Location
The Sariska Retreat is located near the famous tiger reserve of Sariska in Rajasthan. Specifically, the resort is located in the village of Thanagazi in the Alwar district. It is approximately 10 km from the entry gate of the tiger reserve, making it convenient for tourists.
Why did I choose this hotel?
I recently had the opportunity to visit Sariska with my family. I had absolutely no idea as to what to expect since it was my first trip to this place. After going through multiple videos on YouTube and reading reviews on hotel sites, I concluded that one can either stay close to Alwar City with a wide variety of hotels catering to all budgets or stay close to the reserve in above-budget category resorts. The Sariska main gate (from where the safari starts) is close to 30 km from the city.
Both had their positives and negatives, and it boils down to one’s preference. Either I stay close to the city and contend with its hustle and also its proximity to various places of interest, or I choose to stay away marooned and only visit the reserve. I chose the latter.
The reason for my choice of Sariska Retreat was my purpose of visit. I was not too keen to make this trip too hectic for myself and my family so the only place of visit on the agenda was the tiger reserve. Once my purpose was clear, it made sense to stay as close as possible to the reserve.
Just to be clear, I paid for the room from my pocket. So, this review is a true account of my experience.
Read on
My likes ☺️
Location: The first thing that strikes you as soon as you enter the Sariska Retreat or even before that is its location. If you like solitude, then you will love it here. There is no distraction or the usual city noise pollution here, it is just you and nature. There are green fields just behind the resort and the beautiful Aravalis. You can also find many butterflies in the lawn area and can constantly see and hear birds chirping. Just on this point, this place is worth staying. But then, if you like the hustle of city life, avoid coming here.
Proximity to the reserve: The Sariska Retreat is approximately 10 km away from the main Sariska gate which takes around 20-25 minutes to reach. This is a major plus point if you are in this area just for the safari. The roads outside are in bad shape so it is a big pain to reach to the entry gate if you stay at a distance. We had initially thought of staying in Alwar City but were glad that we did not. But on the flip side, if you want to visit other areas of interest around Alwar, you will have to travel longer distances to and from, so decide wisely.
Room ambience: We stayed in their premium room type which was an independent cottage-type setup with a balcony in front. There were also other options like tent-style accommodations. The room itself was a decently sized one with a large enough bed. The main living area also has other things like a TV, two single-seater sofas along with a table, two side tables with drawers and one mini fridge. There is a closet area with a large enough almirah good enough to accommodate clothes and other stuff. The bathroom is quite spacious and clean as well. There are a couple of chairs with a table neatly laid out on the balcony if you want to spend time sitting there. The room is also airconditioned if you happen to be here in summer.
Other facilities: There are a few nice things worth mentioning here. There is a big enough parking space that can easily accommodate as many vehicles as there are rooms. There is a decently clean swimming pool if you want to have some fun in the water. The pool is neatly divided into one for kids and one deep enough for adults. There is a games room which has a table tennis table, carroms and other board games like Ludo etc. There were also badminton racquets and cricket bats lying around if you are a fan of those. Just ahead of this resort, there is a farmhouse through which you can take a small hike leading to the foothills.
My dislikes 😞
Approach roads: The roads leading to the resort are in terrible condition. Overall, the roads near the reserve are in bad shape but specifically, the ones near the resort are very bad. The final 500 metres to the resort was very narrow filled with loose sand and barely fit one vehicle. If someone comes from the opposite, then one has to back off. This place in general is advisable for those who are travelling in their vehicle or a taxi. There is no way to reach this place, if you do not have personal transport.
Staff and service: The resort can do a lot better in its overall service standards. They employ a lot of local women in the facility during the daytime, which is a good thing, but it pained me to see them being used to carrying heavy bags of guests. The order for food in the dining room also took longer than expected even at times when there were fewer people around. On one of the nights, there was a large group from outside having a party, so all their efforts were towards that group and the guests had a longer wait time for everything.
Food: The food available is just above average and nothing to rave about. I could see a lot of items on the menu card, but the quality of the preparations was not too great. The spice and oil used were a bit on the higher side for us to be comfortable. The breakfast buffet also had a nice spread but nothing out of the ordinary. Overall, I was not too disappointed but not wowed as well.
Facilities (or the lack of it): There is not much to do in this resort, though I did not mind it that much but there were people complaining about the lack of activities. I mentioned the games room but then found a lot of things like badminton racquets and board games in bad shape. The pool was fine but there were used towels lying around. I am just trying to nitpick and provide you with a holistic picture, but these may not matter to all.
Conclusion
If you were looking for a point related to cost, then I knowingly omitted it. The resort can be termed a medium-budget one, mostly available for around ₹ 6,000. Everyone has their own budget so it is a subjective one, if the other relevant points mentioned above appeal to you then you can make a decision accordingly.
To conclude I would recommend the Sariska Retreat to those who seek solitude, choose to be amongst nature and specifically come with a purpose of safari. For others, choose a hotel near Alwar City and you should be sorted.
Overall Rating: 4/5