welltraveledbrit

I've finalized my one month trip to Rajasthan and Delhi in Nov/Dec. We've had to work around the availability of some of the more popular heritage hotels...which means we have 4 extra days between Udaipur and Deogarh.

The lesson is if you want specific hotels in Rajasthan in high season you MUST book ahead...unfortunately booking ahead is not my strongest point! However the upside is 4 more days in Rajasthan!

Our itinerary is as follows;

Udaipur 3 nights (Kankawara)

4 nights free...

Deogarh 3 nights (Deogarh Mahal)
Rohet 3 nights (Rohet Garh)
Jaislemer 3 nights(Killa Bhawan)
Jodhpur 1 night
Jaipur 2 nights (Jasvilas)
Shekawati 3 Nights (Apani Dhani)

For the four extra nights we're thinking of a detour to Bundi which sounds interesting and unspoilt and allows us to see Chittaurgarh on the way. We're also interested in seeing the temples and fort at Ranakpur and Kumbhalgarh.

Is it worth going all the way out to Bundi for 2/3 days or would we be better to spend the days closer to Udaipur? How would you use the four days if you know this area?

Several of the hotels we're considering are Ravlak Hempur (a family run heritage hotel),Devigarh (a wonderful 'design' hotel in an old castle, Castle Bijaipur(heritage hotel), Nawla Narlai (another heritage hotel).

If you know the area or have spent anytime at the above hotels, or others you can recommend, please let us know.

Many thanks.

hobbes

U are going to 1 eco resort (Apni Dhani) - look at www.ecoclub.com and see if any of the others appeal. 4 days is a reasonable length of time and u could also consider a comp diff state. Himachal Pradesh? Judges Court? Or Kerala?

hobbes

Sorry - just read your post more closely and rethought my suggestions. If u like wildlife u could consider working Ranthambore into your plans - the Taj Sawai Madhopur Lodge is an old property, used to be a hunting seat. What about a Neemrana property - www.neemranahotels.com. THink I already advised u to look at www.heritagehotels.com. Devigarh is just outside udaipur and think 4 nights there is too much.

Cicerone

I would add one more night in Jodphur, and possibly one more in Jaipur as there is a lot to see and do. I just love Jodphur and the surrounding areas. In Jaipur, you could spend an entire day at the museum in the City Palace. You could also spend the better part of a day at the Amber Fort and exploring the surrounding countryside.

I agree with the suggestion of going down to Ranthambore, and Sawai Madophur in particular, for 2 nights. Ranthambore is about 3 hours by car from Jaipur over good roads. If you stay there either get a tent (they have hard flooring and attached bath) or a room in the lodge itself (they have some lovely art deco rooms with original bath fixtures). Avoid the motel-like strip of rooms at the back of the property. I would go for the tents myself.

I have not been to Tonk, but it is on the way to Ranthambore and might be worth a stop.

welltraveledbrit

Thanks very much for your replies.

The difficulty that I'm having is that I can't add the four days anywhere into the itinerary.

Due to the very limited hotel availiability I HAVE to add four day to the period between Udaipur and Deogarh (south of Jodhpur)...this allows me to secure reservations at hotels which I am keen to visit and which have very limited availability ...Deogarh, Rohet Garh and Killa Bhawan etc.

Apparently this year is very busy in Rajasthan and as Nov and Dec are high season months I've had some difficulty putting together the itinerary.


Currently we're leaning towards 2 nights in Bundi a night in Chittaurgarh on the way back and a night near Ranakpur which allows for a quick transfer to Deogarh.

We've also thought about staying more locally, perhaps two nights in Devigarh and two nights in a hertige hotel near Chittaurgarh...this would certainly be the more relaxing option.

I will certainly look into Sawai Madhopur. My concern about Ranthambore is that it's a long detour to fit in between Udaipur and Deogarh. Also having lived for several years in Southern Africa I'm concerned that I may find the game viewing disappointing. However I will pull out the map to check possible routes.

The heritagehotels website is a mine of info...the only problem is now I want to stay in all of them!

Cicerone, I appreciate that we are shortchanging Jodhpur but we may be able visit the city for an additional day while staying in Rohetgarh which is only 40 minutes away. However adding a day to Jodhpur is a possibility as the hotels at the end of my itinerary seem to have greater availability.

Hobbes thanks for the eco club recommendation...we must be on the same wavelegth! In fact that's the site where I foud Apani Dhani and I used it recently to choose the Uakari lodge which we visited in the Brazilian Amazon in August.

Again many thanks.