The animal that made the desert liveable
Ask a Raika herder how many camels he has and he may not give you a number. He will tell you their names instead, which cow is moody, which calf was born in the last good monsoon, which old bull carried his father to the Pushkar fair. That is the relationship a safari lets you glimpse.
The working camel: for generations camels ploughed fields, drew water from deep wells, pulled carts and walked the caravan roads west to Sindh.
- The herders: the Raikas, whose men wear bright red turbans, are the camel herders of Marwar. Many families still move with their herds in search of grazing.
- A legend: herders revere the folk hero Pabuji, who in legend brought the first camels to Rajasthan. His story is sung by travelling bards before a painted scroll, as our piece on the bhopa and the phad explains.
- The breeds: Rajasthan's camels include the tall, strong Bikaneri and the lighter, faster Jaisalmeri, prized for riding.
- The decline: tractors and trucks took over most of the work, and the state's camel numbers have fallen sharply in recent decades.
- The law: the camel was declared Rajasthan's state animal in 2014, and a 2015 law banned slaughter and restricted moving camels out of the state. Many herders say camels have since become harder to sell.
- Why riding matters: for many families around Jaisalmer, tourism is now one of the few reasons left to keep a camel. A well-run ride helps keep these animals in the desert.
Where we arrange camel rides and safaris
Sam, but at dawn
Where: about 40 kilometres west of Jaisalmer, the highest and most sculpted dunes most visitors can reach. See Sam Sand Dunes.
- The problem: at sunset the nearest dunes fill with jeeps, quad bikes and camel owners competing for riders.
- Our answer: ride out at sunrise, or walk fifteen minutes beyond the first ridge, where the noise drops away behind the sand.
- Getting there: about an hour from Jaisalmer on a paved road. In winter we leave around five in the morning with blankets and masala chai.
Khuri, gentler and quieter
Where: about 45 kilometres south-west of Jaisalmer, past the ruins of Kuldhara.
- The character: lower, rolling dunes broken by scrub and grazing land, far fewer camps and herds of goats coming home at dusk.
- Best for: an easy hour at sunset, or the start of a night or two across open desert. See Khuri.
- Village life: the men who lead camels in the evening are often farmers and herders by day, and the village is not a stage set behind a row of camps.
The open desert beyond Jaisalmer
The real safari: one to three days riding between villages, dunes and grazing grounds, with a camp crew moving ahead by vehicle.
- What you see: khejri trees, herders at wells, chinkara at dawn, and dunes nobody photographs.
- Base: Jaisalmer, with its living fort, before and after.
- On the way out: the abandoned Paliwal village of Kuldhara and the small fort at Khaba, where peacocks gather in the late afternoon.
Manvar, between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer
Where: the Shergarh area, about 110 kilometres from Jodhpur, roughly two hours by road.
- The ride: a herder walks alongside across long, low dunes. Keen riders can ask for a longer ride with a picnic lunch.
- Why stop: it breaks the five-hour drive west. See Manvar.
Osian and Khimsar, the eastern Thar
Osian: about 69 kilometres north of Jodhpur, temples of the eighth to twelfth centuries and quiet dunes for sunset. See Osian.
Bikaner, the camel country
The research centre: the National Research Centre on Camel, set up in 1984, where herds come home from grazing at dusk and you can taste camel-milk tea.
- The festival: the Bikaner Camel Festival each January, with decorated camels, dances and races.
- The history: Maharaja Ganga Singh's camel cavalry served the British Empire. See Bikaner.
- The breeds: the research centre's herds include the Bikaneri, the Jaisalmeri and the Kachchhi of Gujarat, and the small museum explains how each was bred for its work.
Pushkar and the great fairs
Pushkar: during the Pushkar Camel Fair in the month of Kartik, thousands of camels are washed, decorated, shorn in patterns and traded on the dunes west of town.
- Nagaur: the Nagaur Cattle Fair in the month of Magh, usually January or February, trades camels, bullocks and horses.
- Out of fair season: a gentle camel cart into the dunes west of Pushkar for sunset.
- Further west: the Mallinath fair at Tilwara near Barmer, in the month of Chaitra, is a working livestock market far less visited than Pushkar. We confirm its dates each year.
Choosing your ride
The sunrise or sunset walk
- Length: thirty to sixty minutes onto the dunes, with the handler walking beside you.
- Best for: first-timers, families and anyone who wants the dunes without the soreness.
The half day with a picnic
- Length: two to three hours in the cool of the morning, ending at a khejri tree where rugs, bolsters and a hot breakfast or lunch wait.
- Best for: couples and confident riders who want to feel they have gone somewhere.
A night under the stars
- How it works: ride out in the late afternoon to a dune camp set up by the crew, with a fire, a cook and proper bedding, and ride back after breakfast.
- Best for: anyone who wants the old caravan night without the multi-day commitment.
The multi-day safari
- How it works: two or three days between villages, riding morning and late afternoon, resting at midday, sleeping in camp.
- Best for: fit, adventurous travellers comfortable with simple camps and sore legs on the second morning.
The camel cart
- How it works: a wooden cart drawn by a camel, with cushions, across the sand at a walk.
- Best for: grandparents, small children and guests who can't climb onto a saddle.
Two days on the sand, the way we run it
Morning: you leave after an early breakfast and ride for two or three hours, with the handler walking or riding beside you.
Midday: rest in the shade of a khejri tree while the camels are unsaddled, watered and fed. Lunch is cooked on a small fire: dal, vegetables and rotis.
- Afternoon: ride again as the heat eases, past village wells and grazing herds, to a dune where the crew has made camp.
- Camp: proper beds or cots, warm bedding, a bathroom tent if you want one, a fire and a cook making bajra rotis in the embers.
- Evening: a Manganiyar singer if you'd like one, then lamps out and the Milky Way. Our stargazing in the Thar page explains what to look for.
- Dawn: chai by the fire, reading the night's animal tracks on the dunes with your handler, and back in the saddle before the sun is high.
- Back up: a support vehicle stays within reach throughout, carrying water, first aid and your luggage.
Reading the desert from the saddle
The khejri: the tree that feeds the desert. Its pods become sangri, its leaves feed goats and camels, and many families will never cut it green.
Phog: the leafless, broom-like shrub on the dune slopes, whose spreading roots hold the sand.
- Tree of life
- Khejri, source of sangri beans
- Dune binder
- Phog, a leafless shrub
- Best fodder
- Sewan grass
- Shy grazer
- Chinkara, the desert gazelle
- Winter visitors
- Larks, wheatears, cranes overhead
- Sewan: grey-green tufts of the best grazing grass in the Thar, and the cover the great Indian bustard needs.
- Aak: the big-leaved shrub with purple-and-white flowers and milky sap that even goats leave alone.
- Tracks in the sand: at dawn the dunes are written over with the night's traffic, beetles, gerbils and the neat line of a fox.
- Chinkara: the slender desert gazelle grazes at first light and lets a camel come far closer than a vehicle.
- Birds: larks, wheatears, shrikes and sandgrouse, and in winter flocks of demoiselle cranes passing high overhead. See our birding page.
- Water: the tanka, a covered underground cistern, and the beri, a shallow well in the sand, show how villages catch every drop.
How we check the camels
Owners we know: we use herders and camel owners we have worked with for years, around Jaisalmer, Khuri, Manvar, Osian and Bikaner.
Short in the heat: rides keep to the cool hours, and we never ride in the midday sun.
- Condition
- Well covered, firm hump, no hip bones showing
- Nose peg
- Clean, not torn or infected
- Saddle
- Padded, no raw patches beneath
- Load
- One adult per camel
- Midday
- Rest in shade with water
- No racing: we don't book galloping rides or multi-camel races for guests.
- No overloading: a camel never carries two adults at once, and children ride with a parent only on calm animals led on foot.
- Rest days: on multi-day safaris, routes build in rest and water at every stop.
- If something worries us: we say so, and if it is not put right we stop booking that owner.
- Fair pay: owners are paid properly, and you tip the handler directly. Read our ethical animal encounters guide.
How to ride a camel
Getting on: the camel kneels, you swing a leg over the saddle and hold the front pommel firmly.
Rising: lean back as the back legs straighten, then forward as the front legs follow.
- Kneeling: the reverse. Lean back hard as the front legs fold.
- On the move: relax your hips and let them swing with the camel's long rolling stride. Fighting it is what makes you sore.
- Stirrups: ask the handler to adjust them so your knees are slightly bent. Too long and you will slide about.
- Talk to your camel: every camel has a name, and every owner loves to tell you it. Read about the camels of Rajasthan.
- If nervous: walk alongside for a while first, then ride a calm, older animal led on foot.
What you eat on the sand
Bajra rotis: thick millet breads patted by hand and cooked on a griddle over the embers, with ghee and garlic chutney.
Dal baati: wheat balls baked in the coals, cracked open and soaked in ghee, eaten with lentils.
- Ker sangri: desert berries and khejri beans, dried in summer to eat all year. Our piece on ker sangri explains it.
- Kadhi: buttermilk thickened with gram flour, made almost daily in desert homes.
- Chai: boiled with milk, sugar and often ginger or black pepper in winter, the first and last thing of every safari day.
- Your needs: vegetarian, vegan or mild food on request. Tell us before you ride, and the cook packs accordingly.
When to ride
October and November: warm days, pleasant nights and sand often rippled clean by the late-summer winds.
December and January: cold, clear and busy. Nights near freezing, so pack a down jacket for camp.
- Best months
- November to February
- Shoulder
- October and March, shorter rides
- Avoid
- April to September, extreme heat
- Desert Festival
- Jaisalmer, in the month of Magh, usually February
- Pushkar fair
- Kartik, usually October or November
- February and March: our favourite weeks, warm by day and mild by night, with the Desert Festival in February.
- April to September: temperatures pass 45°C, dust storms build before the monsoon and most camps close. We don't run camel safaris in these months.
- Peak weeks: Christmas, New Year and the Diwali holidays fill every camp. Weekdays in November, February and early March are calmer.
Before you go
Clothes: long, loose cotton trousers, a long-sleeved shirt and a scarf or soft cap against sun and wind.
Shoes: closed shoes, or go barefoot on the dunes. Sandals fill with sand.
- Layers: winter mornings and nights are cold. A fleece and a down jacket for camp.
- Skin: sunscreen, lip balm and a good moisturiser. The desert air is very dry.
- Cameras: carry a plastic bag and change lenses in the car, never on the dunes.
- Documents: carry identity papers. The roads west of Jaisalmer lead towards the border, and checkpoints may ask for them.
- Insurance: check that your travel insurance covers riding. See travel insurance for India.
Etiquette in the desert villages
Ask first: before photographing anyone, especially women, and accept a shake of the head.
No handouts: don't give sweets, pens or money to children. It teaches them to leave school for the car park.
- Dress modestly: shoulders and knees covered in the villages.
- Right hand: use it to give and receive, including tea and money.
- Accept chai: at least one glass. Saying you have just had some is a polite way to decline a second.
- Leave no trace: take every scrap of plastic back. Goats and camels eat what they find.
- Greet with khamma ghani: the Rajasthani hello, returned with real warmth.
What most visitors miss
Sunrise: very few visitors see the dunes at dawn, when the sand holds the night's cold and the only sound is a lark.
Looking east at sunset: everyone watches the sun, but the dunes behind you turn rose and their shadows grow long and blue.
- The herders' camp: with an introduction, a cup of tea with a Raika family and their herd is worth more than any dune.
- The well at dusk: where camels, goats and cattle come in to drink and the whole village gathers.
- The camel's name: ask it, and the handler's whole manner changes. You stop being a customer and become a guest.
- The quiet after dinner: walk a few minutes from camp with a blanket, lie back on the sand and listen.
Who will love it, and who may not
Families: a short ride with a parent on a calm camel, led on foot, is a highlight for most children.
Couples: a dawn ride to an empty dune, then breakfast under a khejri tree.
- Photographers: the first and last light, long shadows of camels on the sand, and herders at the wells.
- Adventurers: a multi-day safari between villages, sleeping out each night.
- Think twice: if you have back, hip or knee trouble, are pregnant, or dislike heights, simple camps or early starts. A camel cart or a jeep safari in the Thar may suit you better.
- Not for: anyone travelling between April and September.
How long to allow
Short trip: a sunrise ride at Sam and a sunset at Khuri can share one night in the desert.
- Sunset walk
- Half a day, with the drive
- Night on the dunes
- One night, back by mid-morning
- Real safari
- Two or three nights
- Jaisalmer overall
- Two nights in town, one in the desert
- From Jodhpur
- About five hours by road to Jaisalmer
- Unhurried: add a second desert night, so you see one dawn on a camel and one on foot.
- On a road journey: a night at Manvar breaks the Jodhpur to Jaisalmer drive and gives you dunes without the crowds.
Where to stay
Near Jaisalmer
Suryagarh: on the Sam road, about thirteen kilometres from town, a calm base for dawn rides.
- The Serai: SUJAN's camp in private desert off the Jodhpur road, with its own dunes and quiet.
- Compare: our guide to luxury hotels in Jaisalmer.
In the dunes
- Camps we trust: a few at Sam and Khuri, inspected each season, back from the road with acoustic music and fresh food.
- A private camp: a single camp on a dune for one night, with a cook and a fire. See our guide to luxury desert camps.
Elsewhere in the Thar
Manvar: Manvar Desert Camp, halfway between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer.
- Bikaner: Laxmi Niwas Palace or Narendra Bhawan, for the camel country of the north.
- Khimsar: Khimsar Fort, with its own dune village nearby.
Journeys with a camel in them
Under the Thar Sky: seven nights in the desert, with Jaisalmer, the dunes and gentle camel walks.
The desert triangle: Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner, the three great desert cities.
- The Pushkar Camel Fair journey: built around the fair in Kartik.
- The Desert Festival journey: Jaisalmer's February celebration, ending on the dunes at Sam.
- How we quote: we don't publish prices. After one conversation we send a day-by-day plan. Plan your journey when you're ready.