We booked the hotel because of the position overlooking the river and because it had a restaurant on the roof. When we checked in, our room was upgraded and we had a great size room with a shared terrace overlooking the river. Couldn't fault the view. The room was swept but we felt it could do with a deep clean. Unfortunately the rooftop restaurant was being upgraded and not available. The hotel suggested we either ate in our room or used the restaurant of their sister hotel, Palace on the Steps. We don't come on holiday to eat in the room, so we went to the sister hotel and the restaurant was great. Food lovely and the staff very helpful. After the following day though, we got back to the hotel to be told there was a problem with the water. Monkeys were blamed, but we were offered a bucket of water to flush the toilet and told we couldn't shower. Obviously we were not happy about this. It was very hot and a shower was essential. We discussed it and went back to reception to say this wasn't acceptable, but we'd be ok with moving. The manager offered us a room in the Palace on the Steps. So we had to pack up and move around the corner. The room was lovely. Better than the original one. (Still in need of a good scrub but better). The staff there were more friendly and obviously the restaurant was open. We were much happier here and would recommend this hotel over the first.

The place is very close to the river. The staff are awesome. They go above and beyond.

The location of hotel is good , it is very close to Ghat where Aarti take place. It is about 40 steps below from the hotel and about 3 minutes walk. Rooms are comfortable and staff is very helpful. The last part of access to the hotel from the airport is through narrow lanes. The taxi from the airport drops about 2 Km from the hotel , then auto can take you another 1 Km but last part has to be walked with luggage. I suggest strongly to have some person from the hotel take you to the hotel from the airport. The narrow lanes can be confusing with motor cycles, dogs and some time cows crossing. Otherwise the visit was enjoyable.

Nice view of the Ganges river from balcony! Hotel needs better maintenance/renovation. Very difficult to access hotel from main street. Dirty narrow walking path to access hotel in the old town area, with stray animals....

Sri Omkar Palace Is filthy, the stairs dangerous, the space unkempt, the room musty and no hot water in the shower. The in room rugs are old. The entrance disgusting. I asked Orbitz for a refund, and received it. This is my first negative review, ever. Beware!

This isn't a hotel. It's a poorly maintained house, far from what's advertised on their website. The room is damp, and the bathroom is disgusting. The blankets are dirty and worn. They start making noise early in the morning, and the mosquitoes in the room are unbearable. The entrance is a 10-minute walk through narrow alleyways filled with dog feces and trash. They can't accept such terrible service and infrastructure.

Staff wonderful. Restaurant closed so had to eat elsewhere. Was expecting more from a 3 star but I guess that is my fault. I chose the hotel based on location to the Ganges and the ghats which was great. However, the old city is pedestrian only and had to walk 15 minutes to the hotel.. Hotel did provide porters. Also, got lost every time I went out-old city is a maze of narrow alleys Suggest you stay on outskirts of the pedestrian only are for ease of navigation.

Very good overall choice in Varanasi for what it is.

Had a wonderful stay - was a little concerned, we had to shift to a cycle rickshaw, and hotel staff carried our bags through narrow alleys for about a km - but when we got inside, it was quaint & pretty, great view of Ganga from our balcony - Chausatti ghat is steps from the hotel, climb down to the river. Dasashwamedh ghat, where they do the Ganga Aarathi is literally 10 minutes by walk - we were there 3 nights, and saw Aarathi up close every night. Hotel staff was extremely helpful, wonderful manager, Neeraj was great - they arranged Pooja and Darshan at the main temple, we zipped trough queues, next day they arranged a trip to various other temples and Saranath- they also helped into a tuk-tuk at 4:30 AM to catch a 6:00 AM train

Although the staff provided excellent service, the property needs care. Room was cold and bed felt wet cold. Linens didn't feel clean or fresh. I am allergic to cats and was petrified to see a stray cat loitering everywhere. The courtyard looked good in the picture but its in a sad state and doesn't get maintained well enough.

Beautiful

Staff were super helpful.

The property is a beautiful old buikding which sits high off the ganga river, and the views are amazing. The room was spacious and clean, with a balcony so you sit and relax watching world go buy.. The monkeys eould come and sit , but they can not be trusted. My only issue was not having a working Tv and tge bar fridge needs to be updated. Overall the staff and hotel are amazing.

The property is more run down than photos suggest, but still comfy. I was a bit let down by the condition given the high ratings, though everything’s relative. Important: the hotel isn’t reachable by car, rickshaw, or even pedal rickshaw—you have to walk 10–15 minutes from the closest drop-off. Contact the hotel for porters; they’re essential. We visited during monsoon and didn’t realize this, so we dragged rollerbags through narrow alleys with 2” of water, cow dung, and buzzing scooters. Backpacks are much easier. GPS can be off in the alleys—using two phones or pausing until the dot jumps works. Staff was great and responsive, though one pushed tours and boats too hard. Food was good, and the location is epic—awesome Ganges view from the balcony. You don’t need a guide for the burning ghats or aarti; Google Maps gets you close enough even with a few wrong turns. Touts in Varanasi (not the hotel) are the worst I’ve seen in India. Many lie to get money—ignore them like locals do. Foreigners look like walking ATMs. Key rule: no photos at the burning ghats without family permission. You don’t need to pay or have a guide to be there. Rain leaked through the balcony doors and brought a few ants, but not a huge issue. Airport taxi via hotel was ₹1100—beat-up car, no AC. Uber was ₹945 but dropped us 800m away in the rain. Hotel porters help a lot. Recommend booking transport through the hotel but ask for a better car.

Hotel staffs are awesome !! They are always ready to assist. Though the walk from Main Street to hotel is a bit confusing but overall it was a good experience !!

All Good at Sri Oskar Palace. Since it was not high season My Aircon no-river view was complementarily upgraded, to A Riverview room complete with a great shared balcony. They were really good at getting me from and back to the airport with the taxi service. My only issue, and it is not the fault of the hotel, was the aggressive monkeys. They would come onto the balcony and at first, be cute. I made the mistake of letting one sip some beer I poured for it on the top of the wall. It made a great Social Media post, but the next day, two monkeys joined me up on the balcony, and I didn’t have any beer!! They were not happy and acted out towards me… I Didn’t feel totally safe up there after that… Don’t give ANYTHING to the monkeys! Have breakfast away from the edge on the rooftop, because monkeys jumped on our tables and made a mess and broke glasses all over the floor…

This is a remarkable ancient city in India. The closest road is a 15 minute walk, so be prepared to carry your bags through very narrow alleys. Enjoy the experience that India has to offer.

Property is in an excellent location. The staff is helpful and arranged tours with great guides. They facilitated transportation services and even carried our luggage the 15 minutes it took to get to automobile roads. The property was dirty. Our first room had ants in the bed and the AC did not work. They were gracious enough to move us to a new room with working AC. But the room was just as dirty. The walkway to the hotel was littered with trash. But the location to the Ghat area was perfect. As a side note this was an all male staff.

Excellent location and great service

excellent