34 Best Hotels in India

Overlooking Lake Pichola, this airy, whitewashed, 17th-century haveli hotel is one of the best medium-budget places to stay in Udaipur; you'd be hard-pressed to find better value (or better views). The haveli, artistically decked out with filigree work, carvings, and paintings, is quite spacious and accommodations are located through different courtyards and at different levels. Rooms are neatly decorated with Rajasthani fabrics and heavy wooden furniture, and the bathrooms sparkle. There's a bakery on the premises. The charming rooftop restaurant has romantic open-air alcoves overlooking the lake. Most of the better-category rooms have lake views, and some suites have window seats to take full advantage of the vista.

Hospitality and attention to detail are second to none at this little-known guesthouse, Delhi's only combination of style and affordability. In a quiet, leafy, upper-class neighborhood this jewel offers a taste of residential life, and its rooms are simple but cozy, with bright fabrics and large windows. The restaurant is delightful and the rooftop terrace, with flowering plants and wrought-iron furniture, is unbeatable on a winter day. 

Trusted, reliable, comfortable, and probably the most efficient family-run hotel in Jaipur—and one of the best bets for a budget stay—the Arya Niwas has that ideal combination of convenience to the heart of the city and cushioning from its noise and chaos. As a busy, large hotel, it loses some characteristic Rajasthani gracious hospitality, but it has a helpful staff, and rooms are clean and unfussy; the bathrooms are decently clean and have reasonable-size showers or tub. The large open area and adjoining café—serving home-cooked Indian and continental vegetarian food—overlooks a well-manicured lawn and garden.

One of the least expensive and most comfortable hotels in the city, rooms here are somewhat small, but the lounge draws a hip crowd every evening. The garden is a great place to chill with a cold beer and tangri kebabs (chicken marinated in yogurt and spices).

The Astoria, with its slightly severe 1930-ish Art Deco exterior, is a decent and reliable midrange hotel. The brightly lit glass and marble lobby provides a cheerful welcome, and the rooms, with wood floors and nondescript furnishings, are neat, comfortable, and clean but a tad institutional—opt for a room on a high floor with a view of the cricket maidans across the street. The Astoria is well located, with Nariman Point, Marine Drive, and Regal Cinema all five minutes away, and it's also away from the bustle because it's set in from the road.

The main draws of this basic resort sandwiched between the roar of the Arabian Sea and the ripple of a backwater lagoon are its ayurvedic treatments and serene surroundings. The midsize rooms, in a whitewashed, one-story building, are simply furnished and well maintained, with cane furnishings and private sitouts (patios) facing the lagoon. A two-minute walk gets you to the public beach. It is 4 km (2½ miles) north of Kovalam, on the way to Trivandrum.

Suited to Palolem's long-term backpackers, Ciaran’s has evolved over the years from beachfront, coco palm–thatched huts into proper cottages, all with an individual veranda and set around a small garden. Don't expect luxurious amenities, but rooms are clean and well-maintained, and visitors tend to spend most of their time on the beach, just outside their doors, anyway. It is also probably the most popular of the local bunch, so make sure to book well in advance. There is free Wi-Fi, affordable massages on request, and a multi-cuisine restaurant.

One of the cheapest decent hotels on the Juhu strip, and right on the beach, the Citizen is a deal in a city where you seemingly pay for every square inch. The hotel isn't going to win awards for style, either inside or out, but the rooms are quite comfortable, and there are beach views from the windows. Bathrooms are tiny, with just showers (no tubs). The open-air seaside restaurant, Bay View, is pleasant, and ideal for a beer and lazing around.

One of the more moderately priced hotels in Jodhpur, this quiet hotel is in a spacious, pleasant garden, with plenty of spots to relax in the open air, and a nice pool. The homey rooms—with a choice of two sizes—are tastefully furnished with antique furniture and bathrooms with attractive black-and-white checked floors; some rooms have window seats. A small restaurant, open only to hotel guests, serves thalis. Safaris around Jodhpur can be arranged.

The hotel can be hard to locate so call ahead of your arrival for help.

If you want a taste of life in the Raj, stay in this Kolkata landmark that dates from 1801 and is in a neighborhood now popular with backpackers and volunteers. A small hotel, the Fairlawn has memorabilia-cluttered walls, a winding staircase, and a very homey feel.

This cozy haveli hotel, inside the 11th-century fort, is run like a homestay by the family who owns it, and makes for a special stay. Rooms, each quite different from the next with special names—Rising Sun Room, Sweet Purple Rooms, Opium Room and so on—with window seats, carved stonework and carved wood furniture, are accented in bright hues according to their theme, and are at different levels.

The terrace, where one can lounge about and watch Jaisalmer's spectacular sunsets/sunrises is the best spot to position yourself in this hotel.

Calicut's premier hotel is frequented by airline crews and wealthy Omanis, who come for lengthy treatments at the well-regarded ayurvedic center. A beautiful wooden ceiling with exposed beams caps the lobby, and rooms are posh, with wooden floors and touches of wood trim. They are furnished largely in soothing whites and creams, with silk curtains. Some quarters have a leafy view; others overlook the pool.

Like most Ginger hotels around the country, this hotel is functional and oriented to the business traveler, with clean rooms.

A great location at a decent price is the main selling point of this nine-story, low-frills hotel, but room standards (and views) vary, so opt for one of the 10 deluxe rooms, with central air-conditioning and in-room amenities like coffeemakers. Their bathrooms are passable, but could be cleaner. Eighth-floor rooms have a nice view of the Taj Mahal hotel and the Gateway of India, but the rest are not much to write home about. The rooftop restaurant, Cloud 9, serves Indian and Mumbai-style Chinese food—the Indian is better. Rooms in the sister hotel, the Garden, next door aren't quite as nice.

It's a unique stay at the well-located Gordon House, where the quirkily themed rooms, ranging from sunshine-yellow Mediterranean to minimalist Scandinavian, are a total departure from other, more somber, rooms offered by most hotels in the city. Downstairs on the ground floor, you'll find All Stir Fry, its signature restaurant, and Havana Cafe and bar, a South American–theme watering hole. Should you find those wanting, step outside the hotel and you'll find that you're surrounded by some of Colaba's nicest restaurants.

Family-owned and -operated, this hotel in a 200-year-old sprawling haveli preserves many of its original features, including carved stonework, striking Bundi School of Painting murals, and other artwork, making a stay here like living in an art gallery. The hotel sits at the base of Bundi's fort and has fantastic views of the palace, the fort, and the city, especially from the higher-level floors and rooftop terrace, where meals can be served. Rooms are individually styled and contain antiques, paintings, books, and old photographs.

You won't feel cramped inside this hotel where the crisp and modern standard rooms are 220 square feet. The best rooms overlook the pool, but many others have good views of the city. The hotel also houses a popular nightclub and a pastry shop.

Built as a palace by Nepal's King Kaiser in the 19th century, this heritage property opened as a hotel in 1982 and underwent rounds of renovations, refining its old-world interiors to suit modern travelers' needs. The hotel has a bar and great multi-cuisine restaurant, a pool, and sprawling lawns for outdoor dining. While the base category of rooms are simple and compact, all other premium rooms and suites come with ample space and balconies.

This homey, colonial-style bungalow offers unique-themed rooms (each is decorated in honor of local festivals and former principalities) with standard amenities. The large rooms are simple but clean with period furniture; bathrooms are quite basic. The restaurant serves Indian and Chinese cuisine—the Rajasthani food is better than other choices—and evening entertainment and dinner are organized in and around traditional thatched huts in the garden area.

Popular with repeat visitors to Kolkata, this hotel has pretty gardens and two cheerfully furnished wings with comfortable and spacious guest rooms. This hotel, which has a great downtown location and garden, gets a lot of business as a wedding venue.

A 10-minute walk from the beach, this quiet spot with elegant, minimalist cottages is in a tree-lined residential area. The cottages, each with one or two bedrooms, have soft lighting and entertainment areas with divans. The resort has an attractive pool, plenty of greenery, and a quiet restaurant if you don't want to trek to the other restaurants down the road.

Especially surprising given its price, this hotel has some great features, including a wonderful lakeside location, rooms with private terraces, suites with Jacuzzi or steam room, an Upre restaurant, and a rooftop pool. The rooms are homey, though not strongly designed, and many of them have great views. There are various options, including deluxe rooms (best value) and suites. The small pool gives the place an edge over the neighbors, and the restaurant menu ranges from standard Indian fare to Mexican food, with a large, reasonably priced wine list.

In the heart of Kolkata's business district, this 19th-century heritage property was restored by Bharat Hotels Limited and turned into a classy business hotel with massive rooms in 2014; the property is well preserved with elements that highlight the building's history as a bakery. The 24-hour alfresco restaurant is very European, with pristine white decor and a global menu, while the old bakery equipment has been restored in another restaurant called The Bakery, which serves some old Calcutta favorites and a hearty breakfast.

This attractive contemporary hotel is a decent choice, with the trappings of a luxury property, but offering reasonable prices. Rooms are cheerful and sleek, without being too resort-y, and every room is designed around a central garden and has a pool view and either a patio or a balcony. Ground-floor rooms are the best, as they open directly onto the garden, so you can walk out of your room and dive into the pool---and what a pool: huge, with a waterfall and a food pavilion.

In these lovely, traditional, red-roofed Kerala bungalows, the only sounds you're likely to hear are the crashing of the waves from nearby Odayam and Edava beaches. The 12 cottages face each other in a coconut palm grove with a lotus pond and are simply furnished and comfortable. Some cottages are non-air-conditioned and therefore cheaper.

The well-priced rooms—all with Rajasthani decor and period-style furniture—are the main reason for heading to this Bani Park haveli-hotel. While it might not be a real Rajasthani mansion, the comparatively austere lodging does still lend the haveli atmosphere---though there are more traditional offerings closer to the city. Enter through an ornate gate, and the main hotel, embellished with all the Indo-Saracenic touches, is just beyond, where the rooms face a central courtyard. The royal deluxe rooms, only a shade more expensive, are decently large with big bathrooms.

A 10-minute walk from the Golden Fort, this 18th-century haveli exudes old-world charm and is owned and run by descendants of the Maharaja Kesri Singh, who ruled over Jaisalmer during the 1700s. Rooms vary in shape, size and style; most of them contain antique furniture and authentic family portraits, but quite a few lack windows. Built of compact golden sandstone, the property sits bang across the Jaisalmer "0" milestone (from where distances are measured), and has two small courtyards, fountains, and a lounging area with interesting, quirky antiques, trophies, and portraits.

The huts at Nada Brahma all have sea- or garden-facing private balconies, hot showers, and king-size beds, just steps away from Patnem Beach. The fusion food in the open-air restaurant is excellent, as are the classic cocktails at the bar.

This beachfront budget hotel on Kovalam’s main beach offers private sea-facing balconies in every room that let you see all the action—people strolling, sunbathing, swimming, and fishing—on the bustling Lighthouse Beach. The building is a bit drab, but air-conditioned rooms are spacious, with high ceilings; all are simply furnished. Suite rooms are a better bet, with large white-and-green tiled bathrooms.

The location, good service, lively nightlife, and trippy interiors have made this into one of the busiest hotels in Kolkata. The hotel's restaurants, nightclub, and pub draws a steady crowd and the lobby sparkles with mirrors and cut-glass chandeliers amid rich wood and marble.