Take a close look at the durbar miniatures you will find. The king seated at the head of a meeting, surrounded, in order, by his nobles. In another miniature, you will see a nobleman watching a performance by nautch girls. In yet others, you will see heads of state discussing events. There might be somewhere an aristocrat is in a meeting with a religious personage. These are all instances from the past, of the awareness of the importance of meetings and discussion’s of the atmosphere in which such meetings need to be conducted, and of the proper hierarchy and discipline in which they happen.

No wonder today, at the end of a millennium and the start of a new one, Rajasthan is able to take its rightful place as a convention centre per excellence.

Not only are there meeting places in the state, the added attraction is that there are also sightseeing possibilities, lavish entertainment and food, and a fitting manner in which everything can be accomplished. Whether they are meetings with heads of state or industry, whether annual general meetings or seminars, academic discussions or sales meet, there is a place for everything and everyone in Rajasthan.

Consider the communication links: Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur are connected by air; while all other important destinations are also connected by convenient rail and road connections. A tourist infrastructure is able to provide everything from ceremonial welcomes to cars, buses and other forms of transportation between the venue and the hotels. The hotels are large, and more than luxurious, several being unique and unmatched for their facilities elsewhere in the world. Trained chefs can serve up a sumptuous feast, and can also provide gourmet meals from the Continent. AS for the hospitality and entertainment after-hours are rarely as delightful elsewhere.

AN IDEAL CONFERENCES AND CONVENTION VENUES ARE JAIPUR, JODHPUR AND UDAIPUR

JAIPUR

                                          Naturally, it is the state capital, where the facilities are the most advance. Till recently, the hotels provided the only venues in the city, and these were and continue to be respectable, both within the city, or just outside, as in the case of venues such as Samode Palace. However, with the addition of the B.M Birla Institute in the heart of the city, Jaipur has geared itself for even international meets.

The Institute is a sprawling building with large parking and entrance areas. Inside, there are extensive pre-function areas, ideal for registration, as well as auditorium(1300 seating capacity), exhibition areas, and number of smaller conference and board rooms. At several events, the auditorium has been used for inaugural functions, or for valedictory ones while deliberations have been conducted at smaller venues, either at the institute, or at the conference halls in the city hotels.

Among the various city hotels to offer conference facilities are Rajputana Sheraton, Jai Mahal Palace, and Rambagh, while a number of other hotels do have smaller venues.

As is usual, lunch is a buffet event, but dinners are often formal, or theme based, and a favourite harks back to the city’s royal past. Guest are dressed, with a little imagination (turbans for men, veils for women) as royal personages, and after a ceremonial greeting that includes arti and tilak, and garlanding, they are led to the venue where they can sit cross-legged before the low table on which their meal, a silver platter service, will be served. But first there are dancers… Alternate themes can be a martial call to a battle, or celebration of a festival the choices are seemingly endless.

For spouses accompanying their husbands (and wives), it isn’t just the sightseeing that is exciting, for there is a world of shopping too-so much of it, in fact, that one could actually have a conference on just that alone.

VENUES AROUND JAIPUR

There are number of venues around Jaipur where one can hold discussion groups from a large conference, or of course, separate, smaller meetings. Most of these are heritage hotels and resorts

SAMODE PALACE

A wonderful, old fortified palace that is lavishly painted. It has a Durbar Hall where once the feudal chiefs would meet for important discussions, and where you can meet for your deliberations, of no less import

BHARATPUR

The bird sanctuary is disturbed only by birdsong, but there is no reason its old palace cannot be a fitting venue for your seminar or conference.

SARISKA

A hunting preserve, with a royal lodge, perfect for a seminar or a sales meeting cum incentive.

SHEKHAWATI

The region of the painted townships is as charming for a holiday as it is for discussing business- after all, it is home to India’s greatest business families! Among the places where you could meet are Castle Mandawa in Mandawa, Mukundgarh, and Roop Niwas Palace in Nawalgarh.

JODHPUR

The second largest city in Rajasthan, Jodhpur has a number of small venues where delegates can meet, but its most important converging point, and venue for any business of importance, is likely to be Welcome-group Umaid Bhawan Palace.

No surprise that there are a large number of meeting rooms here: when built, it was the largest private residence in the world. Even today, no other building can rival that status, though the royal family only occupies one wing of the palace. Its magnificent size was the result of fifteen years of construction, for which a railway line had to be laid to ferry the materials required to the site. Its design is distinctly European, and its look is art deco, a theme carried through in its furniture and fittings, all of which are original.

Delegates can meet and stay at the palace. The in-house team also lays on lavish entertainment, whether within the palace, on its extensive lawns, or on special request for incentives, at the Mehrangarh Fort, which perches above the city for one of life’s most memorable occasions.

VENUES AROUND JODHPUR

There are number of venues around Jodhpur where one can hold discussion groups from a large conference, or of course, separate, smaller meetings. Most of these are heritage hotels and resorts

KHIMSAR

Delegates coming to Jodhpur can drive to the Royal Castle at Khimsar, spend the night there, continue to Bikaner, another royal city, and either return directly from there to Delhi, or via the scenic route through the Shekhawati regions with its painted townships that are celebrated for the vast gallery of open-air frescos. Bikaner’s palace too offers accommodation, and in Shekhawati, heritage hotels are very easy to come by.

JAISALMER

Delegates can also opt for a visit to Jaisalmer, the third desert citadel, an isolated capital, where the architecture is stunning and the atmosphere deliciously medieval. There is accommodation in a palace, or in a number of modern hotels.

Other heritage locations, far closer at hand, are at Rohet, Luni, Balsamand, and Sardarsamand.

UDAIPUR

This is truly a dream city- there is no other way to describe the fantasy of its floating lake palaces, its solid City Palace with its collection of miniatures, and its many gardens and temples, all of them delicately embellished with architectural features characteristic of the region.

It was not unusual for the maharanas to call counsel meetings of their various feudal and suzerain states. No wonder the arranging of conferences is a simple task. For these, no better venue exists than the palaces in or on the banks of its lakes: Lake Palace, Shiv Niwas, Laxmi Vilas, among others.

The professionally arranged meetings may not run to huge numbers, but the entertainment is truly spectacular, making the hours after the meetings the best- where else can you be entertained in a palace that takes up an entire island?

VENUES AROUND UDAIPUR

There are number of venues around Udaipur where one can hold discussion groups from a large conference, or of course, separate, smaller meetings. Most of these are heritage hotels and resorts

SISODIA FORTS

There can be no better way to get in touch with your history lessons than visits to two of the Sisodia forts, the most chivalrous in India.

Kumbhalgarh and Chittaurgarh are both hilltop forts with large battlements. To spend time here, it is best to stay at any of a number of charming heritage properties in the region.

RANAKPUR

A visit to Ranakpur too is essential- this group of Jain temples must have the most profuse and detailed carvings of any set of buildings in the world. Exquisitely finished, accommodation here is in the nature of a royal retreat set within a mango orchard.

MOUNT ABU

Delegates may also like to continue on to Mount Abu, the only hill resort in the state with a large lake, and several palatial townhouses built by the princes of various kingdoms as their summer retreats. Most of them are now hotels.

DUNGARPUR

Worth the visit not only because it is off the beaten track, but also because the architecture of its palaces is stunning, is the excursion to Dungarpur. An individual kingdom, Dungarpur offers accommodation in one of its palaces, and can be explored at leisure, including its colourful Bhil villages.

Udaipur and its environs, especially its many heritage hotels, are ideal as a base for using as horse safaris, or even jeep safaris: truly an unusual way to discover the land of the most preeminent among the Rajput clans.