Chunda Shikar Oudi

# Chunda Shikar Oudi, near Udaipur

Out in the countryside at Kheroda, in Udaipur district, the Chunda family has turned an old noble hunting ground into the opposite of what it was. The land had degraded to near-barren scrub; the family and local villagers restored it, and today Chunda Shikar Oudi sits inside what the hotel counts as 150 hectares of private woodland wrapped around its own lake, with just nine places to sleep on the whole reserve.

Eight suites and one villa

The suites are 900 sq ft each, with balconies and sweeping views and, unusually, lake-view bathrooms with bathtubs, stocked with Kama Ayurveda products. The Villa With Private Pool is the family option: 5,000 sq ft, two bedrooms, a living room, private dining and its own pool for up to six. Every stay includes all three meals plus a daily roster most lodges would bill separately: a boat ride, a 60-minute jungle safari, a fishing session, a guided walk and evening stargazing from 8 pm, with an in-house naturalist leading the nature trails.

Once a hunting base for nobility, now a nature sanctuary

That reversal captures the register of the place: this is a naturalist's retreat, not a tiger circus.

What you might actually see

The 4x4 safaris carry leopard, golden jackal, Indian rock python, star tortoise, grey langur and porcupine on the reserve's list, and birdwatching runs to nearby Menar Lake for bulbuls, peacocks and cormorants. Angling on the private lake is catch-and-release, for sawal and mahseer. Meals move around the property too: Mewar Thali, Paniya roti cooked between palash leaves, sundowners at Leopard Point, even high tea on a private boat. Riding is on Marwari horses; pottery happens with the village Kumbhar.

For a two-night pairing with a city stay, we think this is one of the most complete wilderness add-ons in southern Rajasthan.