We visited Fort Kumbhalgarh, Rajasthan in September 2013. Drive is enchanting. Rains had fallen, so it was all the more beautiful.
Our stay was at Club Mahindra. The reception was warm and the room allotted was good. However, the room service was a great disappointment. Same goes with the restaurant – the buffet dinner which we had was not up to the mark. In the evening we walked around the resort and watched the puppet show. The layout is in the Rajputana style. There were a lot of activities offered, which could engage a family.
Another thing that disappointed me was that no one was aware about the environmental initiatives taken by the resort even though the certificate was displayed prominently in the reception and other common areas.
Next day the visit to the Fort was enthralling. We had asked a resort personnel for directions to the Fort, and he had said, “Take left from the tri-roads”. We started and were set wondering where were the trisecting roads as there were many twists and turns before reaching it. The long wall of the fort made me wonder, how it had been constructed, as even now the climb looked strenuous. The temples located in the fort are beautiful and so is the palace at the top. The length and width of the outer wall is amazing. The history is most interesting as described in the light and sound show in the evening.
Lunch we had at “The Dera” resort located nearby. The open restaurant was very welcoming with a beautiful view of the natural greenery around. The food was simple and good. The was a touch of diffusing into the environment in the resort. One interesting feature that I noticed was that empty colored glass bottles were used for natural lighting in the washrooms.
Evening, we went around the activities centre – played badminton, saw the pottery section, gift centre and the gymnasium. But people not knowing about the environmental initiatives, even in the marketing and reception areas, was a sore disappointment to me.
Next day we started our return journey visiting the Shreenathji, Eklingji and Delwara Jain temples en route. The architecture of the Eklingji temple and Delwara temples is very intricate and would like to spend some more time understanding it the next time hopefully.
The care which must be taken is to pack all the groceries, if you plan to cook at the resort at Kumbhalgarh as there are no stores at Kumbhalgarh.
A powerful but peaceful fort surrounded by natural greens, is the memories that I carry of the Fort.
neerview 
an environmentalist view 🙂