Samode Safari Lodge

4 Village Mardhari, Post, Dhamokhar, Madhya Pradesh 484661, India

If Mowgli had a trust fund, he might have designed a hotel like Samode Safari Lodge: a flock of private villas set in wild Bandhavgarh National Park, where tigers roam and David Attenborough recently filmed Dynasties. Inspired by local villages, the hotel’s wood-and-mud dwellings harmonise with their forest-and-prairie surroundings; there’s also a relaxed, cosy lodge building, where mealtimes take place and a well-stocked library awaits. Winding pathways and bridges connect the huts, the pool and the main house; get deliberately lost in the wild gardens, where head-high grasses dance in the breeze. Additional enticements for tired explorers include a pampering spa and delicious dining, with meals served in surprise locations.