Fodor's Expert Review Jai Mahal Palace

Built in 1745, and today managed by the Taj group, many rooms at this gracious historic palace hotel overlook 14 acres of lavish Mughal-style gardens. Located in the Civil Lines, quite close to the state governor and chief minister's residence, Jai Mahal, once called Natani-ka-Bagh, was the home of the local prime minister and later Jaipur's British surgeon general Dr Thomas Hendley, who was well known for his artistic contribution to the city. Rooms accented in either dramatic blue or a cheerful pinks are modern but plush; shuttered windows peek from the rooms into large bathrooms and there are garden sit-outs for the ground floor rooms.