Rawla Narlai by Sarah Anderson

For an immediate fix of what it must have been like to have lived in 17th century Rajasthan, but with 21st century comforts, there can be no better place than Rawla Narlai. The hotel, owned by a member of the Jodhpur royal family, is a converted hunting lodge midway between Jodhpur and Udaipur. The rooms lead off a variety of balconies, porches and loggias crammed with charming pieces of old furniture where you can recline with a drink looking out on the large holy granite rock which looms benignly over the lodge and with 200 temples surrounding it. Many of the rooms retain their original frescoes and stained glass windows - the diffused light is excellent for afternoon siestas. We had dinner, served by red-turbaned waiters sporting handlebar moustaches on the flat roof and were treated to a performance of stick dancing - a kind of Rajasthani war dance.

About two kilometres away is a step-well, which is still used - albeit now with a pump - where cocktails from the hotel can be served and a little further away again is an about-to-be-opened 'hotel' with just three bedrooms, its own pool and total privacy. This was a farm in beautiful countryside belonging to the same family and is being very sympathetically converted. Wild boar and panther were hunted from the main lodge and there is still the possibility of seeing panther by moonlight.

The Jain temples at Ranakpur and the massive fort at Khumbhalgarh are both close enough by for day visits from this romantic spot.