Strategy Games · 2-Player Card Game · How to Play
How to Play Jaipur — Rules, Setup & Strategy
Two rival merchants, one bustling Rajasthan bazaar, and a fortune in spices, silks and jewels up for grabs. Jaipur is a fast, razor-sharp duel of buying low, selling high and timing your big moves — widely regarded as one of the best two-player card games ever made.
What is Jaipur?
Jaipur is a two-player trading card game set in the sun-baked markets of the Rajasthani capital. You and your rival are the two most powerful traders in the city, buying, swapping and selling six types of goods — diamonds, gold, silver, cloth, spice and leather — while keeping a wary eye on your growing herd of camels. The merchant who reads the market best, and sells at exactly the right moment, earns the Maharaja's favour.
Designed by Sébastien Pauchon, Jaipur is a multi-award-winning modern classic. It's a Golden Geek "Best 2-Player Board Game" honoree, has earned recognition such as the German "Spiel Gut" (Good Toy) seal, and sits permanently near the top of BoardGameGeek's two-player rankings. For couples and travel duos, it's often the first game people recommend.
Quick Facts
Who is Jaipur perfect for?
- Couples — a near-perfect date-night game; quick, tense and brilliantly replayable.
- Two-player households — one of the best games you can own if you mostly play in a pair.
- Travellers — compact, fast, and great for back-to-back rounds on the move.
- New strategy gamers — easy to learn, but with real decisions every single turn.
- Anyone who loves a "press your luck" tension — sell now for a sure thing, or wait for a bigger bonus?
How to Play Jaipur (Step by Step)
Every turn you do exactly one thing: take cards or sell cards. That's the whole game — the depth is in when.
The goal
Earn more rupees than your opponent across a round to win a seal of excellence. The first player to two seals of excellence wins the game (it's a best-of-three).
Setup
- Place the goods tokens in stacks by type, high values on top, and lay out the bonus tokens.
- Deal each player 5 cards. Put 3 camel cards face-up in the middle to start the market, then fill the market to 5 cards from the deck.
- Keep camels you take in a separate camel herd beside your hand — they don't count toward your 7-card hand limit.
On your turn — take OR sell
- Take cards. Choose one: take a single goods card from the market; take all the camels from the market into your herd; or swap 2 or more cards (goods from your hand and/or camels from your herd) for the same number of goods cards in the market.
- Sell cards. Play any number of cards of a single good type and collect that many goods tokens, taking the highest-value tokens first. Expensive goods — diamond, gold and silver — must be sold in lots of at least two.
After selling, refill the market back up to 5 cards. Token values decrease as each stack is depleted, so the early sellers of a good get the richest tokens.
Bonus tokens & scoring
| Sell this many at once | Reward |
|---|---|
| 3 cards | 1 goods sale + a small bonus token. |
| 4 cards | A larger bonus token. |
| 5+ cards | The biggest bonus tokens — the real jackpots. |
This is the central tension: sell small and safe right now, or hoard for a big multi-card sale and risk your opponent draining the market first.
How a round ends & how to win
A round ends the moment 3 of the goods token stacks are empty (or the deck runs out). Total your rupees from goods and bonus tokens, and add a camel bonus for whoever holds the most camels. The richer trader takes a seal of excellence. Win two seals and you win the game.
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Where to buy Jaipur in India
Popular two-player games like Jaipur are widely counterfeited online, with fakes turning up on thin card stock, with dull token printing and missing components. Turnwise sells only the 100% authentic Jaipur, quality-checked and shipped in damage-free packaging — so every goods card, token and camel is exactly as designed.
Jaipur (2-Player Card Game)
Turnwise is a curated, honestly-priced board game store made for Indian game nights — no fakes, no third-party seller risk. It's the most reliable way to buy the genuine Jaipur card game online in India at the best price and best quality.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you play Jaipur?
Each turn you either take cards (one good, all the camels, or a swap) or sell cards of a single good for tokens, with bonuses for selling 3 or more at once. A round ends when three token stacks empty; the richer trader earns a seal of excellence, and the first to two seals wins.
How many players do you need for Jaipur?
Jaipur is a dedicated 2-player game, which is exactly why it's such a beloved couples and travel game.
What age is Jaipur for?
Ages 10 and up. It's quick to learn but rewards smart timing and a little risk-taking.
How long does a game of Jaipur take?
About 30 minutes for a full best-of-three match; individual rounds are faster.
What do the camels do in Jaipur?
Camels let you make large swaps with the market and sit in a separate herd outside your hand limit. They aren't worth points directly, but the player with the most camels at the end of a round earns a bonus.
What is the price of Jaipur in India?
On Turnwise, Jaipur is ₹1,199 (MRP ₹1,999) with free shipping across India.
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