Bada Bagh

Bada Bagh — literally "Big Garden" — is one of Jaisalmer's most photogenic sites: a hillside procession of golden sandstone chhatris (domed cenotaphs) built over centuries to honour the maharajas and royals of the Bhati dynasty. Set 6 km north of the city on the Ramgarh road, the cenotaphs rise in graduated sizes across the slope, each dome sheltering a carved memorial tablet showing the ruler on horseback — an open-air chronicle of Jaisalmer's royal line.

The site rewards photographers above all. At sunrise, mist and low gold light slide between the pillars; at sunset the domes silhouette against a burning sky, with modern wind turbines on the horizon creating a striking centuries-apart contrast that has become an Instagram signature of Jaisalmer. Walk the rows slowly — cenotaphs range from grand multi-tier pavilions for kings to modest canopies for princes — and note where the sequence abruptly stops: the final, unfinished chhatri marks the end of royal cremations here after Independence.

Below the cenotaph hill lie the remnants of the garden, tank and dam built by Maharawal Jai Singh II in the 16th century, whose greenery in the desert gave Bada Bagh its name. A visit takes 45 minutes to an hour, and the location is perfectly placed en route to Lodurva or as the first stop of a desert-day circuit toward Kuldhara, the War Museum and the Sam Sand Dunes. Combine it with Vyas Chhatri in the city for a complete cenotaph trail.