19 best hotels in India, from transformed palaces to city boltholes

Featured in our Gold List of the best hotels in the world 2026

Stepping into Samode, 45 kilometres from Jaipur airport, feels like entering a half-remembered epic. First the cobbled street of an old village, then four domed gateways, and suddenly, a palace with the Aravalli mountains rising behind it. Each doorway frames the one across from it, creating a hypnotic progression through centuries. Outside it may be the 21st century, but at Samode you are in the era of Rajputana royalty, and that mood carries through everything: the service, the cuisine, the architecture, the decor. What began as a 16th-century fort evolved over generations into a palace. The family still runs it today, and their touch is palpable, from the warm welcome by staff who anticipate needs before they are spoken.

Like in all great palaces, intrigue lingers in its details: hidden alcoves, scalloped arches, carved parapets, frescoes of a faded Durga on her tiger, a centuries-old miniature of Radha, and ceilings painted in indigo and rose. The Sheesh Mahal dazzles most dramatically, where 250-year-old Belgian glass mosaics glimmer across vaulted ceilings. The palace has its enchantments, but the kitchens are where the alchemy really happens, recipes tested over centuries: lamb in gently spiced curry, locally grown greens, wines from a cellar stocked with improbable vintages. There are two restaurants at the palace, but the true joy is in its movable feasts – a dinner in the Durbar Hall, lunch at the Sheesh Mahal, a tea in the garden, or supper on the pool deck under the stars. Everything here feels unstaged, unfiltered, and regally authentic. Just as it should be. Shunali Khullar Shroff