These sprawling complexes often housed whole cities within them, including palaces, temples and trading centres. Built on hillsides, these forts used natural defences to protect themselves, such as forests, deserts and of course, hills. The views from the forts are spectacular.

Although initially conceived for protection from invading armies, these forts quickly became more extravagant as royal families settled in. Some of the best examples of Rajput architecture can be found in its palaces. Two of the most striking are the Hawa Mahal in Jaipur and the City Palace in Udaipur. Look out for the sheesh mahal (hall of mirrors).

Visiting these forts is a chance to experience and imagine Rajasthan in its Rajput period, when kingdoms nudged up against each other and courtly culture helped develop the region’s arts, textiles and music.

There are eight main hill forts in Rajasthan, clustered around the Aravalli mountains. Designated as UNESCO World Heritage sites, these forts were built by Rajput kings and date from the 5th century.