Sariska Palace

We approached Sariska Palace in an unconventional way and ended up getting lost in the shrubland surrounding it so we decided to take a shortcut and climbed over the wall with dresses flapping and inelegant jumps,but we managed and headed in for a swim and a nosey. Cold beers by the pool, then a special table laid out just for us on the lovely verandah where we feasted on a variety of biryanhis which were delicious with some local rajastani music and dancing followed by a tour of the Palace.

The comfortable living room area complete with stuffed tigers staring down at you, a wonderful marble staircase with a massive chandelier that the boys cheekily started swinging. The stair case up decorated with pictures of the olden days and sadly many dead tigers at the feet of the Maharajas and guests. The Palace was built in 1894 by the Maharaja of Alwar as a hunting lodge. Now of course it is a heritage hotel sporting over one hundred rooms and no tiger hunts but tiger viewings. There is an air of dilapitated grandeur about the whole place which makes it quite special. The suites are massive done in pinks and bright reds and best of all are the free standing bath tubs in the centre of the bathrooms. Sariska Palace is a great place from where you can explore the Sariska National Park and Tiger Reserve and it is only 36kms from Alwar and 130 Kms from Jaipur.