Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur

About Umaid Bhawan Palace
The Umaid Bhawan Palace was built by Maharaja Umaid Singh between the period of 1929 - 1943 (it took almost 15 years to finish) in Jodhpur. The palace was not built to display the power and status of the royal family, rather it had a noble intention behind it. Maharaja Umaid Singh started the construction of this palace to provide work (food for work programme) to the labourers when famine struck their lives.

The palace is also known as the Chittar palace because it is made of chittar sandstone. Also it is built on Chhittar hills. Today the palace is divided into three parts, one of which serevs as a residence for Gaj Singh and his family, grandson of Maharaja Umaid Singh; the second one is converted into a heritage hotel while the third part houses a museum. It is also said that the Umaid Bhawan Palace is the grandest and largest private residence in entire world.


Architecture of Umaid Bhawan Palace
The palace was designed by the president of British Royal Institute of Architects, Henry Vaughan Lanchester. The structure is quientessentially, a Rajput one complete with extending balconies, large courtyards, huge terraces, blooming gardens and royal rooms. One interesting fact about the palace is that it is not built by joining the parts by cements or mortar, rather it was built by interlocking of solid blocks of stones. The palace lacks the elegance and finess of the architecture of the palaces of Udaipur. Still, the space it provides far more than compensate for this bit of missing beauty.

The palace covers an area of 26 acres with constructed acres occupying nearly 3.5 acres. Around 15 acres of land area is covered by lawns and gardens. The main entrance of the palace is called the Raj Mahal. There are numerous banquet halls in the palace along with a billard hall and a Durbar hall. Apart from these, there are also libraries, staff offices and women’s quarter in the palace.


Hotel Umaid Bhawan Palace
The Umaid Bhawan Palace hotel offers its guests a choice of 92 rooms including suites and delux rooms. All the rooms are airconditioned with attatched bathrooms. Televisions are also there in every room and the furniture decorating these rooms date back to the time when the palace was originally built.

For a sumptuous meal, tourists can go to either Marwar Hall and the Rathore Durbar where are a range of Indian, continental and Rajasthani food is on serve. Theme parties are organised complete with Rajasthani music forming the exotic background.

For a bit of entertainment, there are facilities for squash, tennis, badminton or billards apart from an underground swimming pool.

Reaching There
» By Air - Regular flights connect Jodhpur to the cities of Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Delhi, Mumbai and Jiapur.
» By Rail - Trains connect Jodhpur to cities like Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Udaipur.
» By Road - Roadways connect Jodhpur to cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Agra, Udaipur, Ahmedabad, Ajmer, Bikaner and Mount Abu,