- Brijrama Palace on Darbhanga Ghat
- How to get to Brijrama palace:
- Architecture and interiors of Birjrama palace :
- Accommodation Options :
- Dining at Birjrama place:
- Activities :
- Final thoughts
Brijrama Palace on Darbhanga Ghat
Darbhanga ghat holds special place in Hindu mythology as the legend says that Lord Rama bathed here in the sacred waters of Ganges. The Ghat is dominated by stunning palace that was built in 18th century in Rajput and Mughal style architecture. Later in 20th century, the palace was bought over by Maharaja of Darbhanga and fort underwent extensive renovations, including the installation of South Asia’s first elevator. Today this palace is converted into Birjrama palace hotel by Ganges which seamlessly blends heritage and luxury.
How to get to Brijrama palace:
The unique location of Birjrama palace on Darbhanga Ghat provides unique opportunity to get to your hotel by boat. Even though the palace is located very centrally in the heart of Varanasi, close to all main attractions, you can’t reach this place by car. Since the palace is located in Bengali tola surrounded by narrow streets or galies, the best way to reach the palace is by boat. The hotel has multiple boats that can take you to various places within Varanasi, thus avoiding the traffic and also giving you the best view of Varanasi Ghats. The boat rides are free as part of the stay and you can use the boats as needed. We used this service multiple times during our stay including to attend Ganga Aarti, and go to Assi Ghat and surrounding area.
Architecture and interiors of Birjrama palace :
In order to reach the hotel from the ghat, you need to climb about 20 steps and get it to the elevator. You are greeted by a priest who blesses you and hands you flowers and blessings. You enter the elevator which is the first elevator in south east Asia. As you get out of the elevator, you are greeted by ornate sitting room and beautiful view of Ganges from first floor.
The hotel has 3 floors each with its own balcony/sitting area with breathtaking views of Ganga. We were on 3rd floor and in my opinion, it has the best views and the 3rd floor balcony where they have Yoga classes every morning and high-tea in the evening. We spent every morning watching sunrise over Ganges and enjoying the morning bustle of the ghats.
Walking through the palace transports you back to the gilded era with ornate designs on the walls, beautiful sculptures, and spacious court yards. The hotel has done a great job of decorating the palace with its history in mind.
Accommodation Options :
There are 32 rooms in Brijrama palace with several types of rooms:
-Varuna Burj Suite- only 1 suite and it is on 2nd floor with its own entrance. This room boasts 180 view of the river and city and probably one of the most expensive rooms in the palace. We tried to book it but it was sold out for the time we were in Varanasi. It sleeps 3-4 people
– Maharaja Suite- there are 3 suites available and are on 1st floor and sleeps 2-4 people
– Vasundara- 6 available rooms and sleeps 2
– Dhanurdhara- 8 available rooms thar sleeps 2
-Nadidhara room- 14 available rooms that sleeps 2
We stayed in the Dhanurdhara room and it was perfect for 2 people. It opens into a well lit corridor that is next to 3rd floor balcony. We absolutely loved the room and the location of the room
Dining at Birjrama place:
There are 2 dining rooms in Brijrama palace but when we stayed there only Darbhanga dining room was open and it serves only vegetarian food( Because of the location of the hotel on the Ganga River, hotel doesn’t serve meat or alcohol). Breakfast is included the price and it is severed as a buffet with both international and Indian dishes. You can get made to order omelettes for breakfast along with toast, donuts etc. Both north and South Indian breakfast items such as made to order dosa, fresh jelebi as well as kachori are available everyday for breakfast. We are most of the lunch and dinner at the restaurant but they are A la carte and pretty decent. We found found to be lacking spiciness but overall of good quality. For one afternoon, we ordered the Thali, which is a 5 course meal with soup, appetizer( 3 kinds), main meal, a drink, and 3 different desserts. The meal was huge and we struggled to finish it
Activities :
There are several activities are provided as a complimentary service including High tea every evening. This was our favorite activity which included along with Indian Chai served in clay pot, thandai ( specialty of Varanasi), and pan making session.
Every morning, you wake up to the sound of flute playing from the center court yard and every evening there was Kathi’s dance performance at the bada angan to showcase local artists and talent. You can get complementary henna by a local artist every afternoon too. Every evening, boat leaves from the ghat to the Ganga Aarti ceremony and you can watch the program sitting in the boat.
Final thoughts
Staying at Brijrama palace is great experience and we enjoyed every minute of it. We were impressed by the service and authenticity of the staff as well as luxury and heritage of the place. More than anything else, location is absolutely stunning and we took too many photos of sunrise. Only con we found was that it was hard to leave the place and go out do anything else as we were too comfortable in our serene palace.
.
Peaks to Palaces 