Alsisar in Shekhawati is a convenient halt on way to Bikaner, Kheechan and Jaisalmer. The painted mansions of this village are representative of one of the finest open-air art galleries in the world. Here the art lives in the streets and walls of real dwellings of real people. Instead of formal, spotless enclosed halls with spotlights, the display in Alsisar is part of every day life. Walk around the village at your leisure, chat with wizened old men, colorfully attired ladies, kids playing in the street or traders running their small corner businesses. While they make you feel at home, discover for yourselves the exquisite murals that adorn every wall. Be ushered into private quarters to marvel at depictions of Hindu mythology, western royalty and muslim floral designs. Let it be your own expedition of discovery or be steered on a guided walk. Either way the experience will make you long for more!

Alsisar is strategically located for day visits to Jhunjhunu, Malsisar, Bissau, Mandawa, Bagar, Chirawa. Each of these small towns are richly embellished with more art-just in case the craving for more makes the heart skip many beats!

Ask for a camel ride to the nearby dunes to a performance of desert dances to lilting tunes. Be mesmerized by the hues of the setting sun, diffused to a fiery glow by the sand blown up by cattle on their homeward run.

For those interested in a wild experience, the Tal Chapper wildlife sanctuary is a mere two and a half hour drive from Alsisar. It may be covered as a days sojourn or as a stop over enroute to Bikaner. This is the best place to see and photograph the elegant and stately black bucks. More than 2000 of them roam the scrub land making it the largest concentration of this magnificent species in the subcontinent. During the winter months from November to March Demoisselle cranes from Siberia land here in large numbers. Monitor lizards, raptors and Egyptian vultures too are witnessed in fair numbers. Anthropologists may be more interested in the Kaalbelia or Joginath community of snake charmers and nomadic tribes inhabiting the neighboring villages.