5 Best places to stay in Jaipur

Situated just south of the city centre in a notably leafy enclave, Rambagh started in the 1830s as a relatively modest home of the queen’s handmaiden and evolved into a royal guesthouse and hunting lodge.

By the 1920s it was the main residence of the Maharaja of Jaipur with cenotaphs, formal Mughal-style gardens and a chandelier-hung ballroom. It’s a splendid monument to the taste and style of one of royal Rajasthan’s pre-eminent dynasties. Still wowing the great and the good, it remains one of the city’s most famous hotels.

Rooms and suites all boast an opulent heritage-style feel, with retro furniture and décor. The fanciest Royal Suites were once the royal family’s personal chambers.

Each evening, hotel butlers conduct guided walks through the property offering a colourful mix of history and anecdote, and guests can take horse-and-carriage rides through the grounds. The baradari experience comprises private musical performances in a garden pavilion, and there are several fine-dining options.

Built in 1860 by a wealthy noble family, this rather stately haveli, or mansion, has been enlarged by successive generations. All of its seventy rooms are unique and have an appealing heritage feel, with period furniture, ‘ethnic’ décor, arched windows and coloured glass.

It’s comfortable and atmospheric rather than flashy and opulent, and offers excellent value for money with the bonus of a spacious and tranquil garden.

Since 2006 Diggi has hosted the annual Jaipur Literary Festival, drawing A-list writers and literati from across the world.

Tucked away in the north-east corner of the Old City, this two-hundred-year-old haveli – a nobleman’s traditional mansion – offers a romantic and atmospheric window on the lives and style of an aristocratic Rajput family. Intimate rather than palatial in scale, its elegant and traditional decor includes fluted arches, frescoed walls and period furniture.

A gorgeous dining hall offers traditional Rajasthani cuisine (such as lal maans, or red mutton, and ker sangri, which combines desert beans and wild berries), in addition to Indian staples and western favourites.

Set in the semi-rural eastern fringes of Jaipur, Rajvilas is an ultra-luxurious and modern reinterpretation of a Rajput-style fortress.

It’s a sensuous and dreamy place spread over 32 acres with landscaped gardens, terraces, reflection ponds, pavilions and private courtyards.

Resort-like in scale but offering impeccable boutique-like service, this is a magnificent property and one of Rajasthan’s most relaxing hotels.

Ideal for first-time visitors, as it’s out of the busy centre (and Jaipur can seem a bit overwhelming at first), this is a seriously upscale stay, appealing to those who like their luxury housed in classic Rajput architecture.

A few kilometres northeast of Amer village and Amber Fort, Khas Bagh resembles a cross between a noble’s haveli, or mansion, and a maharajah’s hunting lodge.

Its heritage feel and atmosphere is quite deliberate and well-executed, with archways and arched windows, decorative lattice parapets, retro-styled furniture and manicured gardens.

Yet the atmosphere is more like an upscale homestay. The hosts are an ex-Indian Army colonel and his polo-playing son, together with their wives.

Horses are a thing here; the property has its own paddocks and guests can go horse-riding or watch polo matches nearby – or simply lounge about beside the pool.