Rooms are basic, but are clean enough for one night and come with TVs and small bathrooms. Non-AC rooms open onto shared terraces overlooking the bustling (and noisy) street below; air-con rooms are interior, without natural light. Checkout is 24 hours.

Everything is good and clean at this 20-room hotel, especially the sparkling, recently renovated 'superior' rooms with tea/coffee equipment and mini-fridges. One of Jabalpur's better eateries, Olives Restaurant ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; Hotel Rahul, Naudra Bridge; mains ₹170-370; h7am-10pm), is in the basement.

One of MP Tourism's nicest properties, the Kalchuri is located in the quieter Civil Lines area just south of the train station. Rooms are large and modern in soothing earth tones with TVs, kettles and spacious bathrooms.

There’s a decent restaurant (mains ₹240 to ₹420) and a spacious pub (beer from ₹250). Anecdote: your absent-minded author left his phone charging in the hotel's lobby, and they came and found him on the train station platform to return it to him!

The best nonveg in Russel Chowk is better than it looks from outside (the dining room is upstairs and air-conditioned), and isn't afraid to spice things up in its fiery gravies (mutton curry, kadhai chicken).

This higher-end Indian chain, the domain of celeb chef Sanjeev Kapoor, might not be top choice in Delhi, but it’s a gastro-godsend in Jabalpur. Creative takes on gourmet Indian fare rule here and everything is a flavour bomb. The coconut saffron shorba soup is a fine way to start and you're spoilt for choice among the chicken and lamb dishes and veg and nonveg curries to follow.

Rooms are very basic and bare but decently clean, with verandahs, and set around a patch of shady ground (with swings!). They have fans or coolers but no heaters for winter.

This stylish 11-room lodge sits under the nose of the surrounding hills in a peaceful spot 3.5km northwest of downtown Tala. The rustic-chic cottages (earthy tones with splashes of brighter colours and bits of folk art) provide considerable comfort, including four-poster beds and rain-style showers. A sustainability mantra permeates the property and the well-kept gardens still have a natural feel.

Undoubtedly the most special beds in Bandhavgarh, these five massive tree houses clock in at 625 sq metres each and are dismantled and reassembled each season 5m off the ground in all their luxurious glory. Beautiful four-poster beds and spacious porches frame the jungle surrounds with poetic aplomb and privacy is paramount.

An excellent choice with a lively atmosphere and slick safari operation (₹5500 per jeep door-to-door with guide from hotel and tea service on return). The adobe-toned rooms verge on jungle kitsch but are pleasant and comfortable, and set in cottages around a shady bamboo grove.

The buffet meals (mainly Indian) are satisfying and staff are friendly and helpful.

This welcoming cafe run by an extroverted escapee from the marketing business in Ahmedabad does fabulous pure-veg breakfast/brunches (bookings the previous day advisable) that are the perfect finish to a morning safari. Real filter coffee or homemade lemonade, fresh and dried fruit, porridge and lentil pancakes with salad or mashed potatoes typically find their way to your plate.

Indian and Western snacks and light dishes are available all day – and Malaya is also an excellent crafts and souvenir shop: owner Neelam spends two months every year driving around India picking up some rare and individual artisan products.

Friendly chef and owner Amal Jana is a one-man show at this glorified dhaba (eatery serving snacks and basic meals), where he whips up honest, down-home, extremely tasty thalis – he reckons it’s due to the mustard oil – that can be kicked up a notch with a side of his spicy tomato chutney. Also omelettes, Chinese and limited Continental.

Friendly young staff help give this place a relaxed, informal atmosphere and the rooms, in wooden stilt houses, are plain but pleasing, with forest-view bathrooms and verandahs. The in-house naturalist leads nature walks (₹100) and you can have a desi (ghee) massage while you're here too.

This government-run property, 2km from Turia gate, wins in both the budget category (considering prices include all meals, the two well-kept, six-bed dorms are fine value) and family category (it boasts the best playground in Turia plus indoor games). The rooms, in cottages around dutifully manicured gardens, aren’t bad either and all have air-con.

Taj Hotels has luxury properties at all of MP’s major tiger parks, but this discerning choice is the most jungly and worth the splurge. Twelve massive bamboo, sal and concrete cottages are hidden away amid the forest and feature exquisite artwork and furniture, indoor/outdoor showers and massive elevated machans (open-air patios).

The common areas follow suit, pleasantly offset by some whimsical art and artefacts. Food is expectedly divine. It's 1km from Turia gate and reservations are required. Rates vary wildly with season and demand; B&B and jungle plan (full board plus safaris) are also available.

Mowgli's, 2.5km from Turia gate, has 10 large, comfortable, circular cottages in verdant gardens, all with bamboo furnishings and big bathrooms. The welcoming owners are real wildlife enthusiasts, with plenty of Pench information, and sometimes accompany guests on safaris.

Good meals too, in a bamboo-lined dining room.

Even the cheap, squat-toilet, non-AC rooms are big and decently furnished at this well-worn, good-value hotel (wi-fi throughout) while the in-house Indian restaurant (mains ₹120 to ₹270) is one of the best in town and there’s a very blue bar to boot. Management can be extra helpful and there’s 24-hour checkout. It’s opposite Sanjay Market.

The best place in town: large, clean, white-and-lime-green rooms are equipped with wi-fi and good toiletry kits, and the in-house pure-veg Vaishnavi (Devansh Residency, Collectorate Rd; mains ₹140-250; h7.30am-10.30pm; W) restaurant is also the best in town.