Royal Flavour In The Pink City

Anindita Chattopadhyay reviews Le Meridien, Jaipur

As the Delhi-Jaipur highway approaches Kukus, a place about 17 kms away from Jaipur, the palatial structure of Le Meridien, Jaipur stands out with its domes and turrets - cream in colour with balconies in pink. It is a new structure sprawling across 13 acres of lush green that drew its inspiration from the royal architectures.

As the car rolls up the porch, a traditional style gateway with landscaped waterbodies on either side greets you. The high point of the hotel’s design is abundance of natural light seeping into all rooms and public areas. The décor in the spacious bedrooms is again a perfect mix of Indian tradition and modern design. The wooden flooring, modern lamps, trendy dressing table are mix-matched with a four-post king size bed, high backed sofas and the large working desks. The dataports and tea and coffee machines, satellite TV, IDD telephone, in-room safe, mini bar make the rooms extremely functional. The villas are sure to sweep you off the feet with a small private garden and an exotic bath area complete with a big bathtub and a walk-in shower.

Positioned as a resort, the property is a perfect place to unwind with the calm, tranquil atmosphere soothing your frayed nerves. A Swedish or Ayurvedic massage coupled with reiki and yoga at the Nirvana spa, managed by Sunita Rai of Ananda fame, is bound to melt away the grime and stress. Then there’s a putting green, a 42-seater movie theatre where films are screened daily, a games room with pool tables, table tennis and chess boards and a state-of-art health and fitness centre, a children’s club, a beauty parlour - enough to complement your and your family’s leisure time. Night owls can swish and jive away at Zion, the trendy nightclub. Entrance is free for hotel guests.

Moreover, the hotel also makes perfect business sense to hold board meetings and small conferences. The ballroom is located on the lower ground floor, with natural daylight and external access directly to the lawns and terrace. A large marble foyer is adjacent, perfect for pre-function cocktails or break during meetings. Also located on the lower ground floor is a small meeting room, ideal for up to 15 pax boardroom style, 30 pax as a breakout room or 40 pax theatre style. The second floor meeting room can seat up to 40 in a U Shape, 30 boardroom style, 55 classroom style, 80 theatre style and 100 for stand-up cocktails. The meeting rooms are fully equipped with AV equipment.

Capri, the multi-cuisine restaurant, located at the lobby level offers buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner or a la carte menu of international and local dishes. Located off the garden and poolside, is Surva Vilas the restaurant that specialises in traditional Indian cuisine. Madira, the lounge bar, located on the first floor overlooking the lobby, has the perfect cosy ambience to relax or have pre-dinner meetings.

Though it’s very tempting to remain cocooned in the lap of luxury, the hotel, however, arranges sightseeing tours to the famous forts. Simply put, the place is perfect for a few days of sabbatical.

Le Meridien, Jaipur
1 RIICO Kukas, Jaipur - 303 101
Tel: (91) (1426) 247500
Fax:(91) (1426) 247507,
For more details log on to www.lemeridien.com/india/jaipur/hotel_in1830.shtml