5 Must Stays for the festive season

With Dussehra and Diwali vacations round the corner, a quick peek at some resort getaways to help you make up your mind about your own slice of paradise.

One&Only Reethi Rah, Maldives
This will require a bit of planning to book air seats, but will be every bit worth the while. Part of the One&Only luxury resort group. 50 minutes by yacht from the airport, this 130-villa getaway spells luxury in more ways than one "" 40 swimming pools, for starters (37 of which are private pools), over-water suites, sunbathing platforms, 30-inch LCD screens, high speed broadband access, large ocean hammocks on the deck and so on.

Three restaurants to spoil you for choice, including one for Japanese cuisine. Nothing could sound better "" except, naturally, experiencing it personally. Reservations: beate.mauder@indivamarketing.com .

Dwarika's Hotel, Kathmandu
You could be forgiven for thinking you've wandered into a museum with the carved wooden windows, doors and balconies that are part of the Nepalese woodcarving tradition.

Bought over decades by Dwarika Das Shreshtha, they have been turned into conversation stoppers at the hotel, built piecemeal over years, harmonising contemporary architecture and facilities with a very strong cultural legacy. Dwarika's takes you back in time, and to experience the feeling, reserve at dwarika.com .

Ananda in the Himalayas, Rishikesh
This one just keeps getting better and better as it continues to sweep the trophies for best spa or spa resort. Brilliantly located in the Himalayan foothills, with a royal palace on the premises along with a contemporary resort (good rooms though hardly exceptional by current standards) but with a mindblowing spa.

Great outdoors facilities, and a restaurant that opens on to a deck that's surrounded (so it looks like they're supporting it) by trees. And just about accessible with a Shatabdi connection from Delhi, and then a short ride up the Himalayas. Reservations: anandaspa.com.

MV Vrinda, Kerala backwaters
This one's a mobile holiday on India's only luxury cruiser to date, that is moored at Vembanad lake, and cruises across the lake and the backwaters as part of a package that begins at the Trident Hilton in Cochin.

Eight cabins on a lower deck (with windows at virtually eye-level with the backwaters) and a restaurant, bar, lounge and deck above it, here's one of the most charming holidays you can experience, with exceptional food and great service "" though the herding around for the sightseeing can get a little hectic. Much better to dig in your heels and stay on the cruiser. Reservations: eih-india.com .

The Pataudi Palace, Haryana
This one's for a bit of celebrity rub-off though, alas, Nawab Mansur Ali Khan 'Tiger' Pataudi and his actress wife Sharmila Tagore are Delhi-based, and their son actor Saif Ali Khan lives in Mumbai. Still, this ancestral mansion, 60 km from Delhi, is built in the style of a Lutyen's bungalow, and there's always a chance that a member of the family might stroll in.

What you should go for, however, is its link to the Neemrana 'non-hotels' chain. Sprawling gardens, great rooms and amenities, fabulous cuisine. Just right for a short break when you don't want to run into your neighbours. Reservations: neemranahotels.com.