Bal Samand Garden Retreat - Jodhpur    Share

Top-notch property; stay in the midst of Royal environs Been there two years in a row in towards the end of the winters. The sheer expanse of the property - with the gardens, the rustic rooms, the dam and the accompanying lake, the peacocks & monkeys, their stables and fruit gardens - is perfect, even if you don't intend to step out of it. Property & Room: Expansive, large, vast, spread-out, open - take your choice of words. They have multiple gardens, bridges over small brooks, a private dam, a lake reservoir, a small palace, an enclosed but open to air swimming-pool, peacock, squirrels, monkeys, horses, trees, and yes, i may be missing a lot more. The lawns are well manicured, the trees lush, clean roads & pathways, etc. The rooms are spread across 2 sections. The first set is near the lobby facing the lawns - all of them on the ground floor, these old-world rooms have a verandah both, in the front and the back of the rooms. We stayed in these rooms both the times we were there. The rooms are well-appointed, spacious, and clean. The other set is apparently more luxurious and suite-like and further ahead facing the lake F&B: The property has 2 dining options; one is the conventional restaurant/coffee-shop, where they serve breakfast and is an all-day dining option. The other restaurant being an only-evening option, which is on the lawns,. which predominantly serves tandoored/barbequed stuff, where they also serve alcohol and other a-la-carte items. This restaurant seemed pretty popular with locals, popular enough to undertake a fairly long drive in the evenings :) The breakfast is pretty comprehensive with the regular Indian fare (South & North) and continental options; this coffeeshop/restaurant has both, an indoor (pretty vintage & rustic) feel and a few tables outside Services & Amenities: The property has it's own stables with horses (they seem well-taken care-of, with lots of space); vegetable, herb & fruit trees, a dam, peacocks, monkeys, squirrels, dogs, birds of many species (pardon me, if i'm missing anything else) and yes, a swimming pool, a dam and give or take a few more things. So plan to spend quality time in the property - only then would you be doing justice to it. Overall: All-in-all, if you're fine to overlook some finesse & curated refinement, this beautiful and for us city-dwellers, a small-suburb sized property is an exceptionally unique experience

Lacked that wow factor, only good if you wanna come with selected people. The "LAL MAAS" they flaunt over is not that great, I've eaten better in many places in Jodhpur. This is a place that's more of location for taking selfies and photographs rather than dining.

10 on 10! The ambience, the environment, the food and the hospitality, everything is great! Easily one of Jodhpur's best!!

Quality of service drastically declined post-lockdown.

We stayed two nights in the garden rooms of this 60+ acre summer palace. Lake, peacocks, Marwali horses, monkeys, and a hunting lodge (now the suites) - this hotel had it all. The garden rooms were remodeled from old stables, we understand - now comfortable but a little age-worn. Breakfast was excellent with a wide assortment, while garden dinner by candlelight was a treat with bonfires throughout- to note, the brownies with ice-cream was truly delicious. Service was impeccable. All in all - a most unusual stay