First, 2 nights in Ahmedabad
Novotel Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad · Hotel · Premium★★★★★
Five-star Novotel Ahmedabad on S G Highway. Pool, Ode Spa, Premier Lounge rooms and an easy base for heritage walks and Gujarat road trips.
2 nightsStop 1 of 3
Premium Accommodation8 NightsPremiumHeritage
Gujarat Lions & Palaces — Premium
Chapter Two — Where You'll Stay
3 Real Stays, In Order
Handpicked along your own route — not a hotel chain repeated city to city.
Next, 3 nights in Sasan Gir
Asiatic Lion Lodge
Sasan Gir · Resort · Premium★★★★
16 air-conditioned cottages between two forested hills bordering Gir National Park. Pool, campfire and jeep safaris with a private guide.
3 nightsStop 2 of 3
Finally, 3 nights in Vadodara
Grand Mercure Vadodara Surya Palace
Vadodara · Hotel · Premium★★★★★
Five-star stay in Sayajigunj, Vadodara. 146 rooms, rooftop pool, spa and Azure restaurant, minutes from Laxmi Vilas Palace.
3 nightsStop 3 of 3
Chapter Three — Activities & Sightseeing
The Real Stops Along the Way
7 of your 9days — the full day-by-day plan follows below.
Day 2 · Ahmedabad → Sasan Gir
Ahmedabad to Gir
A long, comfortable drive south-west to lion country, about six to seven hours with a lunch stop. The landscape turns from plains to the green Gir hills. You reach the lodge by late afternoon. Rest, walk the grounds, and take an early night before the dawn safari.
Day 3 · Sasan Gir
Gir Lion Safari
Gir is the last home of the Asiatic lion. You go in at dawn in an open jeep with a forest guide, on a safari of about three hours. Sightings are common but never guaranteed. Leopards, deer and many birds share the forest. Permits and slots are set by the forest department, so we book them well ahead. The park is closed from about mid-June to mid-October. The rest of the day is for the lodge, or for a second safari.
Day 4 · Sasan Gir
Somnath and Junagadh
A day of coast and history beyond the forest. Somnath Temple stands on the sea at Prabhas Patan, the first of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines. The present temple was rebuilt in the 20th century. Then to Junagadh, an old Nawabi town. The Mahabat Maqbara, finished in 1892, is the showpiece, with onion domes and spiral minarets. You return to the lodge at dusk.
Day 5 · Sasan Gir → Ahmedabad
Gir to Ahmedabad
The road back across Saurashtra to Ahmedabad takes about six to seven hours with a lunch stop. You arrive in the evening and settle into the hotel.
Day 6 · Ahmedabad → Vadodara
Ahmedabad to Vadodara
A short morning drive of two hours or so to Vadodara, once the seat of the Gaekwad Maharajas. The city is greener and calmer than Ahmedabad. The afternoon is free, or given to Sayaji Baug and the city's museums. Dinner is in the hotel.
Day 7 · Vadodara
Laxmi Vilas Palace and Champaner
Start at Laxmi Vilas Palace, the Gaekwads' royal residence, an Indo-Saracenic building set in wide grounds. Access to parts of the palace is set by the family, so we confirm what is open. After lunch, drive to Champaner-Pavagadh, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It holds a walled medieval city with mosques, gateways and stepwells. A local guide walks you through the best of it. The drive is about an hour each way.
Day 8 · Vadodara
The Statue of Unity
The Statue of Unity stands on the Narmada at Kevadia, about 90 km from Vadodara. At 182 metres, it is the world's tallest statue. It honours Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The drive takes about two hours each way. A viewing gallery sits high in the figure, with wide views over the river and dam. Tickets and timings are set locally, so we confirm them on the day.
Chapter Four — Day by Day
9 Days, In Full
Every day, start to finish — including the transfers the sightseeing chapter above skipped.
Ahmedabad
Arrive in Ahmedabad
Your driver meets you at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel airport. Ahmedabad became India's first UNESCO World Heritage City in 2017. Its old quarter is a maze of pols, or walled lanes of carved wooden havelis. Check in and rest. In the late afternoon, walk beside the Sabarmati river as the light softens. Dinner is a first taste of Gujarati cooking, sweet-savoury and mostly vegetarian.
Ahmedabad → Sasan Gir
Ahmedabad to Gir
A long, comfortable drive south-west to lion country, about six to seven hours with a lunch stop. The landscape turns from plains to the green Gir hills. You reach the lodge by late afternoon. Rest, walk the grounds, and take an early night before the dawn safari.
Sasan Gir
Gir Lion Safari
Gir is the last home of the Asiatic lion. You go in at dawn in an open jeep with a forest guide, on a safari of about three hours. Sightings are common but never guaranteed. Leopards, deer and many birds share the forest. Permits and slots are set by the forest department, so we book them well ahead. The park is closed from about mid-June to mid-October. The rest of the day is for the lodge, or for a second safari.
Sasan Gir
Somnath and Junagadh
A day of coast and history beyond the forest. Somnath Temple stands on the sea at Prabhas Patan, the first of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines. The present temple was rebuilt in the 20th century. Then to Junagadh, an old Nawabi town. The Mahabat Maqbara, finished in 1892, is the showpiece, with onion domes and spiral minarets. You return to the lodge at dusk.
Sasan Gir → Ahmedabad
Gir to Ahmedabad
The road back across Saurashtra to Ahmedabad takes about six to seven hours with a lunch stop. You arrive in the evening and settle into the hotel.
Ahmedabad → Vadodara
Ahmedabad to Vadodara
A short morning drive of two hours or so to Vadodara, once the seat of the Gaekwad Maharajas. The city is greener and calmer than Ahmedabad. The afternoon is free, or given to Sayaji Baug and the city's museums. Dinner is in the hotel.
Vadodara
Laxmi Vilas Palace and Champaner
Start at Laxmi Vilas Palace, the Gaekwads' royal residence, an Indo-Saracenic building set in wide grounds. Access to parts of the palace is set by the family, so we confirm what is open. After lunch, drive to Champaner-Pavagadh, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It holds a walled medieval city with mosques, gateways and stepwells. A local guide walks you through the best of it. The drive is about an hour each way.
Vadodara
The Statue of Unity
The Statue of Unity stands on the Narmada at Kevadia, about 90 km from Vadodara. At 182 metres, it is the world's tallest statue. It honours Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The drive takes about two hours each way. A viewing gallery sits high in the figure, with wide views over the river and dam. Tickets and timings are set locally, so we confirm them on the day.
Vadodara
Depart from Vadodara
A slow last morning. Vadodara's airport is close to the hotel. Your driver takes you in good time for your flight.
Chapter Five — Terms & Conditions
Straightforward, In Writing
Cancellation windows, refund timing, and rescheduling terms for this journey follow our one sitewide policy — nothing package-specific to dig through.
Read the Return & Refund PolicyChapter Six — Similar Journeys
More of Gujarat, Privately
Why Choose Us
The Same Trust, Sized to This Trip
01
Planning, Built Around You
This route was shaped around Gujarat's real places, not lifted from a fixed template.
13 years — Brijesh Sharma, Bespoke Itinerary Specialist
02
Handpicked Hotels
Every stay on this trip was chosen in person, not off a ratings page.
3 real stays, 4–5★
03
A Private Fleet, Always Yours
One driver, air-conditioned, for the whole route — no shared shuttle.
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