Gwalior Fort Guide

The one thing that automatically comes in my mind when I hear the word “Gwalior” is the Gwalior Fort. And without a doubt, Gwalior Fort is one of the beautiful forts of India.

The Mughal emperor, Babar, once said while praising the beauty of the Gwalior Fort

Gwalior Fort is a pearl in the Necklace of Forts of Hind.

There is a lot of history associated with the Gwalior Fort. It has been ruled by many different rulers in its history. The fort is known to exist since the 10th century but many monuments and inscriptions within the fort campus indicate that it existed from the 6th century.

You can spend a few hours there or a full day as I did. But irrespective of how many hours you decide to spend, Gwalior Fort will be etched in your memory forever.

ALSO READ: Things to do in Gwalior

Table of Contents
1 How to reach there
2 Gwalior Fort Entrance
2.1 Northeastern Gate
2.2 Southwestern Gate
3 Recommended route from northeastern gate
3.1 1) Gujari Mahal Archaeological Museum
3.2 2) Hike up to the Gwalior Fort
3.3 3) The Archaeological Survey of India Museum
3.4 4) Man Singh Palace
3.5 5) Shah Jahan Mahal & other monuments
3.6 6) Assi Khamba ki Baori
3.7 7) Sahastrabahu (Sas-Bahu) Temple
3.8 8) Teli ka Mandir
3.9 9) Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhor
3.10 10) Gopachal rock-cut Jain Monuments
3.11 11) Light and Sound Show
4 Fort View Cafe

How to reach there

Gwalior Fort is just approximately 4 kilometres away from Gwalior Junction railway station. You may either take the auto-rickshaw available at the outside of the station (Rs 50 – Rs 60) or take Ola (Rs 50 – Rs 100).

Gwalior Fort Entrance

There is two entry gate to Gwalior Fort, one on the northeastern side and other on the southwestern side.

Northeastern Gate

If you are entering from the northeastern gate, you have to hike up to the top of the fort as vehicles are not allowed from this gate. Entering through this gate is recommended if you want to see each and every monument in the fort campus and not just the Man Singh Palace. I chose this entrance on my trip.

Southwestern Gate

The vehicle is allowed up to the fort parking area if you are entering from this gate. You can take either cab/autorickshaw that you had booked from your accommodation or taxis available at the gate entrance. This entrance is recommended if you are with the little ones. But if you want to see Gopachal Jain rock carvings, then you would have to go back from the parking area since it lies in the middle of the southwestern gate and parking area.

Travel Tip – If you are there to see all the monuments and structure of the Fort complex, then you should enter from one gate and exit from another gate. In that case, I would recommend you to enter from the northeastern side; explore all the monuments and palaces; take a taxi and exit through the southwestern gate to reach your accommodation. Depending upon your interest, plan your route before arrival to avoid unnecessary inconvenience.

Recommended route from northeastern gate

If you want to see each and every monument and palace of the Gwalior Fort, here is the route you may take from the northeastern gate entrance.

1) Gujari Mahal Archaeological Museum

You will see Gujari Mahal as soon as you enter through the northeastern gate. Gujari Mahal was built by Raja Man Singh Tomar for his wife Mrignayani, a commoner. Due to the friction between Mrignayani and his other wives, Raja Man Singh built the separate palace for her.

Gujari Mahal is now converted to the archaeological museum and is called Gujari Mahal Archaeological Museum or State Archaeological Museum or Gwalior Fort Museum. It is a state museum which houses the rare artefacts including Hindu and Jain sculptures dated back to the 1st and 2nd century BC.

Operating Hours – 10 AM to 5 PM (closed on Friday)
Ticket Cost – Rs 20 (Indian), Rs 200 (Foreigner), Rs 100 (Photography), Rs 400 (Videography)

2) Hike up to the Gwalior Fort

As you will come out of the Gujari Mahal, you will see a long ramp to the right that goes up to the top of the Gwalior Fort. The path might be steep and will hardly take 30 minutes without any rest stops. I must have stopped at least a dozen of time to admire the incredible city view and take photographs, as it took me more than an hour to reach the top. But it was all worth it.

3) The Archaeological Survey of India Museum

At the top of the fort, lies the Archaeological Survey of India Museum in front of the Hathi Pol Gate. This is the central government museum whereas Gujari Mahal Archaeological Museum is the state government museum. As is the case with other museums managed by the Archaeological Survey of India Museum, photography is also not allowed here. There is a good collection of artefacts from around the region.
You may want to choose one of the two archaeological museums as going to both doesn’t make any sense unless you have an abundance of time.

Operating Hours – 10 AM to 5 PM (closed on Monday)
Ticket Cost – Rs 10

4) Man Singh Palace

Man Singh Palace or Man Mandir Palace lies to the right of Hathi Pol Gate. It was built by the king of Tomar Dynasty – Maharaja Man Singh in the 15th century for his favourite queen, Mrignayani. It is also known as Painted Palace or Chit Mandir due to extensive use of tiles painted in turquoise, green and yellow colour.

Man Singh Palace is a labyrinth of a building on four levels. The queen’s room and hammam were built at lower levels and were connected by speaking tubes from the upper level which were used by the king to communicate with his wife from there. The upper levels had both a public hall and a private hall. It was also used for singing and dancing event for the entertainment of the king and queen.

The official guides are available for Rs 470 for up to four hours.

Travel Tip – There are neither any placards nor signage inside the palace to help you take a self-guided tour. A guide is must if you want to avoid being lost inside the palace. Although guides are available for up to four hours, they hardly take an hour to complete the tour which makes their cost too steep. One way to lower their cost is by firmly refusing to take their services. This will force them to lower their cost. I had managed to book the guide for Rs 250.

Operating Hours – 10 AM to 5 PM
Ticket Cost – Rs 25 (Indian – 15+), Rs 300 (Foreigners – 15+), Rs 25 (videography without stand)
Note – Ticket includes entry to Sahastrabahu (Sas-Bahu) temple and Teli ka Mandir

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5) Shah Jahan Mahal & other monuments

As you will come out of the Man Singh Palace, on your right, lies the seven other state monuments. These are Shah Jahan Mahal, Jahangir Mahal, Karna Mandir, Vikram Mandir, Jauhar Kund, Dhorapur Gate, and Chhatri of Bhim Singh Rana. These monuments are in a dilapidated state but one can wander around to experience the architecture and views.

Operating Hours – 10 AM to 5 PM
Ticket Cost – Rs 10 (Indian), Rs 250 (Foreigners), Rs 25 (photography)

6) Assi Khamba ki Baori

Just a few steps to the left of Man Singh Palace lies the Assi Khamba ki Baori. Assi Khamba ki Baori, as the name suggests, has 80 pillars. It was built by Raja Man Singh Tomar for the queens to bathe. Later it was used by Mughal emperor Jahangir as a jail to imprison 6th Sikh Guru Hargobind Sahib.

Legend has it that at the time of his release, Guru Hargobind requested Jahangir to free 52 other imprisoned kings along with him. Jahangir put a condition that only those kings that would be holding Guru Hargobind at the time of release would be freed. Guru Hargobind got stitched a special dress that had 52 hems. As he walked out of the prison, all the kings got freed by holding one hem of his dress.

7) Sahastrabahu (Sas-Bahu) Temple

As you will continue to walk forward, you will reach the parking area. Now, you will have seen all the monuments and palaces of the forts. There are other monuments which are not part of the fort but are located in the fort campus.

One of them is Sahastrabahu (Sas-Bahu) temple. It is a twin temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The bigger one is called Sas temple and the smaller temple is called Bahu temple. Sas-Bahu temple is in ruins from the multiple invasions by Mughals. But its architecture along with the carvings and stonework are spectacular and well worth the look.

It is located a kilometre away from the parking area. Only transportation available to reach there is e-rickshaw for Rs 10 per person.

Ticket for Man Singh Palace includes entry to Sas-Bahu temple.

8) Teli ka Mandir

Teli ka Mandir is a Hindu temple and was built between 8th and 9th century by king Mihira Bhoja. It has a mix of North and South Indian architecture. It was originally dedicated to Lord Vishnu, then destroyed by Muslims and later restored as Shiva temple.

The architecture is stunning but the temple is stinky from inside. Not much to see there and can be skipped if you are on the shortage of time.

It is located a kilometre away from the Sas-Bahu temple. You can take e-rickshaw from Sas-Bahu temple for Rs 10 per person to reach there.

Ticket for Man Singh Palace also includes entry to Teli ka Mandir.

9) Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhor

Gurdwara Data Bandi Chhor lies on the opposite side of Teli ka Mandir. The gurudwara is associated with the imprisonment of Guru Har Gobind Sahib and his release in which he managed to secure the release 0f 52 kings. The word “Bandi” means “imprisoned”, “Chhor” means “release”.

10) Gopachal rock-cut Jain Monuments

You can take e-rickshaw from Teli ka Mandir to drop you on a road which goes to the Southwest gate. The road is a bit steep and e-rickshaw doesn’t go there. As you will walk down the road, you will see magnificent Jain statues carvings first on your left and then to your right.

These Jain statues are of Tirthankaras (spiritual teachers) either in seated Padmasana posture or standing Kayotsarga posture. They are depicted in the typical nude form of Jain iconography. These statues were defaced by Muslims but many are restored now. It also includes 42 feet high and 30 feet wide statue of Lord Parshvanath (23rd Tirthankaras).

From there you can take the private taxi to reach the southwestern gate or go back to the parking area to catch the Light and Sound Show.

11) Light and Sound Show

The Light and Sound Show is operated every evening after the closure of all the monuments. The 45-minute show runs in two languages, first in Hindi and then in English. It narrates the history of Gwalior and Gwalior Fort in the voice of the popular Indian Bollywood actor, Amitabh Bachchan.

It is viewed from the open-air theatre, next to Man Singh Palace. The ticket counter is located next to the Fort View Cafe, near the parking area.

I found it mainly a sound show with random lightning every few seconds. The lights were never felt synchronized with the story and didn’t offer any additional substance to the show. I had gone in January and it got very chilly sitting in the open air.

Operating Hours – Hindi Show (6:30 PM to 7:15 PM from November to February, 7:30 PM to 8:15 PM from March to October), English Show (7:30 PM to 8:15 PM from November to February, 8:30 PM to 9:15 PM from March to October)
Ticket Cost – Rs 128 (Indian Adult), Rs 64 (Indian Child), Rs 320 (Foreign Adult), Rs 192 (Foreign Child).

Fort View Cafe

Fort View Cafe is the only eating joint in the whole fort complex. It is located near the parking area from where Light and Sound Show tickets are available.

Being the only restaurant means no competitions which also means higher prices. The food was below average. We had ordered Malai Kofta and Paneer Labadaar and both of them were pathetic. The Malai Kofta neither looked nor tasted like Malai Kofta.

There are some roadside stalls available near the cafe. You can buy some beverages and snacks to fill your stomach. Alternatively, you can also bring your own food.

From the parking area, you can book Ola straight to your accommodation or the next sightseeing destination.