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Laxmi Vilas Palace
Laxmi Vilas Palace is an admirable monument of yester years built in Indo-Saracenic architecture by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III in 1890 at a phenomenal cost those days for constructing and for which he obtained the services of a famous architect of those days, Major Charles Mant.
This Palace is known to be one of the largest private dwellings by its size and it is four times the size of Buckingham Palace in London. When its construction was undertaken, it created such awe among people as it was the most modern design for those days, a Palace with elevators and interior works at par with European country houses. Since the day of its construction and until now, this palace is the abode of Baroda’s Royal Family held in high esteem by the people of Vadodara till date.
The visitor can see a remarkable collection of old armory and sculptures in bronze apart from marble and terracotta by Fellici kept on display. The palace encourages visits by public and an audio tour is also provided.
There is a museum attached to the Palace which was originally constructed as a venue for educating Maharaja’s Children, a railway line for their transport from the school to the main part of the Palace, the Rail Engine is on exhibition now and remnants of an erstwhile zoo, besides a step well which is about 50 meters in distance, all of them are places of interest for the tourist visiting the Palace.
History
Maharaja Sayajirao III of Baroda was the one who commissioned Major Charles Mant to build Lakshmi Vilas Palace and this building was later finished by R.F. Chisolm.
Architecture
Laxmi Vilas Palace has been built in the Indo-Saracenic style with a meaningful mix of Indian, European and Islamic elements. The imposingly awe striking interior is all with multi-colored marble, mosaic tiles and different works of art. The courtyards of palms equipped with a few fountains surround the entry points which are big enough for a tallest elephant with largest howdah on back to comfortably pass through.
The palace grounds accommodate a golf course and a wonderful museum containing Sayajirao's personal collections of original paintings of Raja Ravi Varma.
There is an ornate Darbar Hall, which serves as the venue for music concerts and few other cultural events, equipped with a Venetian mosaic floor, walls with intricate mosaic decorations and Belgium stained glass windows. Just outside of the Darbar Hall there is an Italianate courtyard with a few water fountains. The Palace was landscaped by William Goldring, a specialist drawn from Kew Gardens.
The Palace premises cover an area of 700 acres, accommodating few other buildings, especially the Moti Bagh Palace and the Maharaja Fateh Singh Museum building. Adjacent to these lies the Moti Bagh Cricket Ground, also the offices of the Baroda Cricket Association, apart from a tennis court and badminton court with teak wood flooring.
Visitor Information
The museum is open for public from 10.30 am to 5.30 pm on all days except Mondays and there is an entrance fee of Rs. 25/- for Indians and Rs. 100/- for foreigners.
The palace is also open for public visit from 11 am to 5 pm upon an entrance fee is Rs.100/-. However, to tour the palace a visitor must obtain permit from Maharaja’s secretary who is available at the palace office. The palace visit is also closed on Mondays.
How to Reach
By Road
Vadodara is reachable in 112 km from Ahmadabad and 420 km from Mumbai and is located on National Highway NH 8 with various state transport buses and private coaches from all over Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Delhi plying buses to this city. There are intercity buses connecting Ahmadabad and Vadodara which take 2 hours and run every 15 minutes.
By Rail
Vadodara Railway Station is a major railway junction in the Western Railway which connects all important Rail junctions of the Country.
By Air
Vadodara has an airport and is connected to Ahmadabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and Daman by frequent flights.
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