TripAdvisor, a top tourist company, has rated Rambagh Palace Hotel, Jaipur, as the world's number one hotel in the Travellers' Choice Awards 2023.
For me, Rambagh has always been number one ever since I came to know about the existence of hotels. The Hotel has regularly been winning awards and is spoken of highly by all who have stayed there. To get the highest recognition from a globally renowned tourist company is a remarkable achievement for the Hotel and feels like a personal victory for a Jaipurite that is me.
My first visit to Rambagh was in 1953, 70 years ago. It was not a hotel then but the residence of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. A Tennis tournament was being held there and my schoolfriend, Yaduendra, son of Dr. Durga Sahai, personal physician of the Maharaja, suggested we go and watch a Women's Doubles match in which Maharani Gayatri Devi was playing. That was when I saw the Maharani for the first time. Dressed in sparkling whites from top to toe in shirt, slacks, socks and shoes, the Maharani was the epitome of attractiveness. I don't remember what happened in the match but the face and figure of the Maharani are vividly etched in my mind. She looked like a sprightly 20-year old but actually she was 34 at that time. Not surprising as right up to the end, she was regarded as one of the most beautiful women in the world.
The origin of Rambagh Palace dates back to 1835 when a modest garden house was constructed for the wet nurse of prince Ram Singh II. In 1887, it was renovated to serve as a hunting lodge for the Maharaja. Difficult to visualise that what is now the centre of the sprawling city of Jaipur was then the centre of a thick forest! Expansion work to make it fit for a palace started in early 20th century and finally, in 1931, Maharaja Man Singh declared it as his principal residence.
In 1957, the royal family decided to run it as a hotel under their own management. It was only in 1972 that the management was entrusted to the Taj Group which runs it to this day.
The Palace grounds are on 47 acres of land. Apart from the exquisite architecture of the main building, a large portion of it is lush green lawns with beautifully curated gardens. An outstanding feature is the Verandah Cafe and the courtyard overlooking the vast lawn visited frequently by dancing peacocks. When I go there, I am reminded of Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam: the Hotel provides 'a loaf of bread...a flask of wine', you can carry 'a book of verse' and your own 'thou' in what was once 'wilderness' but is now 'paradise'.
I started patronising the Hotel in the '60s. I had joined the Navy and on my home leaves, used to seek out Yadu and head for the Polo Bar. As the name signifies, the theme is Polo and on display are trophies won by the Jaipur team of yore with the Bar walls adorned with photos from tournaments. A sporting ambience prevails adding to the flavour of the beer.
For a while, my trips to Jaipur dried up as the Navy sent me to distant shores. A revival took place when Ruchir decided to celebrate my 70th birthday at the Rambagh. Akhila and I, Mummy, Ruchir, Shumita and Gaurav, all stayed at the Hotel for a couple of days together with Yogesh and Bharti Deveshwar, Shumita's in-laws. On the birthday evening, Ruchir organised a dinner which a number of our relatives and friends attended. They included Xavier class fellows Abhay Singh and Pranab Roy, the latter also a naval colleague, and schoolmate Prakash Surana.
Now whenever we are in Jaipur, which is quite often, we celebrate all important events like birthdays and anniversaries at the Rambagh. To learn that we have been doing it in the best hotel in the world makes us doubly happy and proud.
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