What a place! The palace, as we see and experience it today dates back to the first half of the 19th century. It is built right into the mountains, overlooked by the old Samode Fort.

My wife and I stayed at Samode Palace for one night as part of the Samode Historical Package with two more nights in the Samode Haveli. It was not cheap, but well worth it. We stayed in a deluxe suite (216) with adjacent balcony with the most geogeous view. The suite was pure luxury. The dinner for the night of our stay was not in the restaurant but the Darbar Hall, a most enchanting place, lavishly decorated with wall and ceiling paintings. There are so many fabulous halls like the hall of mirrors, court yards, and it is easy to get lost, but who minds?

The food was good, but not the best we had in Rajasthan. Staff were incredibly friendly and enthusiastic, not only to show us the palace and treat us like royalty, but also to bring us around Samode village, and we also made a quick trip to Samode Bhag, a sister property where visitors stay in luxury tent accommodation.

The properties belong to the family of Samode, relatives af the Maharaja of Jaipur and income from them support a chritable fund from which the villagers of Samode benefit.

Very well maintained old fort with beautiful roof terrace. Food is very good and restaurant is lovely at night with outside tables, candelight and small fires to keep you warm. Our first room was slightly depressing with a window looking into the interior courtyard so the curtains could never be opened. We ended up in room 211 which was much nicer! So make sure when booking you are clear about wanting exterior windows. Staff are helpful and polite. Worth a stay and if you're choosing old forts, this is a good bet (much better than Deogarh Mahal, for example.)

We stayed one night at the Samode Palace, part of a large party, towards the end of a 5 day tour of India. Stunningly beautiful hotel, with rooms that appear at first sight to be really luxurious. Friendly, polite and helpful staff. But overall the hotel was disappointing. Service at lunchtime was excruciatingly slow - 45 minutes to produce a banana lassi! Our room had no hot water, nor was any hot water forthcoming after we told the reception desk about this, despite a promise that we would have it within 10/15 minutes. Moreover, over half our party ended up with serious stomach problems following dinner, which made for a very uncomfortable 5 hour return journey to Delhi the next day- all right, this is difficult to avoid in India, but a hotel of Samode's standard should make more effort to ensure the hygiene of its food.

Fabulous Heritage palace hotel. The original palace rooms remain stunning to visit, a tour was freely offered. The decorations (gold/mirrors/colours) were the best we had seen in the Golden Triangle. Really jaw-dropping. The staff clearly enjoy working there and serve you well. It is beautifully maintained. Food is perfectly good with plenty of choice. Our suite was very good, large and stunning bathroom. We were actually offered an upgrade as we originally tried to book here but they were full. So we booked into the sister hotel Samode Bahg (Garden) which is a tented complex surrounding beautiful gardens and waterways. Lovely though it was, with equally welcoming staff, we were delighted by the upgrade and it lived up to its promise. It is perhaps a place to only stay one or two nights as there isn't a lot going on but it is a worthy oasis.