Writer Tom Vater and photographer Aroon Thaewchatturat journeyed across Rajasthan to offer irreverent reviews of five exceptional properties that may have little more in common than their relative antiquity – but, whether five star or budget, they all offer a hotel experience decidedly unique, sometimes eccentric and always fascinating.

Photos: Aroon Thaewchatturat

Camels, snake charmers, gurus and tigers – India is back on the tourist map. With a 30% increase of foreign arrivals in 2005, the subcontinent is once again deemed a safe, attractive and affordable travel destination.

The states of Rajasthan and Goa attract the bulk of visiting foreigners; the former for its famed lake palaces, national parks and deserts, inhabited by nomads, camels and elephants; the latter for its beaches and five hundred years of Portuguese colonial heritage.

What’s more, India is finally shaking its long held reputation for unreliable transport and crummy accommodation. Budget airlines now whisk visitors from state to state and the last decade has seen a profusion of newly opened heritage hotels suiting all budgets.

In 1947, when India gained independence from the British, the maharajas – the local rulers of India – had mostly gone to seed, following a hundred years of indulgence by their foreign masters. Their land and privileges gone, unable to find a new role in India’s burgeoning democracy, the former kings soon ran out of cash to maintain their vast properties and extravagant lifestyles, and the rich heritage of India’s Rajput rulers was threatened by bankruptcy and ruin.

But in the late 1950s, the Maharaja Mahan Singh of Jaipur, the Rajasthani state capital, and the Maharana Bhagwat Singh of Udaipur, famed city of palaces and lakes, took an audacious and life-saving decision and opened their royal properties as luxury hotels.

Tourists could now go beyond the museum experience and partake in the lifestyle of the richest kings in the world.  And impoverished monarchs could hang on to their palaces and vices and undertake much needed renovations of these architectural treasures.

The decision proved initially controversial – many fellow royals decried these business ventures as beneath their exulted dignity and preferred to drink themselves into oblivion and the Indian government showed few signs of support. Forty years later and Rajasthan boasts more than 150 heritage properties.

While some heritage properties are managed and owned by large hotel chains, many former palaces are still run by the royal families who have owned the buildings for generations. Where else in the world do tourists get an opportunity to experience a country’s vibrant culture at the table of the heirs to its former ruling elite?

Or, as Maharaj Arjun Singh, brother of the late Maharana of Udaipur, puts it, “We Rajputs aren’t much good at anything these days. But we are good at running hotels and the tourist industry in Rajasthan and beyond was practically invented by us.”

The rest of the country is not far behind Rajasthan and many more heritage hotels are now opening all over the subcontinent.

Tom Vater and Aroon Thaewchatturat present an exclusive selection of heritage properties – from old stalwarts to flashy newcomers, from budget palaces to luxury forts, from urban havelis – grand townhouses – to opulent former British residences.

These five properties reflect the splendor of a by-gone age, infused with the business savvy, history, taste and eccentricities of India’s former rulers.

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1) Garden Splendor in the Desert State Capital

The Diggi Palace – Jaipur, Rajasthan

Located just outside the city gates of Jaipur, the Diggi Palace is a delightful budget hotel, which offers backpackers and mid-range travellers stylish accommodation in a sprawling royal compound. The property, a maze of courtyards and well-restored two-story buildings set in a lush garden area, is still run by the Thakur (Rajasthan nobility) family who built this haveli in 1860.

Inside the garden compound, the hustle and bustle of Jaipur fades into a quiet murmur.

The hotel offers Internet access and owner Shakti Singh is a mine of information on Jaipur and beyond, “We pride ourselves on being an unprofessional hotel. We don’t aim to provide accommodation for package groups, but we do offer authentic charm and a break from the hectic city.”

The Diggi Palace has 44 rooms – the larger ones are beautifully restored and contain period furniture, A/C and TV. The owners keep polo horses on the property and biogas is used as cooking fuel, generated with cow dung.  A rooftop restaurant offers a wide selection of Indian, Chinese and continental cuisine. The vegetables are grown in the hotel’s own organic garden. The tandoor dishes and the ice cream are especially recommended.

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2) One thousand and one nights are not enough

The Deogarh Mahal, Deogarh, Rajasthan

Chivalry, romance, desert rogues and veiled beauties – the spirit of Rajasthan comes alive nowhere more so than at the Deogarh Mahal, an imposing 17^th century fort palace, transformed in 1994 into a luxury hotel. It is hard to fault this property. The rooms are spotless and guests may choose between authentic Rajput ambience – suites with period furniture and ancient cracked walls covered in priceless miniature paintings – and recently renovated ultra-modern suites for those travellers so jaded they want to stay in a heritage hotel but need 21^st century aesthetics.

The 21 suites have expansive verandas, a couple even feature Jacuzzis. The four royal suites are breathtaking examples of Rajput splendor. The mini bar is stocked with French wines. 30 or so plain but well-kept rooms cater to passing tour groups.

A swimming pool, a gym, a pool table, an Ayurvedic massage center and, from the imposing ramparts, some great desert views, complete the picture.

Dinner is served in the central courtyard, accompanied by traditional dance performances. An international restaurant has just opened within the property, offering Indian, Continental and Thai dishes. All this in the middle of nowhere.

The mission is clear. Veerbhadra Singh, a man with fading movie star looks and an unearthly light in his eyes runs the Deogarh Mahal in order to indulge in the royal lifestyle he feels he has a birthright to – hence a sense of elegance, exuberance and decadence is happily shared with the guests. Formality, so often associated with hotels of this class, is entirely absent.

The Singh Saghar, a satellite of the Deogarh Mahal, is a remote retreat set in a recently restored fort on the shores of a small lake. Squarely aimed at people with too much money, just four suites offer 21^st century luxury, funky décor, international cuisine and best of all, absolute privacy. The rate for the entire property is 1000$ a night.

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3)  Rajput Chic

Sardargarh Fort, Sardargarh

The Sardargarh Fort, which lies half way between Udaipur and the spectacular Jain temples of Ranakpur, rises out of the dusty plains of southern Rajasthan with all the romance a medieval fort should have. Built in the first half of the 18^th century and enclosed by massive ramparts, this gigantic fort overlooks a picturesque village and a lake (in the years it rains).

Inside the fort, the tenth generation descendants of Sardar Singh, the fort’s founder, have opened a wonderfully luxurious boutique heritage hotel in 2006, featuring just 21 spacious A/C rooms clustered around a wide court-yard with a marble chomka (pavilion) in its centre.

The original structure of the fort has been left entirely intact which makes each room slightly different from the next. The best three rooms crown the ramparts.

The property features small court-yards, containing well maintained gardens, populated by wild civet cats, parrots and other local wildlife. One courtyard contains a wonderful marble pool.

The views from the castle walls are stunning and service is prompt and extremely friendly. All the staff employed at Sardargarh Fort come from the village below the property and the former rulers appear to enjoy an exceptionally good relationship with their former subjects.

Food is served on a wide marble terrace by candlelight, while local musicians provide entertainment. For sheer size and drama, Sadargarh Fort is unbeatable, while the intimate size of the hotel itself makes for an exclusive stay.

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4) Rajput Lakeside Splendor

The Shiv Niwas Hotel, Udaipur

The Shiv Niwas, a crescent shaped building on the banks of Lake Pichola and adjacent to the City Palace, dates back to the early 20^th century and used to be the royal guest house. These days it functions as a palace hotel, offering large rooms and two enormous Imperial Suites with period furniture chandeliers, and priceless art collections on the walls.

The courtyard is dominated by a pleasant marble pool and the restaurant is one of the best in Udaipur – especially the sumptuous North Indian cuisine is recommended.

A perfectly relaxed stay is assured on this magical property, but for guests seeking more than just stunning views and pampering, a billiards room, squash courts, musical performances, boat tours and a bar will help the time pass quickly.

The current Maharana of Udaipur is very much involved in the business of running one of the best palace hotels in India and the royal touch is felt everywhere. While the property is luxurious, it does not aim to compete with ‘chrome and glass palaces’, as HH pointed out. At the Shiv Niwas, the past of the Mewars, the former rulers of Udaipur, is celebrated and guests are made to feel just like the guests who have always visited this former royal guest house – except that today, one has to pay for such a sublime experience.

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5) Jaipur’s Urban Palace

The Raj Palace – Jaipur, Rajasthan

The Raj Palace was the first haveli to be constructed in Jaipur. Built in 1727, it has been a heritage hotel since 1996. Located in the heart of the Pink City, the Raj Palace is hardly ten minutes walk from the City Palace and Jaipur’s main attractions.

Yet within the building’s courtyards, a quiet, seriously subdued ambience prevails – accentuated by silently bubbling fountains and a placid pool with a large lawn area around.

45 well-appointed rooms and suites offer all modern amenities, though any authentic feeling of old world Rajput decadence is absent in the standard rooms. The more expensive rooms exude real period flair, with carefully selected antique furniture, wall hangings and weapons, complimented by luxuriously designed bathrooms. The highlight of the Raj Palace is the Durbar Suite, an absurdly ostentatious self-contained complex of two master bedrooms and a throne hall that bristles with enough priceless gems to rival the crown jewels. It might take a king or a strong aspirant to enjoy this amount of splendor.

Jevendra Kumari, the last heir to the building, has been involved in the restoration of the Raj Palace for nine years. Her husband explains the vision behind the property, “We want to offer guests the kind of life a maharaja would lead in the 21^st century. Our furniture is either antique or bought from outlets that supply only palaces. We go back to the original building techniques, using lime plaster and vegetable colors We employ a small army of artisans to figure out what the palace used to look like and how we can make it look like that again.”

The Raj Palace is a favorite with package tourists and the food, though not cheap, is excellent. The breakfast is rather average. Service is superb, for those who like courtly formality and nightly puppet shows. Internet access is provided for guests.