A long trip to south of Jaipur, Bundi and Kota is place of worth visiting for its magnificient forts. In 1579, Rao Ratan Singh of Bundi gave his son, Madho Singh, the tiny principality of Kota. Both fllourished.

Bundi's Taragarh fort-palace (1372 onwards) coated with murals (1744-71) sprawls over the hillside above the narrow lanes and blue houses of its town, a delightful time warp-even today.

Kota 's palace, found through extravagant elephant gates, has equally wonderful murals . The road down to these treats passes hilltop forts near Chatsu and Nawai and brushes past Tonk, worth stopping at to see Sunehri Kothi (Golden masion).

Best to stay overnight (or longer) at the Riverside Brijraj Bhawan Palace, so there is also time to visit Sir Swinton Jacob's umed Bhawan, the royal tombs and nearby Mandalgarh fort.