Jaipur, the capital of the state of Rajasthan, is one of the few planned cities of the world. Located260 km south of Delhi, Jaipur was founded in 1727 by Maharaja Jai Singh II, a Kachhwaha Rajput, who ruled at Amber from 1699-1744.The Maharaja, took special interest in the designing, planning and execution works of Jaipur. The city was divided into nine quadrangles which symbolise the nine divisions of the universe. Of these, two quadrangles were kept for the Palace Complex and other state buildings, and the other seven blocks were earmarked for the people. The city was encircled by the city wall with seven gates.

Jaipur is known for its two architectural wonders, the Hawa Mahal and the observatory, the Jantar Mantar. The old city of Jaipur came to be known as “Pink City” since it was pained pink to welcome Prince Albert. Jaipur is blessed with the opulence of cultural and architectural beauty that surpasses most other regions of India.

Famous for its colourful culture, forts, palaces, and the lake palace (Jal Mahal) situated in the midst of a large man-made lake, Mansagar, the city basks in the glory of a rich and eventful past. Jaipur is also famous for semi-precious stones, miniatures, handicrafts, clothes, jewellery of silver and lac. Jaipur and its suburb, Sanganer, are also known for textile dyeing and printing, papermaking and blue pottery. Besides Mansagar that was constructed 400 years ago, there is another lake about 35 km from Jaipur at Jamwa Ramgarh which was created more than 100 years ago for drinking water supply to Jaipur.

Jaipur is a major tourist center, and together with Delhi and Agra, it forms the “Golden Triangle”. Jaipur offers hotel accommodation in all categories including luxury palaces, for large number of tourists (more than 10,000 beds). With excellent convention facilities, the city has rapidly grown into a preferred destination for large international conferences. Jaipur has an international airport connected to all major cities of the country – Delhi, Agra, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Varanasi, Mumbai by air and very convenient and comfortable train services. Delhi-Jaipur National Highway is among the best to travel by road.