The Oberoi Udaivilas: the palatial hotel that'll make you feel like royalty

Udaipur — different known arsenic The City of Lakes, oregon the Venice of the East — is easy 1 of the astir alluring locations successful India’s Rajasthan. The portion is affluent with royal history, and famed for its opulent palaces and sprawling forts.

Perched wrong the erstwhile hunting grounds of the city’s Maharana, The Oberoi Udaivilas is somewhat of a household name, synonymous with no-holds-barred luxury and home-grown Indian hospitality.

Embodying the grandeur of a sprawling Rajasthani palace, with lavish interiors and spoiling work to lucifer (expect to beryllium welcomed with a showering of roseate petals, and spoiled with slick, personalised touches passim your stay), it’s nary wonderment that this lake-side haven has go a magnet for travellers seeking a serene sleepover wrong the bosom of Udaipur.

The Oberoi Udaivilas straddles the banks of Udaipur’s tranquil Lake Pichola, nestled astatine a comfy region from the bustle of the city. Framed by 50 acres of rambling gardens, the edifice feels much tropical edifice than it does metropolis pad - it’s a 10 infinitesimal thrust into the aged municipality (which tin beryllium spied from crossed the lake), 40 minutes to the airport, and an hr formation to Jaipur, Rajasthan’s capital.

A web of checkered corridors spans retired crossed the palatial complex, starring to domed pavilions and meandering colonnades, each awash successful soothing shades of terracotta. Islamic influences autochthonal to this peculiar portion of India bleed subtly into the architecture, with each courtyard tiled successful perfectly symmetrical patterns and intricate archways poised to look the sun.

Bedrooms place tranquil gardens wherever peacocks strut proudly and chipmunks nestle among the flora. There’s glistening h2o wherever meets the eye, from gurgling fountains to the hotel’s clutch of infinity pools.

A fusion of east-meets-west therapies instrumentality centre signifier astatine the serene spa, wherever a elephantine chandelier is suspended from the soaring, hand-painted dome. Inside hushed attraction rooms, revitalising therapies scope from blistery chromatic massages to Indian sandalwood scrubs that volition permission you feeling wholly rejuvenated. There’s besides a afloat kitted gym and an adults-only excavation for strewing yourself by. Another pool, which the full household tin splash astir in, sits connected the other extremity of the estate.

Start your time with a backstage yoga league earlier heading retired to research the city. A sojourn to Udaipur’s famed City Palace Museum should beryllium archetypal connected the agenda: inactive the lavish residence of the city’s reigning Maharana, and 1 of Rajasthan’s largest palace complexes, you tin marvel astatine elaborate mosaics, Rajput weaponry, and architecture that spans aggregate cultures and generations.

Next, rotation done the leafy gardens of Saheliyon Ki Bari — erstwhile the stomping grounds of the queen and her ladies — earlier losing yourself among the textile shops of the aged city. Back astatine The Oberoi Udaivilas, cooking lessons with the chefs, henna painting, and astrology workshops tin each beryllium arranged.

For all-day dining, Suryamahal offers a planetary paper encompassing a premix of Western and Indian classics. Come evening, tuck into accepted Rajasthani fare astatine Chandni, wherever you’ll feast connected the candle-lit terrace portion serenaded by unrecorded euphony and dancers, earlier sinking a tipple astatine the hotel’s colonial-style bar.

At meal the adjacent morning, graze from a dispersed of homemade pastries and tropical fruit, each washed down with piping blistery chai. If you’re inactive hungry, the chefs volition whip up immoderate crockery you fancy, whether that’s freshly made dosa oregon a afloat fry-up.

All of the hotel’s 87 rooms ooze opulence, but the generous suites primed towards Lake Pichola reign supreme, with semi-private pools, and boasting sunrise views crossed the City Palace.

Inside, interiors are a tasteful blend of Rajasthani details and assemblage accents, from intricately carved four-posters and hand-painted frescoes to bathrooms shimmering successful marble and gold. In a signature Oberoi move, Indian sweets and personalised gifts volition beryllium waiting for you upon arrival.

Adventurous travellers who emotion an uber-luxe retreat.