Day 06: Palitana – Gondal
Post breakfast at Palitana, drive to Gondal. The 11-gun salute princely state of Gondal spanned an area of about 1000 sq. miles comprising four towns and more than 175 villages. The Orchard Palace was built as an annexe of the Huzoor Palace, the family residence, in the late-19th century to host personal guests of the Maharajas. Converted into a seven-room heritage hotel, it is appointed with the 1930s and ‘40s art deco furniture, antiques, and handicrafts. Later see the collection includes a pre-1910 New Engine that belonged to Maharaja Bhagwat Sinhji which is a real beauty with its superbly crafted gas-operated lamp, curved glass windscreen, and woodwork interiors of the coach. The Delage D8, Daimler, and the grand 1935 Mercedes seven-seat saloon are examples of supercharged European cars of the 1920s and '30s known for their superbly crafted bodywork and high performance.
Stylish American cars in the collection include the 1935 Packard two-door convertible coupe, the 1930s Buick convertible and the 1935 Ford convertible. Imposing American cars of the 1940s and '50s include 1941 Cadillac saloon, a 1947 Cadillac convertible, a 1947 Buick convertible, 1947 Oldsmobile, the 1940s Studebaker convertible, the 1947 Lincoln V12, and the 1950s Cadillac Eldorado limousine. The Gondal collection also has post-WW2 jeeps, station wagons, and pick-ups that have seen many a Shikar in the 1940s and '50s.
The high-performance European cars of the late-1950s include the 1958 Mercedes 300SL two-seat roadster, the 1959 Jaguar XK150, and other cars that Maharaja Jyotendra Sinhji and Maharaj Kumar Ghanadityasinhji raced to wins at many circuits. Also in the collection are muscle cars like the 1960s Chevrolet Camaro and Surtees Formula 5000. Recent additions to the collection include the 1992 Corvette ZR1, the 1997 Chevrolet Camaro, the 1997 Buick Riviera, and a Dodge. Stay at the Riverside Palace/Orchard Palace heritage hotel.
