SUJAN Rajmahal Palace

SUJAN Rajmahal Palace

A 1950s Ford Thunderbird sits among the polo trophies and family photographs on display at SUJAN Rajmahal Palace, heirlooms from the Maharaja and Maharani who lived in this Jaipur residence after it was built in 1729, and whose descendants still call it home. That last detail, a working royal residence rather than a converted one, is what separates this from Jaipur's other heritage hotels: guests sleep in one of just thirteen rooms and suites, two of them Royal Apartments, some named for the guests they once hosted, including Jackie Kennedy and Lord Mountbatten. Days move around a garden pool ringed with fountains, set within grounds large enough to hold a celebration for up to 2,500 guests, and evenings settle into The Colonnade or 51 Shades of Pink, or a cocktail at the polo-themed bar. During polo season, guests get complimentary entry to matches played by the Jaipur Polo Team, a piece of access tied directly to the family that still owns the place. There's a spa run with Ma Earth, a fitness room, yoga space, tennis court and golf course, plus a business center for anyone mixing work with the visit, and a playroom for children who tire of the gardens before their parents do. None of this suits anyone chasing anonymity or scale: with just thirteen rooms, the palace runs on the intimacy of a private house, not the efficiency of a hotel chain. But for a traveler who wants Jaipur's royal history worn lightly, not staged, a palace still standing as somebody's actual home is the rare thing on offer here. SUJAN Rajmahal Palace is Jaipur's palace hotel that never stopped being a palace: thirteen rooms, two Royal Apartments, and a royal family that still calls it home. Evenings end at The Colonnade, 51 Shades of Pink, or the polo-themed bar, beside a fountain-ringed pool.