Hotels in India

The cabins lining Havelock Island’s beaches are occasionally passed by a couple of elephants taking a stroll along the beach or a dip in the Indian Ocean. You can wake up every day to a view of the ocean kissing the shore here and in Goa.

Goa has the best accommodation in India when it comes to beachside breaks, with sprawling resort hotels and vast expanses of golden sand. It is also one of India’s least conservative areas, so you needn’t worry about getting a slightly more extensive tan.

Submerge yourself in India’s increasingly cosmopolitan cities, such as Kolkata, Delhi or Chennai, for a more personal hotel experience.

New Delhi has an ever-increasing number of boutique hotels, but Mumbai embraces glamour and style more than anywhere else.

…or a raj or a maharaja. India was once the land of a thousand kings and is now hell bent on making visitors feel like royalty, especially in Rajasthan. In this part of India, hotels are the stuff of legend and fairy tales.

Spend a night in Udaipur’s Taj Lake Palace (in the middle of Lake Pichola), accessible only by a private ferry, or overlooking the great fortresses of Jaisalmer.

Strain your neck looking up at the fortress at Jodhpur from one of the blue buildings that fan out from the stronghold.

To say that luxury hotels in India are cheap is an understatement. There are some outrageously low prices for remarkable hotels across the country, with bargains to be had at every turn.

Hotels in the more provincial regions are cheapest, so much so that you’ll be wondering whether you have made a mistake with the exchange rate.

Prices outside peak season drop away precipitously, sometimes to more than half of what they are during the peak.