Pushkar Tourist Places to Visit | Pushkar Camel Fair | Rajsthan Tourism and Places to Visit | Ajmer by Train

Pushkar is a small town located around 11 kms northwest from nearest city Ajmer in Rajasthan. It is most advisable to travel upto Ajmer the nearest railway station and then to take some local conveyance to reach Pushkar. The other alternative may be to travel upto Jaipur and from there to Ajmer and then to finally Pushkar.

New Delhi Jaipur Ajmer New Delhi Shatabdi Express train

Delhi – Ajmer – Delhi Shatabdi Express is the most superfast train available in this route and traveling from Delhi to Ajmer by train is a quick and convenient option. The Shatabdi Express completes the journey in around seven Hours till Ajmer. Shatabdi Express Trains are most fastest trains available and mostly day-trains as it returns to the originating stations on same day. All the Shatabdi Express trains have one coach of first class air-conditioned seating. These coaches have wider leg room and offer better food compared to the normal Air conditioned seating (CC). New on-board entertainment systems have also been installed on some of these trains where the passengers can view movies and television serials directly via satellite. 

The main railway station in Delhi is New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS), near Paharganj. There are two options to board the Shatabdi Express in Delhi one from Delhi Railway Station, which located near Chandhi Chowk in Old Delhi, and other is Sarai Rohilla Railway Station (DEE) which is located in north Delhi, around five kilometers to the west of New Delhi Railway Station. 

The main railway station in Ajment is Ajmer (All).

12015 Delhi to Ajmer Shatabdi: The fastest and most convenient train from Delhi to Ajmer is the premium 2015 Ajmer Shatabdi. It departs New Delhi Railway Station at 6.05 and arrives at Ajmer at 13:00 on the same day. The fare in 1AC (first class, seated, air conditioned) is rupees 1090 upto Ajmer. CC (chair car, seated, air conditioned) is rupees 570  upto Ajmer. The train runs every day and meals are included. The train halts in Delhi Cantonment, Gurgaon, Rewari, Alwar, Jaipur on its course of journey from both destinations.

12016 Ajmer to Delhi Shatabdi: On the return journey, it departs Ajmer Station at 15:50 and arrives at Delhi at 22:40 on the same day. The fare in 1AC (first class, seated, air conditioned) is rupees 1200 upto Delhi. CC (chair car, seated, air conditioned) is rupees 645 upto Delhi. The train runs every day and meals are included. The train halts in Delhi Cantonment, Gurgaon, Rewari, Alwar, Jaipur on its course of journey from both destinations.

Delhi Ajmer Other Trains   

14311 Ala Hazrat Express: The 14311 Ala Hazrat Express mail train departs Delhi Station at 11.40 a.m. and arrives at Jaipur at 17:35 and Ajmer 20:20 on the same day. The Train have 2A, 3A and SL Accommodations. The fare in 2A (two tier, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 714 upto Ajmer. 3A (three tier, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 522 upto Ajmer. SL (three tier, non air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 197 upto Ajmer. The train runs Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

12916 Ashram Express: The superfast 2916 Ashram Express departs Delhi Station daily at 15:20.  It arrives in Jaipur at 20:25 and Ajmer at 22:35. The fare in 1A (first class, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees  1250 upto Ajmer. The fare in 2A (two tier, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 744 upto Ajmer. The fare in 3A (three tier, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 552 upto Ajmer. The fare in SL (three tier, non air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 217 upto Ajmer.

Delhi Jaipur Tains

15715 Garib Nawaj Express: The train 15715 Garib Nawaj Express mail train departs Delhi at 13:35 and arrives in Jaipur at 19:19. It only runs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays though. The 1AC (first class, air conditioned, sleeper) is rupees 919 upto Jaipur.  3A (three tier, air conditioned, sleeper) is 404 rupees upto Jaipur. SL (three tier, non air conditioned, sleeper) is 155 rupees upto Jaipur.

12215 BDTS Garib Rath: The BDTS Garib Rath departs from Delhi to Jaipur from Delhi S Rohilla Railway Station at 9.20 a.m. and arrives in Jaipur at 14:10  the same day. However, it only runs on Mondays, Tuesday, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The fare is rupees 312 in 3AC.

PUSHKAR CITY AND FAIR

Pushkar is a small town located around 11 kms northwest from nearest city Ajmer in Rajasthan.  It is one of the most famous Hindu pilgrimage sites for its beautiful lake set in a valley and surrounded by hills on three sites and sand dunes on the fourth side. It is said that a dip in the sacred lake of Pushkar is akin to the visits to the four main Hindu shrines known as 'Chaar Dhaam'. In the month of October or November the Rajasthan tradition becomes alive in Pushkar which is an ideal site for the religious and cattle fair, which is held every year. Men with colored turban on their head, women with colorful veils and skirts and children with fancy local dresses makes the annual fair alive. 

Pushkar is a old and historical city much like Varanasi of India with more than 400 temples strewn across the town and is said to be the only place with a temple dedicated to Lord Brahma, one of the most important member of the Holy Trinity of Hindus who is known as 'The Creator'. According to a legend, as Lord Brahma was searching for a suitable place to perform a yagnya, the lotus fell of his hands and the place where it fell sprung out water. Since then the lake of Pushkar was formed. The lake still stands with 52 bathing Ghat on its banks. People throng to these ghat to take a dip in the holy lake and wash away all their sins, as is the popular belief here. It was on the full moon day in the month of Kartik that the lake was formed. This religious reason has given the world an opportunity to be a part of one of the most spectacular fairs of the world. Thousands of devotees collects to take a dip, sadhus descend from the Himalayas and people pray for salvation to the sound of verses from the Holy Scriptures, which fill the air.

Historically, Pushkar is not far behind. It has it share of being one of the cities of great strategic importance and was bagged by Mehmood of Ghanzi on one of his periodic forays from Afghanistan. Later Mughals acquired it and it is said that it was here that the British established contact with the Moghuls for the first time. In 1616, Pushkar witnessed the meeting of Sir Thomas Roe with Emperor Jehangir. Pushkar eventually fell into the lap of Scindias until it reached the hands of British in 1818, who preferred to keep it directly under their control rather than letting it remain as a part of a princely state.

Pushkar owes much of its beauty to the beautiful hills surrounding it and 'Nag pahar' (translated as 'The Snake Mountain') that forms a natural boundary between Ajmer and Pushkar. According to Hindu mythology, all the gods visit Pushkar for five days in a year to bless the devout and absolve them of their sins. There are many legends associated to the origin of Pushkar and Pushkar Fair but they have one thing in common. They are all associated with Lord Brahma. A visit to Pushkar Fair is an experience of a lifetime and is certainly not worth a miss.

The annual fair held in Pushakar every year is visited by foreigners and Indian alike is perhaps the largest gathering for a fair from tourists all around the world in Rajasthan. The fair is held in the Hindu month of Kartik or November and begins on Kartik Shukal Ekadashi and goes on for five days till Kartik Purnima. The fair is a great crowd puller. The time of the fair coincides with the bright half of the moon during the months of October-November.

An interesting part of the Pushkar Fair is the it is also the world’s largest camel and cattle fair. The charm of the fair and also the reason behind it becoming the world famous fair is its original and very rural charm. Here the people spontaneously break into a song or a dance; they forget their daily miseries and enjoy the camel and the cattle races. They buy goodies and make merry. All this adds to the charm of the place and that too with a religious touch to it. Of course, cattle and other livestock are also traded, but it's camels that hold center stage at Pushkar. Camel-traders and villagers from miles away converge to Pushkar with their humped beasts. Over 25,000 camels (on the conservative side) are traded; making this world's largest camel fair.