Taj Falaknuma Palace

5.01.12 - Wacky Hotel Amenities: Rose Petal Greeting
Bing

Royal treatment is the lure at the Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad, India, former home of one of the richest families on earth. It starts with the shower of rose petals that greets every guest’s arrival. (Need an airport pickup? They'll do it in a Jaguar.) It continues to the on-site lending library with its 59,000 books. Simply strolling the grounds becomes an event, as the house historian will tag along, regaling you with tales of polo and debauchery. Most retrograde amenity? The ability to ditch your wife. The smoking room bans women from entering -- still!
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4.14.11 - Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad | Hot List 2011
Conde Nast Traveller

High up above the City of Pearls, the recently restored Taj Falaknuma Palace is perfectly positioned, just out of the colourful chaos of the city and with views onto the Old Town beneath it, but within earshot of the muezzin's call to prayer from the Mecca mosque. Built to impress in the 1890s, it was home to the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad, passing to the seventh Nizam who was, in 1937, the world's richest man. It is a stunningly conceived palace, which the Taj group, aided by Princess Ezra, wife of the eighth Nizam (from whom it is leased) has sensitively refurbished over 10 years, spending many millions in the process.
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12.01.10 - Taj Hotels opens Falaknuma Palace
Leisure Opportunities

India-based Taj Hotels, a subsidiary of the Indian Tata Group, has reopened Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad, India, as a luxury spa hotel. Originally built in 1884, the former royal residence is spread across 32 acres of gardens and has undergone a 10-year restoration. The palace offers 60 luxurious rooms, a 10,000sq ft (930sq m) Royal Jiva-branded spa, two restaurants and an outdoor pool. The initial design of the Spa was completed by Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo (WATG). Once the initial designs had been completed the Taj Spa team - Bina and Sameer Patel - orchestrated the new designs and lay outs.
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