The Adalaj stepwell is a popular tourist attraction of the Gandhinagar city and is situated 18 kilometres (11 mi) north of Ahmedabad city.It is 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) from Gandhinagar, the capital city of Gujarat.
Ahmedabad is well connected by road, rail, and air links with the rest of the country. The international airport at Ahmedabad, the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Airport, has flights operating to several countries. Gandhinagar is the railway station closest to the stepwell.

As per legend, in the 15th century, Rana Veer Singh of the Vaghela dynasty, a Hindu ruler, reigned over this territory known as Dandai Desh. His kingdom was a small one. It was subject to water shortage and was highly dependent on the rains. To alleviate the misery of his people, the Rana began the construction of a large and deep stepwell.
Before this project could be completed, his kingdom was attacked by Mohammed Begda, the Muslim ruler of a neighboring kingdom. The Rana king was killed in battle, and Mohammed Begda occupied his territory. Rana Veer Singh's widow, a beautiful lady, known as Rani Roopba (or Roodabai), wanted to commit suicide and join her husband in the afterlife. However, Begada prevented her from giving up her own life and proposed marriage with the dowager.
She agreed to a marriage proposal on the condition that he would first complete the building of the stepwell. The Muslim king, who was deeply enamored of the queen's beauty, agreed to the proposal and built the well in record time. Once the well was completed, Begda reminded the queen of her promise to marry him. Instead, the queen who had achieved her objective of completing the stepwell started by her husband decided to end her life. She circumambulated the stepwell with prayers and jumped into the well, ending the saga of building the well in tragedy.
One version, which is narrated in the 200 years old scriptures of the Swaminarayan sect, suggests that before she died, Rani Roopba requested religious saints to take a bath in this stepwell so that the water in the stepwell gets purified by these saints, thereby delivering her from her sins.
Another is linked to the tombs found near the well. The graves of six masons who built the well are seen near the Vav. Begda asked the Masons if they could make another similar well, and when they agreed, Begda sentenced them to death instead. Begda was so impressed by the architectural excellence of the stepwell that he did not want a replica to be built.