Rampratap Palace

# Rampratap Palace, Udaipur

Udaipur's hotels cluster around Lake Pichola and charge accordingly. Ram Pratap Palace looks to the other lake, Fateh Sagar, from the quieter Alkapuri quarter; the hotel describes itself as sitting on the lake's banks, though its own nearby-sights list puts the water a little way off. Either way, it strikes us as the more interesting address. This is a 24-room heritage hotel from the Fateh Collection, and most of those rooms were built facing the water.

A palace that feels like a house

The scale here is the appeal, at least on paper. Restored Rajput architecture, elegantly furnished rooms, and each one leading through to a spacious bathroom lined with Indian marble. The hotel's own description says the surroundings make you feel you are in a private residence, and with only 24 keys we can believe it.

The rooms page lists three types (the homepage says two, one of the site's small muddles): 200 sq ft Deluxe Rooms with a choice of double or twin beds, 250 sq ft Deluxe Lake Facing Rooms, and a lake-facing version with its own private balcony. The Deluxe and balcony rooms sleep up to three, and the site lists the lake-facing rooms for three adults and a child, which makes them workable for families who do not want two rooms.

Most of the 24 rooms are built with a view of the lake, and each leads through to its own bathroom lined with Indian marble.

Dinner in the garden, city on the doorstep

Raaj Bagh, the hotel's al fresco restaurant, sits in gardens across the street with views over Fateh Sagar. It runs from 7.30am to 10.30pm, serves buffet and a la carte, and there is a bar. Eating outdoors by the lake as the light goes down is the sort of thing Udaipur does well, and having it attached to your hotel spares you the evening taxi hunt.

The location page puts the city centre about 3 km away, with Jagdish Temple and Bagore ki Haveli each roughly 2 km and City Palace under 6 km. Close enough to sightsee all day; far enough that you sleep in a quiet quarter rather than above a bazaar. Wi-Fi, parking and a travel desk are all included, and check-in is from 2pm.