Rajasthan
SOUTHERN
R AJASTHAN
Rajasthan
Sl EEP iNG
Rajasthan
MT A BU
and plenty of helpful travel information.
Rooms are well used but colourful and clean
and have TV and hot-water showers (from
6am to 10am only). Some have squat toilets;
some sit-down versions. Daily forest walks
and cooking lessons are on offer.oMushkil ̈Aasan ̈ GUESTHOUSE $$
(%235150, 9429409660; [email protected];
s/d/q ₹1100/1200/1800) Cute colonial-style
guesthouse run by a welcoming family and
set in a beautifully maintained, tree-shaded
garden, which receives daily visits from
a passing troop of langurs. Nine homely
rooms include three ‘family rooms’ that can
sleep four people. There are home-cooked
meals, but no internet access.Hotel ̈Samrat ̈ HOTEl $$
(%238453; [email protected]; r from ₹1200;
a) Modest, unassuming hotel with clean,
well turned-out rooms that come with TV,
comfortable beds and views of the polo
ground. No internet.Connaught ̈House ̈ HER iTAGE HOTEl $$$
(%235439; http://www.welcomheritagehotels.com; Ra-
jendra Marg; r incl breakfast ₹6700; ai) A
charmingly stuck-in-time colonial bun-galow that looks like an English cottage,
with lots of sepia photographs, dark wood,
angled ceilings and a gorgeous shady gar-
den. The management are a bit keen to
please, but that does mean you can fish for
discounts.Kishangarh ̈House ̈ HER iTAGE HOTEl $$$
(%238092; http://www.royalkishangarh.com; Rajendra
Marg; cottage/room ₹3000/4500; aW) The
former summer residence of the maharaja
of Kishangarh is now a low-key, but en-
chanting heritage hotel. The rooms in the
main building are big with extravagantly
high ceilings. The cottage rooms at the back
are smaller but cosy. There is a delightful
sun-filled drawing room and the lovely ter-
raced gardens are devotedly tended.Hotel ̈Lake ̈Palace ̈ HOTEl $$$
(%237154; http://savshantihotels.com; r incl break-
fast ₹2100-2700; aW) Spacious and family-
friendly, Hotel Lake Palace has an attractive
lakeside location and a well-tended lawn
with a small children’s play area. Rooms
are simple, uncluttered, bright and clean.
All have air-con and some have semiprivate
lake-view terrace areas. Rooftop restaurant.DELWARA ̈TEMPLES ̈
These remarkable Jain ̈temples (hJains 6am-6pm, non-Jains noon-6pm) are Mt Abu’s
outstanding attraction and feature some of India’s finest temple decorations. They
predate the town of Mt Abu by many centuries and were built when this site was just a
remote mountain fastness. It’s said that the artisans were paid according to the amount
of dust they collected, encouraging them to carve ever more intricately. Whatever their
inducement, there are two temples here in which the marble work is dizzyingly intense.
The older of the two is the Vimal ̈Vasahi, on which work, financed by a Gujarati chief
minister named Vimal, began in 1031. Dedicated to the first tirthankar, Adinath, it took
1500 masons and 1200 labourers 14 years to build, and allegedly cost ₹185.3 million.
Outside the entrance is the House ̈of ̈Elephants, featuring a procession of stone
elephants marching to the temple, some of which were damaged long ago by marauding
Mughals. Inside, a forest of beautifully carved pillars surrounds the central shrine, which
holds an image of Adinath himself.
The Luna ̈Vasahi ̈Temple is dedicated to Neminath, the 22nd tirthankar, and was
built in 1230 by the brothers Tejpal and Vastupal for a mere ₹125.3 million. Like Vimal,
the brothers were both Gujarati government ministers. The marble carving here took
2500 workers 15 years to create, and its most notable feature is its intricacy and delica-
cy, which is so fine that, in places, the marble becomes almost transparent. It’s difficult
to believe that this huge lace-like filigree started life as a solid block of marble.
As at other Jain temples, leather articles (belts as well as shoes), cameras and mobile
phones have to be left at the entrance. Menstruating women are asked not to enter.
Delwara is about 3km north of Mt Abu town centre: you can walk here in less than an
hour, or hop aboard a shared taxi (₹10 per person) from up the street opposite Chacha
Cafe. A taxi all to yourself should be ₹50, or ₹150 round trip with one hour’s waiting.
There are tea and snack stalls by the entrance to the temples.