What to bring
Light cotton clothes and open toed sandals if you are visiting in summer. In winter, which is the best time of the year, carry woollens as the temperatures drop 1 degree Celsius. A pair of good walking shoes will come in handy if you want to explore the old forts on foot. Bring a camera to capture the various colours and sights of Rajasthan.

Health
In most parts of Rajasthan, the biggest risk to most travellers is from the heat – dehydration, sunstroke and sunburn are common ailments, especially for those who come from more temperate climes. But fortunately, ensuring a regular intake of fluids, using strong sunscreens and wearing a shady hat and sunglasses easily minimise the risks from the hot desert sun. A sunscreen with minimum SPF 20 to escape sunburn is essential.

The major risks to your health from the armies of mosquitoes are malaria, encephalitis, kala azar and dengue. Cover your arms and legs; be liberal with the repellent and in problem areas sleep under a mosquito net. Traveller's diarrhoea is another running problem and year after year traveller after traveller gets the ‘loosies'. Ensure it's nothing nastier by avoiding green salads, uncooked food, and water that you haven't sanitised by dropping an iodine pill into. Slightly more serious is the risk of contacting AIDS, Hepatitis B and other sexually transmitted diseases. For your sake and the sake of the people you're visiting always use a condom. Have safe responsible sex.

The quality of health services is more than adequate in major urban centres like Jaipur, Jodhpur and Ajmer with their medical schools, hospitals and nursing homes, well-qualified private practioners and late night chemists shops. Medicines are fairly cheap and though chemist shops in the cities are well stocked, it is always a good idea to take along prescription drugs. Travellers from yellow fever areas are required to have an inoculation certificate. Prior inoculation for poliomyelitis is recommended.