Bhopal is not a city that turns up on many itineraries, but this hotel is essentially a strong argument against that. Jehan Numa Palace, perched on Shamla Hills above the Upper Lake, surrounded by bougainvillea and champa, looks like something a confident Victorian-era general had built to his own specifications. (That’s exactly what happened.)

General Obaidullah Khan commissioned the palace in 1890, and the brief appears to have been: spare nothing. The result is a confident architectural conversation between British Colonial, Italian Renaissance, and classical Greek influences that by all rights shouldn't be coherent. Yet it is: five acres of manicured gardens frame the main building, where wide verandahs, period furniture and vintage photographs conspire to make you feel like a guest at a house party that has been going on, with great success, for over a century. 

Rooms run from Palace and Imperial categories. The high ceilings and antique furniture look over the lake. Up top,  you’ve got the individualistic Regal Rooms and Suites – the Palace Suite is especially worth looking out for. 

Dining is taken seriously here, which is refreshing in a heritage hotel where the food can sometimes feel like the least considered part of the offering. Four restaurants and two bars. The celebrated Under the Mango Tree serves Mughlai and North Indian cooking in a garden setting that guests return to specifically, some driving in just for dinner. The kitchen leans heavily on home-cooked flavours and farm-fresh ingredients, and the nawabi culinary legacy of Bhopal gives the cooking a regional distinctiveness. The Bhopal Bakehouse is the group's patisserie operation, and it’s a sweet reward.

Days are dotted delightedly: storytelling sessions on the legacy of the Begums of Bhopal, curated heritage walks through a city that has a great deal more history than most visitors suspect, and bespoke cultural experiences that make the surrounding city feel navigable. The Chakra Spa, pool, steam room and fitness centre handle the more conventional wellness requirements. For weddings and celebrations, five banquet halls of varying scales make this a natural choice for anyone who has looked at a generic hotel ballroom and felt something wither inside them.

The lakes, the old city, the tribal art museum at Bharat Bhavan, the proximity to Sanchi and Bhimbetka… this is Central India doing what Central India does when nobody's looking, which is being extraordinary.

Getting there: Raja Bhoj Airport is around 12km from the hotel, a 25-minute drive.