Sometime in May we decided to visit Haridwar for a short trip. It took us around four and a half hours from Delhi to land up in a hotel that gorgeously embraces the sanctified city's vibe with luxury. Pilibhit House is a century-old living heirloom by the Ganges that belongs to Pilibhit’s first family since 1913.
The house has been restored and now is a part of the IHCL SeleQtions with 35 artfully reinstated suites and rooms that wrap around a gorgeous courtyard with the balconies offering panoramic views of the Shivalik mountains and the Ganges flowing by. The hotel is also home to the city's largest private bathing ghat where folks can be a part of the evening Ganga Aarti, and yoga organised by the hotel itself.
On our three-day, two-night trip, it will be an understatement to say that the trip wasn't full of fun, luxury, and serenity. Be it sitting in the hotel's library with the view of the river flowing, or off-roading in a jeep through a forested area, my stay at Pilibhit House was one that I'll remember for a long long time.
On day one, after the welcome ceremony, we were immediately checked in to our suite that was by the pool with a stunning view of the river. Post that, we were taken on a tour of the property including the Jiva Spa, where one can get the best of the best Ayurvedic treatments all in the hotel itself.
What we went for mainly, and were most excited was the Millets menu that has been curated by Chef Mani Mohan Pathak to celebrate this year as the International Year Of The Millets. Lunch boasted an authentic Gharwali thaali that was wholesome, made up of the finest regional ingredients and rare lost spices along with of course—millets.
Other than this, the in-house restaurant at the hotel dubbed as The Dining Room, where we dined at for all our meals has wide and delectable range of vegetarian Indian and International cuisine along with rare recipes from the royal ancestral family.
In the evening of day one, we went off-roading in a jeep for a picnic where we drove away from the city for an hour and a half through the forest, passing the famous Rajaji Tiger Reserve. Our destination was the gorgeous dried up river bed surrounded by the mountains. All of this was organised by the hotel itself along with a cute picnic and guide. Later we witnessed the mesmerising aarti at the hotel's private ghat.
The next day, the hotel organised a visit to Moti Bazaar, where we walked around the market, shopped for trinkets authentic to Haridwar and gobbled up the famous Jain Kaanji Vada and Prakash Lassi. The day ended with the evening aarti, a palm reading session at the hotel, and a dip in the nominally sized infinity pool.
All in all, my stay at Pilibhit house was memorable, steeped in luxury, and reflected volumes when it came to the care, thought, and hospitality by the staff—that were super attentive, helpful, and ensured that we had a gala time.
