Ajmer, Rajasthan, India

This atmospheric heritage property is one of our favourite stopovers between Jaipur and Jodhpur, and very much a destination in its own right. Set on the edge of a rural village, the old Rajput palace overlooks a huddle of cuboid, whitewashed houses on one side, and a patchwork of green mustard and cumin fields on the other. Owner Devart Sinh-ji is the 16^th incumbent, and a proud, hands-on host. Among his signature experiences are a bullock-cart tour of Barli village and birding walk around the adjacent water tank. Furnished in traditional style, the rooms in the converted royal apartments are spacious and full of atmosphere, with stained-glass windows casting splashes of colour across the marble floors and sculpted pillars. For whiling away those hot afternoons there’s a kidney-shaped pool on the roof of one of the corner bastions!