The Oberoi Udaivilas

Seen from the City Palace at dusk, the far shore of Lake Pichola carries a skyline of domes and chhatris that visitors assume belong to a palace of the 18th century. They belong to The Oberoi Udaivilas, built between 1998 and 2002 on the west bank of the lake in Udaipur. The 50-acre site was a hunting ground of the Maharanas of Mewar, and part of it is kept as a wildlife sanctuary where deer and wild boar walk down to the water.

History

The Oberoi Group opened Udaivilas in 2002 as the second of its Vilas resorts, after Rajvilas in Jaipur in 1997 and a year after Amarvilas in Agra. The land came from the Mewar royal family, whose City Palace and Lake Palace stand across the water. The hotel quickly became the one by which other palace hotels in Rajasthan are measured; it topped the Travel + Leisure World's Best list in 2015, and has been near the top of similar surveys for most of its existence.

Architecture and design

The architects were Nimish Patel and Parul Zaveri of Abhikram in Ahmedabad, who specialise in traditional Rajasthani building methods. The resort is organised as a sequence of courtyards linked by domed corridors, with a central dome over the lobby and a main courtyard where fountains run between the rooms and the lake. The craftsmanship is the point: lime plaster, stone carved by Udaipur masons, hand-painted frescoes of Mewar court scenes, mirror work and inlay. Peacocks have the run of the gardens.

Rooms and suites

There are 87 rooms and suites. Premier Rooms look over the gardens or the lake; the Premier Rooms with Semi-Private Pool open directly on to a long shared pool that runs past a row of rooms, each with its own steps and terrace. The Luxury Suites have a private pool and a terrace, and the Kohinoor Suite, the largest, has its own pool, a dining room and a spa room. Every room has a domed ceiling or a high beamed one, a marble bathroom and a view planned at the design stage.

Dining

Suryamahal, the all-day restaurant, serves Western and Asian dishes under a dome, with a terrace at the pool. Udaimahal is the Indian restaurant, with Rajasthani and north Indian cooking and a view of the lit City Palace across the lake. Chandni is the open-air restaurant used in the cooler months, with live music, and the bar overlooks the pool. Private dinners are set on the lakeside lawn and in the gardens.

Wellness

The Oberoi Spa occupies its own building by the lake, with treatment rooms, a yoga pavilion and a relaxation area, and uses Ayurvedic and Western treatments. The main swimming pool sits between the courtyard and the lake. There is a fitness centre, and guided walks through the sanctuary.

Weddings and events

Udaivilas is one of the principal venues for destination weddings in Rajasthan, and the Oberoi runs it accordingly. Ceremonies are held on the lawns above the lake, with the City Palace as the backdrop, and on the courtyards; dinners spread across the gardens. A buyout gives the family the whole of the 50 acres. For meetings and incentives there is a boardroom and a conference room for smaller groups. Udaipur in the wedding season, from October to March, fills quickly, and the hotel is usually booked a year ahead for the big dates.

Location

The hotel is on Haridasji Ki Magri on the west bank of Lake Pichola, reached by boat from the City Palace jetty or by road around the lake in about 15 minutes. The Jag Mandir island palace is in the lake in front. Udaipur's Maharana Pratap Airport is about 25 kilometres east of the city, roughly 45 minutes by car, and Udaipur City railway station is 20 minutes away. As a luxury hotel in Udaipur it is the one with the most land and the best view back at the old city.