Owned and run by the same family as the original Spoonbill Hotel down the road, this place has simple but smart rooms, each with a small terrace. The larger rooms are great, with lots of windows. The dining room looks onto the garden and delicious home-cooked meals are available.

Rooms at the Royal are all very clean and fresh, and the rooftop restaurant is cosy, making the whole place feel more like a homestay than a guesthouse. Guests can use a kitchen for self-catering, and have free access to the internet. The ultrakeen management, who live on the premises, do money changing and run a sister operation, Royal Farmhouse, 3.5km from here.

The Falcon may well be the pick of a bunch of hotels all in a row and all owned by the same extended family. It’s a well-kept, snug place to stay, run by the affable Mrs Rajni Singh. There is a range of comfortable, good-sized rooms at different prices, including a family room. The best rooms have balconies.

Managed by eager-to-please brothers, this guesthouse delivers great value, with seven simple, clean and spacious rooms and a pleasant rooftop where you can eat tasty home cooking. It’s on a quiet road not far from Keoladeo park. Nature guiding and free pick-up from the Bharatpur train and bus stations are offered.

This popular, well-run place close to the Keoladeo park entrance may look modest from the road, but out back boasts a lovely garden (with bar) and spacious rooms with balconies. Rooms are clean and comfortable and the restaurant dishes up a good range of tasty veg and nonveg dishes. Packed lunches and guided tours for the park are available.

The Birder’s Inn is a popular, long-standing base for exploring the national park. There is a multicuisine restaurant and a small pool to cool off in. The rooms are airy, spacious and nicely decorated, and are set far back from the road in well-tended gardens. Guides from the hotel are available for Keoladeo.

One of the town’s best choices, this conveniently located hotel has recently come under the patronage of Clarks Inn and is undergoing refurbishment. Rooms are large and well furnished and boast big bathrooms. The multicuisine Bridge restaurant is one of the best in town, and there's a bar. The pool is summer only.

Turn left out of the train station and it’s about 300m down the road.

Rooms at this centrally located hotel vary so much that you may prefer a cheaper 'deluxe' to a pricier 'super deluxe'; inspect a few before deciding. The same management runs three Inderlok restaurants in town, including one here, so the food is good. The attached bar may or may not be an advantage depending on the clientele.

It is found south of the city centre on the road that encircles Moti Dungri.

A respectable option with tidy yet bland rooms typical of the chain. It’s located about 1km south of town on the way to Sariska, so it’s quiet and leafy, though a long way from the action.

Alwar’s renowned restaurant has been going since 1957. In the heart of the old town, it serves fresh, tasty pure-veg food – try the delicious aloo parathas (bread stuffed with spicy potato) and palak paneer (unfermented cheese cubes in spinach puree). The servings are big; half-serves are available. Finish off with the famous kheer (creamy rice pudding).

You have to pay 10% extra to eat in the air-conditioned section – but it is worth it. Turn right out of the bus station, take the first left (towards Hope Circle) and it’s on your left after 100m.

Hotel Tiger Den isn’t fancy – a cement block fronted by a lawn and backed by a rambling garden. It's best feature is that it is very close to the reserve entrance. On the plus side the management is friendly, there is a bar, and the rooms have balconies with a pleasant outlook. Bring a mosquito net or repellent.

Near the reserve entrance is this imposing former hunting lodge of the maharajas of Alwar. There’s a driveway leading from opposite the Forest Reception Office. Rooms have soaring ceilings and soft mattresses, and those in the annexe by the swimming pool have good views. The Fusion Restaurant here serves expensive Indian and Continental dishes, as well as hosting a buffet (lunch/dinner ₹750/900).

This isolated place about 3km west of the bus stop at Thanagazi village has free pick-up on offer. Rooms are set in stone-and-tile cottages and have big beds and windowed alcoves. It’s a tranquil, if overpriced, place to stay. Staff can arrange 4WDs and guides to the reserve.

Set in a 140-year-old haveli, this welcoming city-centre oasis is arguably Ajmer’s best midrange choice. The high-ceilinged rooms are spacious (some are almost suites), simply decorated, air-cooled and set well back from the busy road. There’s a pleasant, grassy courtyard and the hotel is infused with a family atmosphere, complete with home-cooked meals.

This guesthouse provides an excellent opportunity to stay with a delightful family and receive down-to-earth hospitality. There are three heritage-style doubles and an older-style, spacious and comfortable self-contained suite with private courtyard. The host is also an occasional travel photographer.

This modern place, on the shores of Ana Sagar about 3km from the centre, is rather out of the way, but has attractive and comfortable rooms, some with views and balconies. The hotel has a shady garden, a bar and a good restaurant, the Sheesh Mahal.

Handy if you’re waiting for a train (it’s opposite the station), this simple, open-to-the-street eatery cooks up cheap veg and nonveg fare, with specialities such as chicken Mughlai and rumali roti (huge paper-thin chapati).

This upmarket restaurant, located in Ajmer’s top hotel, the Mansingh Palace, offers excellent Indian, Continental and Chinese dishes, as well as a buffet when the tour groups pass through. The service is slick, the air-con is on the chilly side, and the food is very good; it also boasts a bar.

This welcoming budget hotel is nestled in the quiet laneways north of Sadar Bazaar. It’s run by a friendly father-and-son team who can’t do too much for their appreciative guests. The rooms are variable in size, colourful and spotless, and the beds are comfortable. The rooftop is a pleasant retreat for meals or just relaxing with a book.

Tulsi Palace is a great budget choice with a variety of bright and airy rooms around a central courtyard. The attached Little Prince Cafe on the 1st-floor verandah serves Continental breakfasts and Indian lunch and dinner, and boasts prime street-life views. The friendly staff will help with your transport needs.

This place is indeed white, with spotless rooms. Some are decidedly on the small side, but the nicest are generous and have balconies to boot. There is good traveller fare and green views from the plant-filled rooftop restaurant. It’s efficiently run by a woman and her two sons. Yoga is offered, as is a welcome brew of mango tea for every guest.

A simple budget place with keen young management and a large tree sprouting up from the courtyard to shade the rooftop terrace. Rooms are basic fan-cooled affairs that open out to a balcony restaurant good for spying on the street below.

This rambling building occupies one of the best spots in Pushkar, on the upper levels adjacent to Gandhi Ghat. It features aesthetic blue-washed simplicity: bare-bones rooms with unsurpassed views of the holy lake. The rooftop terrace (with restaurant) has sublime vistas, but respect for bathing pilgrims is paramount for intended guests.

Room 1 is the most romantic place to wake up: it’s surrounded on three sides by the lake. Rooms 9, 12, 13 and 16 are also good.

Housed in a lovely old blue-washed building with lawns and gardens, this guesthouse has ashram austerity and genuinely friendly management. Some of the cheaper rooms are cell-like, though all share the simple, authentic ambience. The outdoor kitchen and garden seating are a good setting for a relaxing meal of hearty vegetarian fare, but watch out for passing troops of monkeys.

Perched on the highest point in Pushkar overlooking an old temple, this welcoming hotel has excellent views of the town and lake (and lots of stairs). The rooms vary widely; the best (106, 108, 109) have lovely balconies, stained-glass windows and are good value, but the smaller rooms can be dingy. There’s a dizzyingly magical rooftop terrace.

Located close to the Brahma Temple, this hotel has a lovely enclosed garden with a fabulous pool (₹100 for nonguests), children’s playground and pet tortoises. The rooms, crammed with carved wooden furniture, are clean and comfortable but small.

Enter this lovingly converted haveli through heavy wooden doors into an incense-perfumed courtyard, with a marble fountain in the centre and surrounded by tumbling vines. There are just a dozen individually decorated rooms situated on three levels, all with traditionally crafted furniture and comfortable beds. Rooms vary in size, from the downstairs budget rooms to the spacious Asana suite.

On the roof you’ll find the excellent Sixth Sense restaurant, as well as sofas and swing chairs for relaxing with a book. Early booking (two-night minimum, no credit cards) is recommended.

Boasting a vast range of rooms, from budget digs to suites, you are sure to find a room and price that suits. Rooms get bigger and lighter, with more windows, the more you spend. Some rooms have balconies, while all have cable TV. There is a multicuisine restaurant with views on the rooftop.

This beautifully designed B&B by the folks at Inn Seventh Heaven has five very private doubles a short walk from town. The rooms are straight out of a design magazine and will have you swooning (and extending your booking). You can dine here at the cosy rooftop restaurant or head to the Sixth Sense restaurant at Inn Seventh Heaven.

Once belonging to the maharaja of Kishangarh, the top-end Hotel Pushkar Palace boasts a romantic lakeside setting. The rooms have carved wooden furniture and beds, and all rooms above the ground floor, and all the suites, look directly out onto the lake: no hotel in Pushkar has better views. A pleasant outdoor dining area overlooks the lake.

The arrival of Ananta, an (almost) five-star resort sprawling on 3.5 hectares in the rugged ranges 4km from Pushkar, heralds a new era in pilgrimages. Lucky pilgrims zip from reception to the Balinese-style cottages on golf buggies. Rooms are spacious and fully appointed, but most guests will gravitate to the luscious pool, spa, games room, restaurant, lounge or bar.

This friendly place is one of the better of the few ultracheapies along Ranthambhore Rd. There are just six simple, unadorned rooms (get one with an outside window; only a couple have air-conditioning), and a basic rooftop restaurant. The staff will help with safari bookings, but be sure to ask how much they are charging for the service.

A very professional place that caters to tour groups but can still provide great service to independent travellers. It has immaculate, well-appointed rooms (think marble floors, flat-screen TVs etc), which would rate as suites in most hotels. The central garden with an inviting pool is a virtual oasis, and there’s a pampering spa next to the restaurant.

A reasonable midrange option, with spacious doubles and 'cottages' (larger rooms with bigger bathrooms) facing a garden and small pool. The management is adept at organising safaris, wake-up calls and early breakfasts before the morning safari. As per the other hotels, a commission is added for this service, so ask for a breakdown of the costs.

Ankur Resort is good at organising safaris, wake-up calls and early breakfasts for tiger spotters. Standard rooms are fairly unadorned, but clean and comfortable with TVs. The cottages boast better beds, a fridge and settee, and overlook the surrounding gardens and pool.

Set in 9 hectares of organic farmland and reforested land, this splendid ecolodge was created by the Singh Rathore family, the driving force behind the conservation of tigers at Ranthambhore. The accommodation ranges from colonial-style bungalow rooms to luxury tents and sumptuous stone cottages. Privacy is guaranteed – you can even bathe under the stars.

In addition to jungle safaris, Khem Villas runs a river safari (₹5000 for two people) on the Chambal river where you can see gharial and mugger crocodiles plus numerous bird species.