💰 This page covers the street-level details of spending money in Udaipur: City Palace and boat ride prices, the evening dance show, rooftop dinners, painting shops, autos, and which machines to use. For India-wide ATM tips, DCC warnings, tipping norms, and exchange rate advice:
Read the India Money Guide →🎧 Order Rupees Before You Fly
Land with rupees for the ghats, autos and the old-city shops. Insured delivery, 2–5 days.
Order INR → CEI Currency ExchangeDo You Need Cash in Udaipur?
Yes, mostly for the small things. Udaipur is Rajasthan's romantic lake city, built for slow evenings on rooftops, and a lot of what you spend goes on hotels and restaurants that take cards. The cash comes in around the edges: the auto up the hill, the evening dance show, a cup of chai on the ghats, a cotton dupatta in the bazaar near Jagdish Temple, and a tip for the boatman. Carry ₹2,000 to ₹3,000 a day in small notes, and keep ₹500 notes for hotels and shops that can change them. The India money guide covers the national ATM limits.
Where You Will Need Cash
Autos, which do not use meters. The Bagore ki Haveli dance show. Ghat-side chai stalls and street food. The old-city bazaars around Jagdish Temple and Hathi Pol. Small boats from Lal Ghat. Tips for boatmen, guides and drivers.
Where Cards Work Fine
Heritage hotels and havelis. Rooftop restaurants on Lal Ghat and Gangaur Ghat. The City Palace ticket office and the palace boats. Miniature painting galleries and the larger textile shops. Uber and Ola.
The City Palace and Its Ticket
One palace, several tickets. The City Palace, a run of courtyards and balconies stacked above Lake Pichola, is still owned by the former royal family's trust, and it is run commercially. The museum ticket costs foreigners a few hundred rupees; a camera fee is charged on top for anything beyond a phone, and the audio guide costs extra. Buying online is slightly cheaper, and the counter takes cards.
What else costs extra. The palace complex also contains the Crystal Gallery, with its glass furniture, the vintage car collection a short drive away, and the Durbar Hall, each with its own fee. Most visitors find the museum ticket enough. Allow two to three hours.
Fateh Prakash and Shiv Niwas. Two parts of the palace are now luxury hotels. Their restaurants and bars are open to non-guests and take cards: a drink at the Sunset Terrace is the cheapest way to sit inside the palace with a view of the lake.
Lake Pichola: Boats, Islands and the Sunset Premium
The palace boats. The main boat service leaves from Rameshwar Ghat, inside the City Palace complex, and is run by the palace. Rides of about an hour cost roughly ₹400 to ₹1,000 per person, with the sunset departure priced at the top of the range. Most include a stop at Jag Mandir, the island palace, where a cafe serves overpriced drinks with a great view. You also pay the palace entry to reach the jetty.
The cheaper boats. Smaller boats from Lal Ghat and near Gangaur Ghat run shorter, simpler loops for less, paid in cash. On Fateh Sagar, the second lake, boats to Nehru Garden island are cheaper again.
The Lake Palace. The white palace floating in the middle of Pichola is the Taj Lake Palace hotel. It admits only guests and diners with a reservation, ferried over on the hotel's boat. For most visitors it is a view, not a visit.
Evenings: The Dance Show, Rooftops and the Bond Film
Bagore ki Haveli. Every evening the restored haveli on Gangaur Ghat stages an hour of Rajasthani folk dance and puppetry, the Dharohar show. Tickets cost a few hundred rupees, with a camera fee, and are sold in cash at the door from about an hour before. Queue early in the high season.
Rooftop restaurants. Udaipur's hotels compete on rooftops facing the lake and the City Palace. A dinner for two with a view costs roughly ₹1,500 to ₹3,500, more at the heritage hotels, and most take cards. The same thali two streets back, without the view, costs a third as much.
Octopussy, every night. Parts of the 1983 James Bond film were shot in Udaipur, and several cafes still screen it nightly. It costs the price of a meal or a drink.
Miniature Paintings, Textiles and Commission
The painting schools. Udaipur is a centre of Rajasthani miniature painting, and the old city is full of galleries and "schools" where artists paint on silk, paper and camel bone. Quality varies enormously, as do prices, from ₹500 for a small print-like piece to tens of thousands for fine work. Ask what the painting is on, how long it took, and whether the price is fixed.
The commission ride. As in Agra and Jaipur, auto drivers and some guides earn a commission for bringing you into a gallery or textile shop. A shop you walked into yourself has more room to bargain.
Paying. The galleries and larger shops take cards and will offer to charge in dollars. Choose rupees. For shipping, get a receipt that describes the item and a tracking number.
ATMs in Udaipur
Look for these logos. Use a bank's machine in the newer town if the old-city ones are empty.
SBI
HDFC Bank
ICICI Bank
Axis BankATM Locations
Machines are scattered through the old city near Jagdish Temple and Hathi Pol, and there are more in the newer town around Chetak Circle, Surajpole and Fateh Sagar. The old-city machines run out of cash at weekends and during festivals. SBI is usually the cheapest for a foreign card, and HDFC is reliable. Each withdrawal is capped, and India has no Bank of America Global ATM Alliance partner.
⚠ Rupees, Not Dollars
Hotels, galleries and some machines offer to charge your card in dollars. It is always worse than letting your own card convert. Our DCC explainer shows what the "convert to dollars" screen really costs.
Getting Around Udaipur
Autos. Udaipur's autos do not use meters, so agree the fare before getting in. Most rides within the old city and around Fateh Sagar cost ₹100 to ₹200. Uber and Ola work and are paid in the app.
The airport. Maharana Pratap Airport is about 22 kilometres east. A prepaid taxi or app cab to the old city costs roughly ₹600 to ₹900 and takes 30 to 40 minutes.
The Monsoon Palace. Sajjangarh, the hilltop palace with the best sunset view over the lakes, sits inside a wildlife sanctuary. You pay an entry fee at the sanctuary gate, then a fee for the shared jeep up the hill, or take your car or auto up for a vehicle fee. Both are cash.
Day trips. A car and driver for the day to Kumbhalgarh fort and the Ranakpur Jain temple costs roughly ₹3,000 to ₹4,500, plus entry fees and the driver's tip.
Tipping in Udaipur
Round up or leave 5 to 10 percent at restaurants if no service charge is added. Give a boatman ₹50 to ₹100, a guide ₹200 to ₹500, and a driver ₹300 to ₹500 for a full day. Haveli hotels often have a staff tip box at reception; that is the place to leave something at the end of a stay.
Prices in Udaipur
Udaipur costs a little more than the rest of Rajasthan because of its popularity, especially in the lakeside lanes.
| Item | Price (INR) | Price (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Masala chai on the ghats | ₹20–40 | $0.25–0.45 |
| Thali at a local restaurant | ₹200–400 | $2.30–4.50 |
| City Palace museum (foreigner) | ₹300–400 | $3.40–4.50 |
| Palace boat ride, sunset | ₹800–1,000 | $9–11.40 |
| Bagore ki Haveli show | ₹200–300 | $2.30–3.40 |
| Auto in the old city | ₹100–200 | $1.15–2.30 |
| Rooftop dinner for two | ₹1,500–3,500 | $17–40 |
| Car to Kumbhalgarh and Ranakpur | ₹3,000–4,500 | $34–51 |
| Lakeside haveli hotel night | ₹3,500–9,000 | $40–102 |
USD estimates use approximately ₹88 = $1. Rates fluctuate.
Udaipur Quick Reference
| Destination | Cards? | Cash Needed? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| City Palace | ✅ Yes | Camera fee extra | Cheaper online |
| Palace boats | ✅ Yes | Sunset costs most | Stops at Jag Mandir |
| Lal Ghat boats, dance show | ❌ Cash | A few hundred rupees | Queue early |
| Autos | ❌ Cash | Agree first | Or use Uber, Ola |
| Rooftops and hotels | ✅ Yes | View premium | Check service charge |
| ATMs | SBI, HDFC, ICICI | Old city runs dry | Decline dollars |
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the City Palace in Udaipur?
The City Palace museum charges foreign adults a few hundred rupees, with a separate fee for a camera beyond a phone, and more for an audio guide. The ticket office is at the main gate near Jagdish Temple. It is cheaper to buy online, and cards are accepted at the counter.
How much is a boat ride on Lake Pichola?
Boats from the City Palace jetty at Rameshwar Ghat, run by the palace, cost roughly 400 to 1,000 rupees a person for a ride of about an hour, with the sunset departure the most expensive. Smaller boats from Lal Ghat and the Gangaur Ghat area are cheaper. Most rides stop at Jag Mandir island.
Do I need cash in Udaipur?
Yes. Autos, ghat-side cafes, the Bagore ki Haveli show, small shops in the old city and tips are cash. Hotels, the palace, the better restaurants and the painting galleries take cards. Carry 2,000 to 3,000 rupees a day in small notes.
Can I visit the Taj Lake Palace without staying there?
Generally not. The Taj Lake Palace, on its island in Lake Pichola, admits only hotel guests and diners with a confirmed reservation, who are taken over by the hotel's boat. A dinner reservation is the expensive way in for non-guests.
Do autos in Udaipur use meters?
No. Agree the fare before you get in. A short ride within the old city or to Fateh Sagar costs roughly 100 to 200 rupees. Uber and Ola work in Udaipur and are often cheaper for longer rides, such as to the airport or the Monsoon Palace.
Which ATMs should I use in Udaipur?
Bank machines from SBI, HDFC, ICICI and Axis near Jagdish Temple, Hathi Pol, Chetak Circle and Fateh Sagar. Machines in the narrow old city run out of cash at weekends; withdraw in the newer town if you can. Always choose rupees, not dollars.
Pay Smart in Udaipur
The Wise card converts at the real mid-market rate, pays lakeside hotels and rooftop restaurants without a markup, and withdraws rupees at SBI machines for autos and the ghats.
Get the Wise Card →Hero photo: City Palace and Lake Pichola, Udaipur, by Jakub Hałun, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.