequenced around the current darshan windows at Eklingji and Nathdwara
- Phones and bags kept in the car while you are inside
- GoExplorer support number for the day
Not included
- Darshan tickets
- Lockers
- Guides
- Meals
- Anything personal
What you pay on the day
- Special or VIP darshan ticket at Shrinathji, if you want one
- Locker or cloakroom charge at Nathdwara if you carry a bag
- Vishwas Swaroopam entry ticket
- Prasad and offerings at any of the temples
- Lunch and anything personal
Who this suits
Anyone making the pilgrimage, and anyone interested in temple architecture who can stand a crowd for twenty minutes. Shrinathji darshan is a dense, pushed crowd and is not comfortable for small children or anyone unsteady on their feet. Eklingji and Nagda are calm. Barefoot on stone at all three.
What to bring
Knees and shoulders covered. No leather at Eklingji. Socks for hot stone. Leave phones, cameras and bags in the car rather than carrying them to the gate. Cash for prasad and tickets.
Festival days, not weather, are the risk
The route runs in any weather. What moves this day is the calendar: on Janmashtami, Annakut and other festival days the Nathdwara crowds and darshan timings change completely and a day trip is a poor idea. We will tell you at booking if your date falls on one. Darshan windows also shift between the summer and winter schedules.
Cancellation
- More than 24 hrs before: Full refund
- Within 24 hrs: 50% refund
- After the start time: No refund
Safety and the operator
Licensed commercial vehicle, a driver who runs these routes regularly, and a GoExplorer support number live for the duration of the booking. Seat belts fitted in all three vehicle classes.
Questions
Can we take photographs inside the temples?
No, at none of the three. Eklingji and Shrinathji both prohibit phones and cameras past the gate and it is enforced. Leave them in the car. Nagda is open air and you can photograph freely there, which is where the pictures from this day come from.
How long is the darshan queue at Nathdwara?
Anywhere from twenty minutes to two hours depending on the slot and the day. The schedule allows two hours for it. A special darshan ticket shortens it and is bought at the counter, per person.
Why go to Eklingji first, when Nathdwara is further?
Because of the windows. Eklingji's morning darshan closes early in the afternoon and Shrinathji has slots through the day. Doing the far one first means arriving at Eklingji to a closed door.
Is Haldighati on this route?
It is close, and no, it is not on this day. There is not enough time for both Shrinathji and the Haldighati museum. Haldighati runs as its own day with Rajsamand.