Diwali vacation calls for some travel and this time we decided to go with a mini vacy to Jodhpur. I selected the Gateway Hotel at Jodhpur for our 3 night stay. In the city of the Umaid Bhavan, all other smaller hotels do seem insignificant, but then we were looking at exploring the city and staying in a nice value for money hotel. The Gateway Hotels, part of the Taj group are really great value for money options.
The Property
The hotel is located about 10 km outside the main city, however having said that, Jodhpur is a really small place and we took only 30 mins to reach there from the airport. It is also only about 20 minutes drive from all the main sites so for a city dweller used to sitting and stewing in traffic for hours – this seemed really great.
The hotel grounds are huge and very well spread out. The rooms overlook either the outside lawns or the inner courtyard. Ours was just near the lobby facing the inner courtyard and I really liked the location.
The swimming pool was huge and the surrounding grounds had peacocks roaming around – a novelty to see these majestic birds outside captivity. I also found the shops in the lobby to have a great selection of materials, stoles and bags. In fact some of the stuff was cheaper than the outside stores.
There was a spa and a salon, though I didn’t use these facilities, I did see a lot of foreign tourist using the spa.
The Room
The room was a little dated and maybe in need of a re-haul – but was overall spotlessly clean. Our room had a view of the inner courtyard and it was great to see the birds flying around, however as we were on the ground level we had to keep the drapes shut in the evenings else the people walking around could see right into the room.
The bathroom had a small sized tub and a shower over the bath tub. The toiletries were all Biotique as are in all the Gateway hotels. I did feel that overall the rooms could use an update.
Restaurant
We only ate at the GAD, Gateway All Day Dining, the coffee shop. The food was excellent and I especially loved the Chef’s special preparations of Rajasthani delicacies like “Lal Maas”, or red mutton. As always, the staff was exceptional and the service par excellence.
Overall Thoughts
The Gateway is a basic hotel, with all necessary amenities and exceptional service standards. It is great if you are planning on doing a lot of sight seeing in the day. The place is extremely peaceful and great to retire to after a long day of walking around monuments.
Ratings
Location 3/5
Rooms 3.5/5
Service 5/5
Value for money 5/5