Advice Needed - Travel from Delhi to Jaipur at Holi and Lodging in Jaipur

Greetings as a first time poster. Been reading for awhile in preparation for a 3 week visit to Rajasthan in March 2007. Some excellent info here.

Was hoping to get some input on a piece of our trip. We arrive Delhi on Thur. Mar 1 evening. After spending the night in Delhi, we plan to depart on Fri. Mar 2 for Jaipur, arriving that same day (Mar 2). We want to spend 3 nights in Jaipur (Mar 2,3,4). We are planning to travel by hiring a car and driver.

My questions are:

1. Being as Holi is on the calendar as Sat. Mar 3, will that affect the drive from Delhi to Jaipur and how long can we expect that drive to take?

2. Is there a particular place you would recommend to stay in Jaipur for 3 nights? We plan a medium to high budget, but we don't have a set standard. We would like to "experience" Holi by being in a good area, but probably will look to avoid getting into the thickest of things by having a rooftop available? Would love to see Holi at its best, but don't want to ruin the trip at the outset by being somewhere we shouldn't. Proximity to a bar would be good.

3. Will our visit coincide with the elephant festival activities? If so, what is there to see and where and how do we see it?

Many thanks in advance for input. Looking forward to learning a lot here before the trip and sharing information upon return.