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The Palace is divided into
three functional parts – the residence of the royal family, a luxury Taj
Palace Hotel, and a Museum focusing on the 20th century history of the
Jodhpur Royal Family.
The entire palace complex
built with sandstone and marble is set in an area of 26 acres (11 ha) of
land including 15 acres (6.1 ha) of well tended gardens. The palace,
magnificent in its lavish proportions, consists of a throne chamber, an
exclusive private meeting hall, a Durbar Hall to meet the public, a
vaulted banquet hall, private dining halls, a ball room, a library, an
indoor swimming pool and spa, a billiards room, four tennis courts, two
unique marble squash courts and long passages.
The museum has exhibits of
stuffed leopards, a very large symbolic flag gifted to Maharaja Jaswant
Singh by Queen Victoria in 1877, an impressive "quirky" collection of
clocks in windmill and light house shapes, and photographs of the
elegant art-deco interior of the palace. The classic cars of the
Maharajas are also on display in the garden in front of the museum.
The hotel wing of the palace
is run by the Taj Group of Hotels. It has 70 guest rooms including the
luxurious "Regal and Vice Regal Suites" and the fabulous "Maharaja" and
"Maharani suites" with art deco style decorations, the latter is fitted
with a bath tub carved from a single block of pink marble said to be the
only one of its type in India.
How to
reach
Nearest airport is Jodhpur Airport (IATA: JDH, ICAO: VIJO)
is a civil enclave airport in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. The airport is located 5
km from Jodhpur Railway Station.
From the Airport Road, take the 3rd exit from the roundabout to reach
the SH 61. Turn left and go through another roundabout to reach the
palace.
One can easily reach Umaid Bhawan Palace Hotel / Museum from the city by taking local Buses,
Rickshaws, Tongas and Taxis.
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