If you open the window of your hotel room and do not get an overwhelming sense of walls or even avenues painted in pink, you’re probably not in Jaipur. This is one city that is meticulously divided into ‘six sectors by broad streets 34 m (111 ft) wide. The urban quarters are further divided by networks of gridded streets.’ The city has more than its share of splendid fortresses, majestic palaces, tranquil temples and beautiful havelis… and the City Palace, Hawa Mahal, and Amber and Jaigarh forts will obviously be a part of your itinerary here.

The point that I’m trying to make here is that if you’re in Jaipur, your experience shouldn’t be a reflection of Gilbert Gottfried: ‘I always wish the hotels were like they are in movies and TV shows, where if you’re in Paris, right outside your window is the Eiffel Tower. In Egypt, the pyramids are right there. In the movies, every hotel has a monument right outside your window. My hotel rooms overlook the garbage dumpster in the back alley.’ I’m sure there must be hotels in this city that would reflect the view that Gottfried generally got… but then he may not have had the privilege of browsing the net for hotel bookings in Jaipur.

Jaipur is one city where you may not want to be away from the throbbing charm of the exquisite handicrafts and spectacular jewellery found here, or bazaars filled with bright turbans and ethnic attire, hand-dyed and embroidered textiles. The city is more than the usual tourist destination and, therefore, even when I visited this place I went through a comprehensive list of hotels in Jaipur and decided on one that was in the heart of the city and I was able to walk down to places like Hawa Mahal. It is a well-known fact that only when you’re comfortable will you be able to really enjoy local cuisine… and talking of food, one must not miss Dal Baati Churma, Missi Roti, and the entire range of sweet dishes including Ghevar, Feeni, Gajak, Chauguni ke laddu, and Moong Thal.

Well, Jaipur has an entire range of hotels and if your aim is zeroing in on a choice of affordable hotels in Jaipur for memorable holidays, your list of demands would be what Diane von Furstenberg famously listed: ‘When you get into a hotel room, you lock the door, and you know there is a secrecy, there is a luxury, there is fantasy. There is comfort. There is reassurance.’ And once you’re comfortable and secure, you will be in the right frame of mind to move out and explore the esoteric charms of places like the Jantar Mantar here… the royal experience of a palace tour… the adventure of the forts and all the intrigue that surrounds them… and of course, the food and the local handicraft.

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Travel tips... finding the right hotel in Jaipur

Travel tips… finding the right hotel in Jaipur

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Arvind Passey
10 April 2015