The Taj Falaknuma Palace
Last week Mike and I had the pleasure of having dinner at the Taj Falaknuma Palace here in Hyderabad. The palace was previously the home of the Hyderabadi leaders - the Nizams. As you arrive at the palace and wind your way up the road to the main gate, you realise just how special this place is to the city. At the main gate you are then transferred to a golf buggy to take you to the hotel/palace atop the very large hill overlooking the city.
The beautiful surrounds are set on 32 acres of manicured lawns and gardens and the views across the city are very special - even on a night like ours when the pollution was quite high. Some history on the palace itself. The Falaknuma Palace was build by Nawab Vikar-ul-Umra a former Prime Minister of Hyderabad starting in 1884 and it took over 9 years to complete the construction. Falaknuma translates directly to 'Mirror of the Sky’ and given the location and grandeur, it definitely gives justice to that name.
The palace was used as a guest house for must of it’s early years as well as the home to the Nizams but sadly it was abandoned and mismanaged by the owners in the 1950’s and it was left to fall in to ruin and most of the special artefacts and internal decorations were destroyed or stolen. Luckily an extensive renovation commenced in 2000 and it was converted in to a heritage hotel. The financial assistance of Princess Esra Jah, wife of Mukarram Jah an ancestor of the richest Nizam has ensured the restoration has been done to the highest standard.
The Taj hotel reopened in 2010 and is being very well maintained and is a very popular hotel for wealthy visitors to stay or for special dinners. The extensive marble, chandeliers and beautiful paintings throughout the hotel have been displayed in such a way as to reflect the wonderful history of the palace and Hyderabad. Our favourite rooms to visit were the Billards Room, the beautiful Jade room and the very impressive dining room which seats 101 people. The dining room is quite the site when it is all set up for a dinner - as it was when we visited !! The Library is often compared to the library at Windsor Castle and retains many first editions.
If you choose to have dinner at the Taj Falaknuma, you are given the option of a tour before dinner which we thoroughly enjoyed, otherwise the only way you can see the above rooms is by booking to stay the night. The guide provided a very insightful and detailed overview of the buildings history and the restoration.
There are two restaurants to choose from, Adaa serving Hyderabadi cuisine, and Celeste serving Italian and Mediterranean fair. We chose to go Indian and the food was service were amazing - the loveliest gourmet experience we have had in Hyderabad. Highly recommend if you are visiting Hyderabad.
Photography is not allowed within the hotel during the tour, so sadly I only I have photos of the external of the building. You are able to see more images on the Taj website :
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