| FACTS
& FIGURES
Population : 200,000
Languages : Gujarati, Hindi, and English
Best Time to Visit : October to March
STD Codes : 02825
LOCATION
Gondal is situated in the Indian state of Gujarat
around 60 km from the district headquarter of Junagadh.
A good road network connects Gondal to Rajkot, a major
transport hub.
CLIMATE
The climate of Gondal is generally pleasant.
The summer season extends from March to June with daytime
temperature reaching to around 42°C. The monsoons
are from July to September. Winter season sets in during
October and extends until February. In association with
cyclonic storms or depressions in the Arabian Sea in
the post-monsoon months and to a lesser extent in May
and June, Gondal experiences strong winds and widespread
rain. Thunderstorms occur in June and July. In the cold
season occasional fog occurs. The summer temperature
ranges from 24°C to 42°C and winter temperature
ranges from 10°C to 24°C. The annual rainfall
is around 276 mm.
SITES TO VISIT
Gondal has much to offer by way of sightseeing
to the visitors. Built in 1875 AD by Maharajah Bhagwat
Sinhji for his son Yuvraj Bhojraji, the Riverside Palace
is set in lawns and gardens beside the river Gondali.
There are two marvelously appointed sitting arrangement—the
living room furnished in typical colonial style with
chandelier, antique wooden furniture and sofas, and
the Indian room decorated with beadwork, brassware and
paintings—and many pleasant sit-outs on the terraces
and galleries overlooking either the river or the garden.
The oldest extant palace in Gondal, the 17th-century
Naulakha Palace is a festival of stone carvings with
exquisite jharokhas (balconies), a fabulous pillared
courtyard, delicately carved arches, and a unique spiral
staircase. The large chandelier-lit durbar hall has
stuffed panthers, gilt wooden furniture, and antique
mirrors. The private palace museum has an impressive
display of silver caskets which carried messages and
gifts for Maharajah Bhagwat Sinhji on his silver jubilee
as ruler of Gondal, one of the many golden caskets received
by him on his 50th anniversary, the weighing scales
on which he was measured against silver and gold on
the respective anniversaries, and princely relics.
Located in a huge complex of fruit orchards, lawns
and gardens, the Orchard Palace is a wing of the Huzoor
Palace (the present royal residence) where the ruling
family of Gondal entertained personal guests including
relatives from other princely states of Gujarat. The
‘room of miniatures’ is a splendid sitting
room with a collection of miniature paintings, brass,
and antique furniture.
The Royal Garages have an extensive collection of vintage
and classic cars including a 1910 New Engine, a Delage
and a Daimler from the 1920s, a 1935 Mercedes, 1935
Packard two-door convertible, 1941 and 1947 Cadillac,
1955 Cadillac limousine, sports cars from the 1950s
and 1960s like the Mercedes 300 SL, Jaguar XK 150 and
Chevrolet Camaro, numerous imposing American cars of
the 1940s and 1950s, a fleet of four-wheel drive vehicles
from the World War II and post-war period, and some
contemporary sports cars. Most of these cars are restored
and some bear the original Gondal state number plates.
There are plans to restore a selection from the extensive
collection of horse drawn carriages, which includes
Victorian showpieces and a Shetland pony carriage.
Then there is the Bhuvaneshwari Ayurvedic Pharmacy,
which still makes traditional herbal medicines according
to ancient principles. The Bhuvaneshwari Stud Farm has
remarkable specimens of Kathiawadi horses, Gir cattle
and other ethnic breeds of livestock, which have won
prestigious awards at national level and prizes at local
horse and cattle shows. The Swaminarayan Temple has
an awesome aura of devotion and some lovely wall murals
of the various Swamis who preached this faith. The Sangram
Sinhji High School is a model of Eton in Gondal, with
some fabulous Gothic architecture, Italian marble floors,
old European laboratory equipment, an antique clock
tower, and intricate wooden ceilings. Spinning, weaving,
brass boxes, silver smithy, beadwork, woodcarving, etc.,
are some crafts of Gondal.
WHAT TO DO
Gondal is a paradise for birdwatchers,
Peacocks, tree pies, cuckoos, sun birds, bee eaters,
peafowl and other birds abound in the lime-and-chickoo
groves of the Orchard Palace, and owlets, ibises, water
hen, egrets, herons, waders, brahmini kites and vultures
can be seen from the Riverside palace itself. The lake
attracts demoiselle and common eastern cranes, rosy
pelicans, flamingoes, spoonbills, black, white and glossy
ibises, myriad species of ducks and many kinds of wading
birds, often in flocks of over 1,000 each. The royal
grasslands are populated by herds of blue bull antelope,
jackal, jungle cat, sand grouse, great horned owl, gray
and painted francolin partridge, quails, larks, warblers,
and pipits. Harriers roost here in winter and floricans
nest in monsoons.
Jeeps for game viewing at the grasslands and boats
for birdwatcher at the lake can be arranged. Bird watching
camps at both sites are planned.
SITES NEARBY
Gondal is the staging post for many
interesting day excursions. Junagadh, 60 km south of
Gondal, is one of India’s most historic cities,
known for its third-century BC Ashoka rock edicts, the
magnificent Uperkot Fortress, splendid royal mausoleums,
Darbar Hall Palace Museum, Junagadh Museum, and Sakkarbagh
Zoo.
The 3,660-ft-high Girnar Peak has exquisite 12th-century
Jain temples on the summit and holy Hindu temples in
the foothills.
Dhoraji, which was the second most important city of
the erstwhile Gondal state, has the Darbargadh Palace,
which is a fabulous maze of traceries and sandstone
sculpture.
The textile town of Jetpur, 30 km from Gondal, is known
for its screen printing, block printing, and yarn dyeing
workshops.
Rajkot, 40 km from Gondal, is known for the Watson
Museum, Mahatma Gandhi’s old residence, and its
handicrafts and textiles.
WHERE TO STAY
Some heritage as well as regular hotels
are available for accommodation in Gondal. Restaurants
are available at most of the good hotels.
HOW TO REACH
By Air
Rajkot (40 km) is the nearest airport from
Gondal. There are regular flights from Rajkot to Mumbai.
By Rail
Rajkot is the nearest railway station situated
on the Western Railway broad-gauge network.
By Road
Gondal has good road connection to other cities
in western India including Ahmedabad, Rajkot, and Mumbai.
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