Saheliyon Ki Bari Udaipur: History, Timings and Guide

Saheliyon Ki Bari, the Garden of the Maidens, is one of the loveliest and most popular landmarks in Udaipur, a peaceful royal garden of lawns, lotus pools, marble pavilions and wonderful fountains. This guide from Delhi Agra Tour Packages covers Saheliyon Ki Bari in full, the history, the famous fountains, the timings, the fees and how to plan your visit, a charming stop on any Udaipur itinerary or a Golden Triangle tour extended into Rajasthan.

I was born in Delhi and in more than 11 years planning trips across Rajasthan for Experience My India I have taken many travellers to this delightful garden in the City of Lakes. Here is the clear, practical guide to visiting.

Saheliyon Ki Bari at a glance

About Saheliyon Ki Bari

Saheliyon Ki Bari, which translates as the Garden of the Maidens, is one of the most stunning historical gardens in Udaipur and a much-loved tourist landmark. Set just below the northern embankment of the beautiful Lake Fateh Sagar, this 18th-century royal retreat is celebrated for its lush, manicured lawns, its intricate marble architecture and, above all, its iconic fountains, which work purely on the natural pressure of water, without any pumps or electricity.

It is a place of gentle beauty and calm, a lovely contrast to the grand palaces and busy bazaars of the city and it offers a charming glimpse into the graceful world of the royal women of Mewar for whom it was created. For visitors, it is a delightful and easy stop, rich in history and perfect for a peaceful stroll.

The history of Saheliyon Ki Bari

The garden was built between 1710 and 1734 by Maharana Sangram Singh II, also known as Rana Sanga II, the ruler of Mewar and it has a lovely story behind it. It was created as a peaceful retreat for his queen and for the 48 maidens or saheliyon, who had accompanied her to Udaipur as part of her wedding dowry and from whom the garden takes its name.

The purpose of the garden was to give these royal women a private and beautiful space in which to walk, relax and spend their time away from the formality and politics of the court. It was, in effect, a secret garden for the ladies of the palace, designed purely for their pleasure and peace and that gentle, graceful spirit still fills the place today, more than three centuries later.

The famous fountains and the engineering

The most spectacular feature of Saheliyon Ki Bari and what makes it truly special, is its remarkable system of fountains, a marvel of old engineering. The fountains need no pumps and no electricity at all. Instead, they draw their water from the nearby Lake Fateh Sagar through gravity-fed channels, using the natural fall and pressure of the water to send it spurting continuously from the fountains.

This ingenious design was created to delight the royal women, with the fountains spraying water to mimic the sound of rain and to cool the air with a gentle, refreshing breeze, a wonderful escape from the heat of the day. Later, Maharana Bhopal Singh expanded and enhanced the grounds, importing specialised raining fountains from England to add still more beauty to the garden. To this day, these centuries-old fountains play on using nothing but the force of nature, a testament to the skill of their makers.

Key highlights and things to see

Saheliyon Ki Bari is small enough to explore at leisure and it is full of lovely details and features. Here are the highlights not to miss.

Kamal Talai, the Lotus Pond

At the heart of the garden lies the beautiful Kamal Talai or Lotus Pond, a circular water body blanketed with green lotus leaves and vibrant flowers. It is flanked by four life-sized marble elephants, beautifully carved, which softly spout water from their trunks into the pool, a charming and much-photographed sight that is one of the garden's signature features.

The "Bin Badal Barsat" fountains

One of the most delightful features is the set of fountains known as the Bin Badal Barsat, meaning rain without clouds. Sculpted bird figurines on the roofs of the pavilions are cleverly engineered to spray water outward from their beaks, creating the perfect effect of walking through a light monsoon shower, complete with the gentle sound of falling rain, even on a clear and sunny day.

The Sawan Bhadon and Ras Leela fountains

The garden also contains stunning themed courtyards, including the Sawan Bhadon and the Ras Leela fountains. These were spaces where royal dance ensembles once performed amid cascading sheets of water, the dancers moving against a backdrop of flowing fountains. They are beautiful and atmospheric corners of the garden, evoking the graceful entertainments of the royal women of old.

The Kalangan Museum

Within the grounds, the onsite royal cottage has been converted into a quaint little museum, the Kalangan Museum. It showcases a collection of traditional royal household artefacts, vintage paintings and preserved items from the Mewar era, offering a further glimpse into the life and times of the royal household. It makes an interesting addition to a tour of the garden, rounding out the visit with a touch of history.

Timings, fees and duration

Saheliyon Ki Bari is open every day of the week, from 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM, which makes it easy to fit into any day in Udaipur. It is a compact garden, so you will typically need about 1 to 1.5 hours to leisurely tour the museum, explore the lawns and pavilions and enjoy the fountains at an unhurried pace.

The garden is wonderfully budget-friendly and accessible. At the time of writing, the entry fee is a small amount, roughly in the region of ₹10 to ₹30 per person for Indian visitors and about ₹50 to ₹150 per person for foreign visitors. As fees and timings can change over time, it is always worth reconfirming the current rates and hours locally or with your tour operator before you visit, but in any case this remains one of the most affordable and rewarding stops in the city.

The best time to visit Saheliyon Ki Bari

The garden can be enjoyed throughout the day, but the best times to visit are the early morning, before about 10:00 AM or the late afternoon. At these times the soft, golden light is exceptional for photography, the crowds are at their smallest and the weather is at its most comfortable for strolling the lawns and lanes.

More broadly, the best season to visit Udaipur and enjoy its gardens is the cool, pleasant winter from about October to March, the peak tourism season in the City of Lakes, when the weather is lovely for sightseeing on foot, as our best time to visit Rajasthan guide covers the seasons across the state. The garden sits right beside the lovely Lake Fateh Sagar, one of the city's great lakes, as our best lakes of Udaipur guide covers the lakes of Udaipur, so the two make a natural pairing.

Location and how to reach

Saheliyon Ki Bari lies in the north of Udaipur, just below the embankment of Lake Fateh Sagar, a little away from the old city but easily reached by a short drive, auto-rickshaw or taxi. Its lakeside setting makes it a pleasant part of a tour of the northern part of the city and the Fateh Sagar area.

The garden combines beautifully with the other great sights of Udaipur, from the grand City Palace to the temples and lakes, as our City Palace Udaipur guide and timings covers the palace, our Jagdish Temple Udaipur guide covers the great temple of the old city and our things to do in Udaipur guide covers the full range of sights and experiences in the City of Lakes. Udaipur itself is well connected and easy to reach, with its own airport and good road and rail links, by road from Delhi, as our Delhi to Udaipur distance guide covers that journey and from Jaipur, as our Jaipur to Udaipur distance guide covers that drive.

A visit to Saheliyon Ki Bari is short, so it slots easily into a wider Udaipur and Rajasthan trip, as our one week North India itinerary guide maps out a route that can be extended to include the City of Lakes.

Want your Udaipur trip planned, with Saheliyon Ki Bari, the City Palace, the lakes and the rest of the city all sorted? Message us on WhatsApp and Experience My India will build it for you.

Tips for visiting Saheliyon Ki Bari

• Visit in the early morning, before about 10:00 AM or in the late afternoon, for soft light, smaller crowds and comfortable weather.

• Wear light, breathable cotton clothing for daytime exploring and comfortable walking shoes, as the lawns and stone lanes involve a fair amount of walking.

• Carry sunglasses, sunscreen and a reusable water bottle, especially if visiting in the warmer part of the day.

• Allow about 1 to 1.5 hours to enjoy the garden, the fountains and the museum at a leisurely pace.

• Reconfirm the current entry fees and timings locally, as they can change over time.

• Combine the garden with a visit to the nearby Lake Fateh Sagar for a lovely morning or afternoon in the north of the city.

• Keep your camera ready for the marble elephants of the Kamal Talai and the rain-without-clouds fountains.

What to expect

A visit to Saheliyon Ki Bari is a gentle, charming interlude in a trip to Udaipur. You can expect lush green lawns, lovely marble pavilions, the beautiful Lotus Pond with its spouting marble elephants, the delightful rain-without-clouds fountains and the peaceful atmosphere of a garden made for the pleasure of royal women three centuries ago. The clever fountains, playing on nothing but the force of nature, are a real wonder and the little museum adds a touch of history.

As one of the loveliest and most affordable landmarks in the City of Lakes and a refreshing change from the grand palaces and busy bazaars, Saheliyon Ki Bari is a delightful and easy stop on any Udaipur visit. With just an hour or so needed, it is a rewarding addition to a day exploring the city.

Plan your trip with us

A visit to Saheliyon Ki Bari, as part of a wider Udaipur and Rajasthan trip, is easiest and most enjoyable when the travel, the stays, the guide and the sightseeing are all arranged for you. That is what we do, a comfortable private car and an experienced driver, a knowledgeable guide to bring the city to life, well-chosen stays and the whole trip planned around you.

Tell us your dates and group size and we will price it honestly around your standard rather than a fixed figure. You can combine Udaipur with the classic circuit on our Golden Triangle tours and we can build it all within our wider Delhi Agra Tour Packages.

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