Jaipur is an amazing pink city and one of our favorites out India. They people are really nice here and over all the town has a good energy. When you are touring sites in town, most of them are self explanatory, so you don't need to hire a guide, as it was more relaxing to walk around by myself and take in the culture and sites around me.
If you want to go shopping, all cabs will take you to Rajastan Small Scale Cottage Industries. After shopping around India, I do have to admit they have really nice things, however way over priced since they are use to Westerns shopping there. Don't be afraid to bargain, whatever price they tell you cut that in half. I felt that I had bargain a good price till I got back home and had a big fat duty bill waiting for me. Remember you will have to pay tax if you have the item shipped to the USA, so include that in your final price. Other than that I did receive all my items, exactly as order and they are still working out for me today.
You don't want to miss this city!

It was our first time to India and I had read here that Rajasthan was a good start for first timers like us, and it helped that the weather was best around this time of the year. I had made some queries on TA prior to my trip and I thanked all who replied; the Indian forum really is one of the most helpful! Here's my (rather late) trip report. Please refer to the hotel reviews for the hotels we stayed at.

We arrived in Delhi and checked into the Tara Palace hotel. I liked the location in Old Delhi, walking distance to Chandni Chowk, which I really wanted to see, and I wasn't disappointed! Its like a microcosm of India, Chandni Chowk was a great starting point for us. We took a short (but really wild!) rickshaw ride to Connaught Place or CP (he dropped us before the major road) and dropped in to the famous Haldirams for desserts and drinks.

Our train to Ajmer was at 4am (delay of 1.5 hrs). This was our first Indian train experience so we were quite excited. Booked 2nd class, no complains, basic, comfortable bunks. Arrived in Ajmer 6hrs later and headed straight for the Dargah (one of the holiest Sufi shrines in India). We had not actually planned to go here but had to take the train up to Ajmer as by the time we booked (on cleartrip) trains going to Udaipur were full. The Dargah was an eye-opening experience, it was the first time I saw people from different faiths who went to one place to pray/receive blessings, and it was crowded with mostly Indians who came from all over.

We arrived in the beautiful city of Udaipur at nightfall (5+hrs drive from Ajmer) and checked into Jaiwana haveli. This was by far our favourite city, very tranquil and picturesque. We went to some of the main sights next day,ie Jagdish temple, City Palace, the gardens and made it just in time for a sunset boat ride on Fateh Sagar lake. I can't recommend this highly enough. Its one of those experiences that defined our India trip.
Udaipur is also the best to buy miniature paintings/crafts as it's well-known for them (each city has its own 'speciality' as our driver told us).

We departed for Jodhpur next, stopping at Kumbalgarh fort and Ranakpur along the way. Both sights were well-worth the visit. Arrived in Jodhpur at night, where we checked in to Ratan Villas. Set out early the next day for Mehrangarh Fort, which was another highlight of our trip. There was a lot of Indian visitors as well, and I loved seeing the local women literally dressed to the nines for their 'day out'. So colorful and very 'Rajasthan'! We had a fantastic lunch at 'On the Rocks', where we had our first real complete meal. The ambience was great and it was crowded with both tourists and locals alike, a good sign.
We visited Sardar market, and generally spent the evening walking down the long row of shops here. A must-try is the famous sweets shop at the opposite end of Sardar market. Indians love their sweets and this is one of those quintessential Indian experience!

Departed early for Jaipur (7hrs drive) and arrived late afternoon. As we had some time to kill before dinner, we checked out the Big Bazaar supermarket right in front of our hotel, the Four Points. Stocked up on some foodstuffs and other necessities like moisturizer (they're pretty well-stocked). We had the best dinner in Jaipur, at Copper Chimney. Don't be fooled by the rather shabby exterior and outdated interior. Both nights we went, it was crowded but not too crowded and the food was excellent.
We visited the beautiful Amber Fort the next day, and the Pottery factory (which had originated from persia), one of Jaipur's speciality (although we found out later you can get some of the smaller items cheaper in Jaipur's markets). Also stopped by Jantar Mantar, a relatively new World Heritage site in the Pink City, and then to the Banu/Kishanpol Bazaar for shopping. Jaipur was by far the best place for shopping.

We arrived in Agra at night time the next day, after stopping by Fatehpuh Sikri along the way. We by now had a routine of going for coffee after dinner and we usually head to 'Cafe Coffee Day' or CCD in short, (it started in Jodhpur). Loved their chocolate lave cake and despite the name, they do have a good range of non-coffee drinks.

We arrived at the outside entrance to Taj Mahal at around 7ish am and it was a good thing too, as we didn't have to face any long queues. Our guide told us that the queues can get pretty long for those going in when it just opened at dawn. The Taj was of course the one monument that all of us had wanted to visit and it really was quite awe-inspiring!

We left for Delhi right after that and traffic was so bad, it took us 5 hours to reach our hotel. As it was already evening, we decided to postponed our sightseeing to the next day.
We set off for Delhi's Jama Masjid, Humayun Tomb and Qutb Minar, ending with dinner at McDonald's at CP (we by now had quite enough of Indian food and was curious about how McD India's menu was like). We spend our last day in Delhi at Chandni Chowk, eating at the cheap and good Paratha Wala and buying a ton of sarees.

Overall, our brief Indian sojourn left a kaleidoscope of lasting impressions; our very reliable driver Shambu, the magnificent attractions, excellent food, chaotic markets/bazaars, neon bright sarees, the 'smells', great chai and those warm, friendly souls that characterize the Indian spirit. We will be back someday.

My Husband and I booked a personalised tour with Enchanting India, we did Delhi, varanasi, Kajraho, ranthambore, Nimaj, jaipure, and udaipure. The best place that i would have loved to stay longer was Nimaj. The service the food, the location was just amazing. the accomadation is luxury tents, that are very beautfully appointed, they are situated on a bund over looking the lake, there are many wild life that habitat the lake and surrounding areas lotsof bird life, the veiw and the tranquility of the place is amazing. this was sugested strongly by the lady who planed my trip, and i'm ever so thankful.
the place is run by a family. they grow all their food, and it is prepared by the ladies of the household. the best home cooked food that i have had on my trip.It was so fresh and tasty. If you want to unwind, take it easy and rest and be taken care of with attention and detail this is the place. It is called Chatrasagar in Nimaj Rajasthan.The hosts are very attentive, and warm. A must revisit for us!!!!!
Enchanting india has been an excellent tour company, and we are doing another tour with them in April to Nepal.The only thing i was sometimes disappointed were the guides, some of them very average, and i would advice, that you dont ask the guides to take you shopping!!! Big mistake, I got ripped off .do your own research, and own bargaining. Hope this helps

We have been three people, 20 days in a trip around north india (Delhi, Jaipur, Pushkar, Agra, Varanasi, Ranikhet, Nainital), from September 16th to October 5th 2010. We contracted a Driver from tour agency "Royal Rajasthan India Tours". We could enjoy all the places that we had chosen in advance with accommodations and transportation within occidental standards very acceptable. We arrived on time and in perfect condition to all destinations. They provided what we need at any time and reported curiosities and circumstances that were happening throughout the trip. we were fortunate to have a great driver and person to our service very friendly, honest and attentive, good cognizant of the customs, religion and culture of their country. If you are traveling by any place of india, is an agency highly recommended, greetings.