The Padmanabhapuram Palace is the world’s largest wooden Palace listed on UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. It is one of the main tourist attractions among people visiting Kanyakumari. Read on to learn more about this 16th-century Palace, including Padmanabhapuram Palace secrets, architectural style, entry fee, timings, and Padmanabhapuram Palace history. And if you’re looking for hotels near Padmanabhapuram Palace, visit us!
Padmanabhapuram Palace Timings
The Palace is open from 9 am to 12:30 pm. And then from 2 pm until 4:30 pm. It is, however, closed on Mondays and other national holidays.
Padmanabhapuram Palace Entry Fee
The entry fee for the Palace is INR 35 per person for adults and INR 10 for children. And if you’re a foreign citizen, the ticket costs INR 300 for adults and INR 100 for children.
Raja Iravi Varma Kulashekara Perumal built the Padmanabhapuram Palace, which was later renovated by Raja Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma around 1750. To the uninitiated, Padmanabhapuram was the erstwhile capital of the Venad Kingdom. It remained so until 1745 when Raja Marthanda Varma shifted the capital to Thiruvananthapuram.
The place was earlier called Kalkulam. But ever since Raja Marthanda Varma dedicated his kingdom to Lord Padmanabhaswamy, he renamed the Palace Padmanabhapuram Kottaram.
The Palace is built over 6.5 acres, with 14 structures constructed over a period of time. It is based on ancient techniques and wood-based craftsmanship called Taccashastra. The Thai Kottaram, or Mother Palace, is the oldest structure in the Palace. It is believed to have been built during the 16th century and is influenced by traditional Nalukettu architecture. The Thai Kottaram opens to the ekantha mandapam, a space reserved for spiritual purposes. Another exciting aspect of this tower is a trapdoor connecting to a tunnel to a nearby, now-demolished Palace.
The remaining structures showcase the changing styles in architecture and the influence of the Portuguese and the Dutch. Some of the notable structures you can visit here include Omukham, Plamoottil Kottaram, Veppinmoodu Kottaram, Oottupura, Homappura, Uppirika Malika, Ayudhappura, Chandravilasam, Indravilasam, Navarathrimandapam Lekshmivilasam or Puthenkottaram and the Thekkekottaram.
Throughout the palace, you’ll find ornate Chinese chairs and jars, a horseman lamp, Belgian mirrors, and a medicinal bed believed to be made using 64 Ayurvedic woods. Another striking feature of the Palace is the shining floor, believed to be made using a combination of egg white, lime, coconut, charcoal, river sand, jaggery, hibiscus flowers, etc.
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