“A Royal Retreat.”
4 of 5 stars Reviewed yesterday NEW
We were looking for a place to stop for the night en route to Pune from Goa. It had to be near Kolhapur, as we wanted to visit the famous Mahalaxmi Temple, but we did not want to stay in the city itself. Finally we found this imposing property at the top of a wooded hill near the Jyotiba Temple, about 20 km from Kolhapur. It is just a stone’s throw from the Jyotiba Temple and ST bus stand.
As you enter the gates you get the feeling that you are entering a Rajasthani Maharaja’s Palace. There is a board at the gates saying that this is the ‘Jyotiba Royale’ operated by the state owned MTDC. The building structure is very imposing, and there is huge compound with some flowering shrubs and garden plants and trees and greenery all around. And the views from the grounds are fantastic, to say the least. Being at the top of a hill, also known as the ‘Jyotiba Dongar’, you get a panoramic view of the hills and valleys around Kolhapur.
Being a week day there were plenty of rooms available, with room tariffs ranging between Rs.850 to Rs.1200 (taxes extra). All the rooms were non ac, with basic amenities, but very neat and clean. We selected a deluxe corner room on the first floor which had two balconies looking out in two directions. At night we sat outside in the balcony and enjoyed the fabulous views of the valley with twinkling lights, and stars in the sky. There was a cool breeze blowing, even though it had been a hot summer day.
They have a restaurant where we had our lunch and dinner. It is a nice restaurant with an open-air sit out. You get the basic Indian vegetable curries, chapattis, dal, rice, soft drinks and a few sweet dishes. We ordered the veg thali for lunch, which was served in a jiffy. We also tried their ‘Sol Kadi’ drink which was quite good. We also had our dinner and next day’s breakfast here, since there are not many other restaurants nearby. They served a good ‘poha’ for breakfast.
When there was a power outage in the afternoon we had to open our balcony doors for ventilation. There is no generator backup. The furniture and bathroom fittings are in need of some maintenance. However, the location of this hotel with its fabulous views, and the peace, greenery and serenity all around, more than made up for the lack of some of the amenities.
Jyotiba Royale would be a place worth visiting during the monsoon and winter months.
Room Tip: First floor rooms have better views, corner rooms are slightly bigger.
See more room tips
Stayed March 2015, travelled as a couple
4 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
4 of 5 stars Service
Ask EkMusafir about Jyotiba Royale
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
No comments:
Post a Comment