Jaisalmer is the city in the desert, where there is a huge fort (okay, that’s kinda standard for a town in Rajasthan), some interesting historic buildings (Havelis) and where people spring board into the Rajasthani Desert to take a camel safari. Also, there are a surprising number of shops dubbed ‘English Beer and Wine Shop, which I must admit I found pretty weird.
I stayed in the ‘Golden House’, a hotel that was sort of…. Well it wasn’t on the outskirts of town, but likewise it still was a little way to the fort and the centre where most of the things to see were. The area it was in was a near a hospital (always handy lol) and there was a bit of building going on. I suspect old buildings had been knocked down rather than it was a new area, but I could well be wrong on that score.
Location location…. but this is what the block opposite the Golden House looked like!
So locationwise, it wasn’t the best. There was a vegetarian restaurant next door which seemed to be affiliated with the hotel – I got my breakfast included in the room price there, and that was decent enough. However, that was pretty much it. Not much in the way of choice around the Golden House for eating or indeed much at all.
The manager was very friendly. I booked this one through my old favourite, hotels.com. I booked two nights out of three, leaving the middle one without accommodation as I was planning to do my desert safari that night, which is what happened. The manager kindly booked it for me. Surprisingly, it was on $30AUD. Which was great and it was exactly the sort of tour I wanted sleeping under the stars. But the hotel price was definitely in the mid-range category. I paid around $65AUD for a night, which I think was overs.
Especially as I met people at another hotel raving about their $7 a night room.
Still, the room was comfortable enough, and it was very spacious. Fan and air-conditioner, which I like to swap between as the need requires. The bed was huge and comfortable. There was also a television. The bathroom was very large, western toilet and simple shower. The hot water took some adjusting to get right. Bucket provided too, I liked to use it to do some washing. Generally these days I send shirts and trousers out for a proper wash, smaller things I was in my room if I can. Laundry service was slow, but reasonably priced.
The clientele was, apart from me, all Indians, so it’s not the greatest place to meet other foreigners if that’s what you like to do. The owner will sort you out for a variety of things though. Many rooms booked for some students from Delhi on a big trip to Jaisalmer (uni students).
All in all I was happy with my stay here. Location and price were the issues, but not major stumbling blocks.
It looks nice! Except for the neighbourhood – if I recall correctly my hotel in Jaisalmer (Shahi Palace) had a similar block across the road. And yes – all those English Beer Houses – I had forgotten about them!!!