Jantar Mantar, what a weird name? When I traveled to Jaipur, I didn't really know what to expect. The name sounds more like a joke than something real.

What I found is one of those niche jewels of the world heritage list: an Indian observatory based on architectural astronomical instruments. The architectural part is key here as there were little mechanics or optics involved. Instead, you have the world's largest sundial being able to measure time by 2s due to its size. In comparison the Royal Observatory in Greenwich is tiny.

Interestingly, the site is limited to the observatory. India has in the meantime submitted Jaipur (T) itself as a separate site. The community feedback is rather positive, but to me combining Jaipur and the Jantar Mantar would yield a truly great site and the separation seems rather artificial.

Getting There

I flew in from Bangalore in the morning. I left the next morning on the train to Agra.

A popular tourist option is to do the golden triangle (Delhi, Agra, Jaipur) from Delhi with a driver. You will find plenty of offers for this online.

While You Are There

As mentioned, Jaipur City is a tentative site itself and nominated for 2019. Not to be missed Amer Fort is part of the Hill Forts of Rajasthan world heritage site.