Charminar and Chowmahalla Palace

November 03, 2018

Charminar and Chowmahalla Palace - Hyderabad

Next on our tourist travels last week was a visit to famous Charminar and the Chowmahalla Palace. Both places are located centrally in Hyderabad, about an hour’s drive from our place in the west of the city - due to traffic, it’s only 15km....

As with everything here, nothing is open until 11 or later, so I always find it better to arrive around opening to avoid the massive crowds. However, if shopping is you thing, then it’s better to come a little later. Charminar gets super crowded, so it is always important to be aware and on the look out for pickpockets.

Charminar is ‘the image’ that most people think of when talking of Hyderabad. It is a 4 pillared monument that stands proudly in the centre square with 4 busy market streets leading away from each side of the building. The most famous being the Laad Bazaar, which is famous for the hundreds of bangle shops that line the street.

Charminar itself is a grand building - the name Charminar means ‘four pillars’ and the building is made of massive amounts of granite and mortar. It was built in 1591, and is often referred to as the 'Arc de Triomphe of the East' and was built in honour of Bhagmati, the wife of Sultan Mohammad Quli Qutb. When you enter the building and gaze upwards, you see the beautiful architecture that was possible even when made by hand so long ago. You then wind your way up the very tiny and claustrophobic staircase to the top viewing deck. The views from the top are lovely but that is about all there is to do. There is a small mosque on the top of the roof - not accessible the day we went, so we found ourselves joining the hundreds of early morning visitors winding our way back down the opposite tiny staircase.

A short walk from Charminar through the crowded, dusty, noisy streets, is Chowmahalla Palace. This seemingly small oasis in the hustle and bustle of the city is quite the sight. The grounds previously covered over 45 acres but now only 12 acres remain of lovely lush gardens, palm trees and fountains.
The usual pain of visiting an Indian monument remain. The standard bag check, seperate male/female entrances and scanning, camera charges, ticket check, ticket check again, no water or food, ticket check again……

The palace has been the home of the Nizams who were the 'royal family' of what was previously the 'Hyderabad State'. Inside the palace building there is a museum of artefacts and displays of many of the wonderful things that have been accomplished by the royal family. The building is no longer the home of the family, but State dinners are still held there occasionally.

A lovely morning out seeing more of our new home.