Check out the usual booking sites such as www.booking.com or www.venere.com, in the city there are so many converted palaces to stay in that it would be a shame to choose a modern chain hotel however they do vary in quality.

We stayed at the Diggi Palace Hotel, www.hoteldiggipalace.com, it is reasonably priced, the rooms are fine and the grounds with the wandering peacocks are lovely however the service is variable, the manager seemed off hand and requests are sometimes forgotten. They did however arrange a car to take us to the Amber Fort at a reasonable price and also have a tuk tuk driver who is usually available.

Restaurants & Bars

Copper Chimney, Maya Mansion MI Road, serves reasonably priced Indian food and is licensed, it appears to have a bar in the basement.

Nero’s, MI Road, is very popular with visitors and serves Indian, Chinese and European cuisine, it is a smart place and has good service.

A word of warning if you go to Nero’s do not be tempted to go for a beer to Bouncer’s next door, it was recommended obviously by someone with a sense of humour, it does serve beer but any other similarity with a bar as you would know it is missing. They also over charged.

Mansingh Hotel, Sansar Chandra Road, we found it difficult to find air conditioned places to eat and this had a standard hotel restaurant, it is fine, the food was OK and the service pleasant.

Rambath Palace, seven star luxury with its own polo lawn, do go and have a drink in the Polo Lounge, the bar snacks are excellent and the prices are not that expensive. The hotel is down a lovely drive and when you are leaving walk back down the drive, do not be tempted to ask them to call you a taxi as it will cost more than your drinks and snacks.

Drink

Beer and wine are available in most middle to upper range restaurants and in some of the more basic places a beer can usually be sourced. The most common beer is Kingfisher which is a pleasant lager type beer. Indian wine is becoming more and more common and Sula is one of the most often seen brands. They produce red, rose, white and sparkling and are perfectly drinkable, the price varies from state to state as there are local taxes included in the price.

There is lots to see in the city of Jaipur, but be sure to get a car to the Amber Fort, ideally to be there when it opens at 8am. You can take an elephant ride up or your driver will take you up for another 200 rupees. The building, the views, the whole thing is stunning and you can stop at the lake on the way back and see the palace in the middle.

In the City the three main things to see are the City Palace, the Palace of the Winds and the Jantar Mantar the observatory, with huge astronomical sculptures.

The shopping is great but the hassle is even greater.

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Jaipur IN

3.78 m/s 28 %

21.6°C

3.64 m/s 25 %

22.1°C

3.12 m/s 18 %

22.3°C

3.5 m/s 31 %

20.6°C

4.14 m/s 14 %

22.5°C

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