Amanbagh - India

Open a mere two years, this luxury resort spa offers an authentic taste of India.
By Scott Goetz

A long corridor of ruins, seventeenth-century storefronts now reclaimed by Rajasthani sand and dry deciduous forest, line the dusty path leading to the abandoned city of Bhangarh. "A decade after its completion in 1631," says my Amanbagh guide who sports the region's distinctive, bright orange turban as we walk up to the city gates, "a black magician, who failed to seduce Bhandgarh's queen, put a spell on the city and all who did not flee fell dead from the curse."

We enter to discover a magnificently preserved Mogul-Hindu archeological wonder of palaces, gardens, and Hindu temples, uninhabited to this day, save for the teaming numbers of black lemurs and red-faced macaques who apparently were immune to the black magician's wrath.

As our guide leads us to a temple, I almost expect a boulder of Indiana Jones' proportions to roll down, or spikes to start flying at me for intruding on such seemingly undiscovered sacred ground. Not here. When we reach the top we're graced with views of the abandoned city and a surprise picnic punctuated with brightly colored linens, pillows, and small tables covered in hand-crafted silverwork. The only battle to wage is against the monkeys attempting to taste my curried dosa.

An experience of India such as this sets Amanbagh apart from its luxury competitors on the subcontinent. Situated in the rural North Eastern hills of Rajasthan, Amanbagh (which translates to "peaceful garden") offers a much-needed escape from the grueling tourist circuit of Jaipur, Udaipur, and Agra. This is a place to recharge and relax, words not usually heard when travelers speak of India. Guests are greeted with tea and a prayer while welcome strings are tied around their wrists-the traditional way to bless newcomers to the home.

Drawing inspiration from Mogul palaces and traditional havelis, the resort is an oasis of regal proportion: A three-story structure that houses the library, dining room, and reception opens onto a pool that measures 100 feet and is made of green marble, all surrounded by date palm and mango tree gardens. It's in the villas, however, made of hand-hewn marble, pink sandstone, and topped with Indian-style stupahs, that one finds respite. With large private pools, gardens overlooking a river, and a parade of monkeys, mongoose, and parakeets to entertain, the villas provide no better place to reflect on one's impressions of India.

One is tempted to stay in the villas and never venture out, but Amanbagh offers a range of invigorating outings and unique spa experiences that give guests the chance to touch the soul of its people and magic of the region.

Take the spa for instance. Its therapists, who have all been trained in Reiki, live on property and regularly meditate together to increase their personal vibration. The spa team has developed a range of different blessings that they provide guests as a surprise for birthday, anniversary, and honeymoon celebrations. A beautiful flower rangoli and lighted diyas (oil lamps) are placed at the entrance to their suites, and guests are sat down upon arrival while their feet are gently washed and dried (a tradition of high honor done among the royal families of Rajasthan). After this, the therapist performs a blessing with chanted mantra that evokes purity of mind and body.

Fire meditation is also on the spa menu. Based on the idea that fire is one of the most pure forms of the five elements, meditating with fire is a powerful way to gain positive energy and dissolve negativity. Guests sit on cushions under the rooftop chhatri around a central fire called hawan, which is made up of natural herbs and fragrant wood from the Indian Himalayas. They then chant the Gayetri mantra, the most powerful of all Hindu mantras, which includes 24 letters of the Hindu alphabet intended to specifically energize each of the chakras. After completing the mantra, guests claim an extreme lightness and joy where negativity has vanished from the mind.

Yoga and meditation are offered in two areas outside of the resort either at Bhangarh, with its ruined temples, or at Som Sagar, a hidden spot within the Aravali Hills beside a lake just a 40-minute trek away. At both, picnic breakfasts, lunch, or afternoon tea follow. A pre- or post-stop at a Hindu temple to partake in Aarti, an offering of prayers with bells, lighted candles, diyas, and lighted incense where chanting asks the gods to bless the day ahead or give blessings for the day that has passed, gives higher impact and inundates the traveler with the surroundings.

The resort through its five acres of organic gardens and a strict recycling program further honors this connection to the land. The resort grows all its produce (reassuring to the foreign stomach) along with organic chicken and eggs. The gardens also produce the marigolds and roses used in the garlands and rangolies in the lobby. Milk is collected from nearby villages for the staff restaurant, and any local crops that are in season, like okra, mustard oil, wheat, spinach, and watermelons are purchased for use in both guest and staff menus. Locally made brooms (made from grass and fallen palm leaves) are even purchased for housekeeping and jute bags for collecting dry garbage and leaves, which are all made from recycled tea, flour, and rice sacks. All leftover food scraps are recycled to local pig farmers and treated waste water is used for watering the gardens.

Creating a hotel that is based on green themes has definite operational advantages, but when seen by its guests who then respond accordingly, a whole new kind of green tourism and "giving back" is extended. Recently a two-classroom wing was built by a previous guest who celebrated his 40th birthday. In lieu of gifts, he asked friends to donate money to this cause.

By creating a resort that is part of a community invested in its people, guests at Amanbagh are invited to experience and take part in an India few are blessed to see. This give-and-take synergy is a model that few luxury resorts would ever try, let alone succeed in such unassuming style.

Scott Goetz, Organic Spa's contributing editor of exploration and discovery, lives in Los Angeles and has written for Robb Report, Men's Journal, and Town & Country, among other publications.