Excellent location by the river in extensive well-kept grounds and near to the town and all the palaces and temples. A clean and well-kept hotel. A wonderful oasis during the day but in the evening it all changes; over the road behind the tents is a club/hotel which seems to specialise in Indian rock/dance music. During our 3 night stay, we were subjected to loud music every night until well after midnight. Even the ear plugs couldn't suppress it. It was obviously worse as we were in a tent so my recommendation would be to seek a cottage and avoid the tents at the back of the complex.
Breakfast choice was disappointing, evening meals were good but, having said that, we were both violently sick on our last night as a result of something we ate in our last meal. Just bad luck, I suppose.

We stayed here for one night after we found that we couldn't stay for all 3 nights in the homestay (see review: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g319728-d1556574-r120942851-Orchha_Home_Stay-Orchha_Madhya_Pradesh.html).

Whilst staying at the home stay we visited a few hotels including the Sheesh Mahal and this one, both being run by MPTDC. We'd previously stayed at an MPTDC in Gwalior so knew that the food was good. The tents here seemed so much nicer than the rooms at the Sheesh and the luring pool gave the Betwa Retreat extra appeal.

Our "room" was a heritage tent, right opposite and dozen metres away from the pool. It was all done really nicely, with the lawns, the chairs, room-service delivering to the pool side area. I'd never stayed in a tent room before but loved the experience, even when it rained.

We ate here numerous times in the a/c restaurant and had drinks on the veranda overlooking the fast-flowing Betwa River - that's when the monsoon allowed us to of course. The menu is shared by all MPTDC properties and we found it to be very good and the service was good. The staff were certainly very helpful and we had some nice chats with them during the less busier periods.

I was blogging whilst on the trip and needed access to the Internet but there didn't appear to be Internet access or WiFi available. On speaking to a waiter he suggested I went to see his boss, M.S.Rana, who promptly said 'sure, give my five minutes and you can use my laptop'. Woah, really? Thanks. Later that day I needed to get on the net again and he switched the WiFi on so I could sit on the chairs outside his room and surf away. Pretty good service I thought.

On the day we left we checked out of our room and left our luggage in the reception area. After lunch we went around Orchha and came back so the kids could have a swim and we could have a drink. Cutting a long story short, my wife got absolutely soaked in a monsoon downpour, in the clothes she needed to travel in. Without asking, the restaurant staff went and got a few towels for her to dry herself with, even though we'd checked out hours ago.

My trouble is that I loved Orchha and I loved this hotel but if I ever went back there I'd be going for the homestay again. But then again this place was great for us.

Key points:
a. 1500 for a couple for B&B is good value esp given the NICE restaurant
b. Lovely garden with so many swings for the kids and nice landscaping
c. Well appointed swiss tents with decent AC
d. Sufficient plug points all around for all your needs
e. Lovely restaurant with good decor and interiors and a nice evening cultural program
f. Right by the riverside and walking distance to the chhatris
g. The only minor issue - they're always booked out so they will remind u to clear out by 1230 hours - ofc, if u ask for a bit more time, they accomodate. But the call shows how busy they are.

this is a State-run resort and has all the plusses and minuses that go along. Nice big plot of land, well located for the key sights, right near the river. Nice cottages. But the tents didn't look that special. Food was reliable (hard to find in an off the beaten path place like Orchha) and the waiter was VERY helpful. So my wife and I liked the place overall.