Ranthambhore Heritage Haveli

Ranthambhore Heritage Haveli stands at Khilchipur village on the Ranthambhore road out of Sawai Madhopur. The hotel's own description is a building in traditional architecture, made with the natural surroundings and Rajasthani culture in mind, and that is what you get: a cream-coloured haveli of scalloped arches around an open courtyard, with a fountain in the middle and a terrace that looks out over the fields to the hills.

Forty-four rooms in three shapes

Thirty deluxe rooms take a king-size bed or twins, with a large bathroom, a separate rain shower and windows over the mountains and the green fields. Ten cottages sit in the garden with double beds, classical decor and the same rain showers. Four suites make up the rest.

Scalloped arches, a courtyard fountain, and the fields running out to the hills.

Between the drives

There is a swimming pool, a lawn with garden furniture, an Ayurveda spa, a multi-cuisine restaurant and a travel desk. The hotel lists a cultural programme and a barbecue dinner among its evenings, and a doctor on call among its reassurances. It arranges tiger safaris by jeep and by canter, and visits to Ranthambhore Fort, which it dates to the Chauhans in the tenth century, and to Jogi Mahal and its old banyan tree above Padam Talab.

The hotel's own tariff moves with the season, festivals and weekends, which is why we price a whole trip rather than a room.

Our take: a big, comfortable, traditionally built base a short drive from the gates, for people who want a pool and a proper courtyard rather than a tented camp.