This city in Rajasthan, with its immense yellow fortress rising up out of an arid landscape, is a place of considerable fascination. It was a former stopping off point for the camel caravans of the Rajput princes and boasts a stunning architecture at the gateway to the Thar desert.

Rajasthan is known for its superb scenery and its brightly-coloured towns and Jaisalmer offers the quintessence of all this beauty in a singular setting. The city is on the eastern edge of the State and bears witness to the heroic and violent history of the Rajputs, princes of a territory won by sword and governed without mercy. The citadel is a monument to this past. It was built in the 12th century and later encircled by towers and walls. It is reached by means of four monumental gates. This labyrinth of mosaics, small courtyards and rooms is a testament to the megalomania of these princes who ruled the desert, placed as they were in the ideal position to levy taxes on the passing caravan trade.

Thus the town boasts superb havelis, magnificent merchant dwellings with finely-carved balconies. Both in the upper and lower parts of the town, abundant shops and lively trading show that Jaisalmer has lost none of its legendary commercial skills.

The Jain temples are another attraction of the town. They are veritable marvels of delicacy with their hordes of white-clad pilgrims who defend life to the hilt. To such an extent that they wear masks and sweep the ground before them so as not to harm the tiniest insect... All visits to Jaisalmer invariably culminate in a trip into the desert. Camel rides through the dunes are yet another attraction in this very special town.