A good Udaipur holiday package from the UK covers your flights, a few nights in a lakeside or old-city hotel, a private car and a guide for the palaces and the lake. Most travellers are happiest with three or four nights in Udaipur, often as part of a longer Rajasthan route. Below we explain what is normally included, what costs extra, how to shape the itinerary, and how we build these trips at Patel Travel.
TL;DR
- Allow two to three nights for the main sights, four if you want day trips to the forts and temples nearby.
- Check whether flights, airport transfers, guide fees, entry tickets and insurance are in the quote, because packages differ on all five.
- October to March is the most comfortable season, and also the busiest, so book early.
- Udaipur works best as one stop on a wider route, such as Jaipur and Delhi, rather than a stand-alone trip.
- UK travellers need a visa unless they hold an OCI card, and a passport valid for at least six months after arrival.
Table of Contents
- Why Udaipur suits a UK holiday
- What a Udaipur package usually includes
- How many days to allow
- The sights a package should cover
- When to go
- Getting there from the UK
- Combining Udaipur with the rest of India
- Our perspective: how we plan Udaipur trips
- Our India tours and holiday packages
- A simple way to plan your trip
- FAQ
- Sources
Why Udaipur suits a UK holiday
Udaipur was founded in 1559 by Maharaja Udai Singh II and is known as the City of Lakes, or the Venice of the East, according to the Incredible India destination guide. It sits in the Aravalli range and is dotted with seven lakes. That setting is the reason people book it: you spend your days on water, in palace courtyards and in narrow bazaars, rather than racing between monuments.
It also suits the way many of our customers travel. It is compact, easy to walk in the old town, and calm after the pace of Delhi or Mumbai. For families visiting India with parents or grandparents, that matters. Short drives, a hotel you can return to in the afternoon and a boat ride at sunset make a gentler holiday than a long road itinerary.
What a Udaipur package usually includes
The word “package” covers very different things. Some quotes are land-only: hotel, car and a few sightseeing stops. Others bundle the international flight too. Before you compare two prices, line up what each one actually contains.
| Item | Often included | Often extra |
|---|---|---|
| International flights | In a full holiday package | In land-only tours, quoted separately |
| Hotel nights | Yes, with breakfast | Lunches, dinners, drinks |
| Airport and station transfers | Usually | Late-night or changed arrivals |
| Private car and driver | In private tours | In budget group offers, shared transport |
| Guide in the city | In better-planned packages | Often charged per visit |
| Monument entry tickets | Sometimes | Often paid on the day |
| Lake Pichola boat ride | Sometimes | Often optional |
| Visa, OCI paperwork | Rarely | Separate service |
| Travel insurance | Rarely | Always your responsibility |
On insurance, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advises travellers to get appropriate travel insurance that covers their itinerary, planned activities and emergency expenses. If you are travelling with older relatives, tell the insurer about any existing medical conditions before you pay your deposit.
How to compare quoted prices
A low headline price is only useful if it covers the same things as the next one. Ask each provider the same short list of questions:
- Are international flights included, and from which UK airport?
- Is the car private for your party, or shared with other guests?
- Is there a local guide, and for how many hours?
- Are entry tickets and the boat ride included?
- Which hotels, and which category of room, are quoted?
- Are there card fees or booking fees on top?
Prices from Indian booking sites, which fill the first page of search results, are quoted in rupees and usually for shorter, budget-level stays. They are a poor guide to what a UK-based traveller pays once flights, transfers and a private guide are added. Get a written quote in pounds from a UK agent who is ATOL protected, so your flight money is protected too.
How many days to allow
The honest answer is three nights for most people. One itinerary from a travel blogger says three days is enough for the main spots with time for a short day trip, and we agree. Two days is possible but feels rushed, and four lets you slow down.
Two days: the essentials
Incredible India’s two-day Udaipur plan puts City Palace, Jagdish Temple, Jag Mandir and Rajasthani food on day one. Day two covers Monsoon Palace, Sajjangarh Biological Park, the markets and a Lake Pichola boat ride. The UK newspaper The Standard also suggests two days for first-time visitors in its India guide, naming City Palace, Saheliyon Ki Bari, a sunset boat ride and the textile workshops.
This is enough for a first look, but your arrival and departure days will probably eat into it.
Three days: the comfortable version
With three days, you can keep the old city and the lake on the first day, the hills and gardens on the second, and leave the third for markets and a relaxed departure. One published three-day plan spreads Jagdish Temple, City Palace and Gangaur Ghat across day one, a local art experience and Karni Mata Temple across day two, and Ahar Cenotaphs, Bahubali Hills and a sunset cruise across day three.
This is the length we would suggest to most first-time visitors.
Four days: with day trips
Incredible India’s four-day itinerary adds Lake Palace, Bagore ki Haveli, Shilpgram, Eklingji Temple and surrounding sights such as Haldighati. That is the pace to choose if you would rather spend an afternoon by the hotel pool than tick off another monument.
The sights a package should cover
The Incredible India guide lists the City Palace, Lake Pichola, Jagdish Temple, Saheliyon Ki Bari and Monsoon Palace among Udaipur’s major attractions. Here is how to think about each when you read an itinerary:
- City Palace and Lake Pichola: the heart of any trip. Ask whether a guide is included for the palace, since the history makes much more sense when someone explains it.
- Jagdish Temple: a working temple in the old town. Many of our customers like to combine it with an unhurried walk through the bazaars nearby.
- Saheliyon Ki Bari: a quiet garden, good for a slower morning.
- Monsoon Palace and Sajjangarh: a hilltop viewpoint, best late in the afternoon.
- A sunset boat ride on Lake Pichola: the one extra we would never leave out.
If an itinerary skips most of these and fills the days with shopping stops, that is a sign the package is built around commissions, not your interests.
When to go
The usual advice is October to March. A hotel in Udaipur describes this as the most pleasant period, with clear skies and mild temperatures, and also the peak tourist season, so expect more crowds. The same source describes July to September as the greener, quieter monsoon option, with occasional showers that can limit outdoor activities.
For our customers, the practical points are these:
- Winter (roughly November to February): the best weather for walking and boat rides, but flights and hotels fill up around Diwali, Christmas and New Year, and for wedding season. Book months ahead.
- October and March: often a good balance of comfort and availability.
- Monsoon: greener scenery and lower demand, with the trade-off of rain. Many travellers with mobility concerns prefer to avoid it.
For current weather and what to expect month by month, ask us when you request a quote, because we plan around your dates rather than fixed departures.
Getting there from the UK
Most UK travellers fly to a major Indian gateway and continue by domestic flight, rail or road. Because routes and schedules change, we check them for your dates rather than promising a fixed routing. A common approach is to land in Delhi or Mumbai and then connect, or to arrive in Jaipur and travel on by car. If Rajasthan is your focus, our page on flights to Jaipur from London is a useful starting point, and you can fly home from a different city using an open-jaw ticket. We explain how that works in our guide to open-jaw flights to India, and our multi-city flights to India page shows how it fits a longer route.
Passport and visa
According to the FCDO’s India travel advice, UK citizens need a passport that expires at least six months after arrival and has at least two blank pages. UK travellers also need a visa unless they hold an OCI card, and may be able to apply for either a paper visa or an e-visa. Rules can change, so check the official page before you book. If you would rather have someone check your documents, our India visa and OCI help service is there for exactly that.
Staying safe and organised
The FCDO advises keeping copies of your passport, visa and flight ticket separately from the originals, and being careful in tourist areas where scammers and pickpockets target foreign nationals. In Udaipur that means the busy lanes near the City Palace and the lakefront. A private driver and guide who wait for you reduce the number of decisions you make while tired and jet-lagged.
Combining Udaipur with the rest of India
Udaipur rarely needs to stand alone. It pairs naturally with other Rajasthan cities, and with Delhi and Agra if you have not seen them. A route many travellers choose runs Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and then Udaipur, finishing with a flight home from Udaipur’s region or back from Delhi.
From Udaipur itself, a day trip to Kumbhalgarh Fort and the Ranakpur Jain temple is a popular add-on, and the two are commonly visited together in one day. It makes a long day by car, so it suits the four-night version of the trip.
If you have a longer holiday, you can also pair Rajasthan with something very different:
- the Goa beach holiday package for a few days of rest after the sightseeing;
- the India wildlife safari holiday package if you want tigers as well as palaces;
- the Kashmir houseboat holiday package for a second water-based stay.
Our perspective: how we plan Udaipur trips
We are a London-based India specialist, part of the Times Travel Group, and every trip is planned by a real person, not a booking engine. Here is how we think about Udaipur.
First, we separate the flight from the land arrangements. Our private tours are quoted for land arrangements only, so we can compare several airlines for your dates and your nearest UK airport, from Heathrow to Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and beyond. Often the saving, or the more convenient connection, is in the flight.
Second, we plan for the people who are actually travelling. Many of our customers are over 40 and travelling with parents, spouses or grown-up children. We can arrange wheelchair assistance and special meals, and we can talk it through in English, Gujarati, Hindi, Punjabi or Urdu. Hotel location, number of steps and the length of each drive matter far more to those travellers than a long list of sights.
Third, we do not believe in packing days. Three nights in Udaipur with a free afternoon is a better holiday than four cities in five days. If a first-time visitor asks us to add a fifth place, we usually suggest a longer stay in one fewer.
Finally, we are straightforward about price. Quotes should be in pounds, include what you expect them to include, and carry no card booking fees. If you find a like-for-like quote elsewhere, tell us and we will beat it.
— the author
Our India tours and holiday packages
Udaipur is part of the Rajasthan story, and our private tours give you your own car and driver, a local guide in each city and dates of your choosing, with no coach group and no fixed departures. Prices are per person, twin share, for land arrangements only, and flights are quoted separately.
The nearest match in our current range is Best of Rajasthan, from £717 per person. If you want Udaipur to be part of the route, tell us your dates and who is travelling, and we will build it around you. Other tours include Golden Triangle from £297 per person and Classic North India from £559 per person, and you can see all twelve on our India tours page.
If you would like flights and hotels bundled, our India holiday packages include flights, hotels and transfers, planned by a specialist. We are ATOL protected (74904) and IATA accredited, and you can contact us by phone on 0203 668 2943 or on WhatsApp.
A simple way to plan your trip
- Pick your length. Three nights in Udaipur suits most people; add one or two for day trips or a rest.
- Choose your season. October to March is the most comfortable, but book earlier.
- Decide the shape. Udaipur alone, or as part of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur.
- Check your documents. Passport validity, and a visa or OCI card.
- Ask for a written quote. List what is in and what is not, using the checklist above.
- Arrange insurance. Make sure it matches your itinerary and any medical needs.
For more planning ideas, our blog covers flights, routes and travelling with family.
FAQ
How many days do I need in Udaipur?
Three days, or two nights, is enough to see the main sights at a steady pace. Allow four if you want a day trip to Kumbhalgarh and Ranakpur or prefer a relaxed schedule. Two days works only if you accept a rushed itinerary.
Do Udaipur holiday packages include flights from the UK?
Some do and some do not. Full holiday packages bundle flights, while land-only tours leave them to be quoted separately. Always check which one you are being offered before comparing prices.
Do I need a visa for Udaipur?
UK passport holders need a visa for India unless they have an OCI card. You may be able to apply for a paper visa or an e-visa, and your passport must be valid for at least six months after arrival with two blank pages. Check the FCDO guidance before you travel.
When is the best time to visit Udaipur?
October to March is generally the most comfortable, with mild weather and clear skies, but it is also the busiest period. The monsoon months are greener and quieter, with a chance of rain disrupting plans. Book early for winter.
Can Udaipur be combined with other places?
Yes, and most visitors do. It fits well with Jaipur, Delhi and Agra, or with a beach stay in Goa afterwards. A specialist can arrange this with a single flight in and a different flight home.
Sources
- India travel advice, GOV.UK
- India travel advice (print version), GOV.UK
- Safety and security, India travel advice, GOV.UK
- Udaipur, Incredible India
- Udaipur whispers: a royal weekend, Incredible India
- Udaipur’s untold tales: a timeless journey, Incredible India
- India travel guide for first-timers, The Standard
- The best Udaipur itinerary for 3 days, 2 nights
- Udaipur itinerary: the perfect 3 days
- The best time to visit Udaipur
- Udaipur travel guide: lake city essentials
