Very nice and may be the only good place to stay in this small town, Kanker. Rooms are big airy comfortable. Even bathrooms are quite big. We were the only guest in this Royal property and the first guest after pandemic. So they treated us in Royal manner. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were prepared as per our choice and served as per our time. Staff very cordial. Fresh air all around in this 26 acre of property. My best wishes.
My wife and I were there on by 78th Birthday and the family had a Birthday Party for me, including a fantastic dinner, cake and a patio cocktail party with the family and some invited guest. Thats one birthday I will never forget.
Kanker Palace dates from 1937. The family of the current maharadja lives in one half of this very authentic palace, whereas the other half is designated for guests. Around the dinner guests and family mix. Of course, there is a lot of style. The rooms are spacious, the food more than delicious. Because of both the big garden and the thick walls the palace is a place of rest in a busy city. (The palace is no hotel, guests have to be approved by the family.)
The palace is run by two amazing brothers Jay and Jolly! They are very hospitable. Joylly's Wife too takes care of the guests so personally. The stay becomes so pleasant here and you leave like a family.
It is the 2nd time that I have visited Kanker Palace and I would definitely come again, because of the warm-hearted, most friendly and nice hosts who make you feel "at home abroad". The rooms are spacious and decorated in a beautiful heritage style, combined with modern amenities. The home-cooked food is most delicious! The Palace is very well kept and managed, as well as the established school, run by a family member. It is a place, ideal to relax and to visit the surrounding tribal villages. All the very best for the future, Sabina & Andreas, Germany
The obsolete charm of a maharajh palace from 1937 Some very large and well decorated rooms A beautiful garden for relax A very good cuisine tasted in a beautiful decor A warm welcome from the princely family Shame that the price is a little overdone and that you charge the wi-fi more
We did not know of the riches that awaited us when our travel agent suggested we should visit/would like the Kanker area and whatever I write cannot do justice or describe adequately the wonderful days we spent there. Kanker Palace is now partly occupied by the current Maharaja and his extended family and is partly a hotel. It was built in the early 1800's and rebuilt in 1937. Our room was extremely comfortable with tall windows looking out onto the garden, a large 4-poster bed, our own dressing room and bathroom. But, while the Palace itself is wonderful, there are many reasons for staying here as it is far from being 'just a hotel'. But to begin at the beginning. We were welcomed in the lovely Heritage Palace by Jai and Jolly, brothers of the current Maharaja, and Jolly's wife Tina. Jay fulfils the role of Business Manager, Jolly is an ace chef and Tina is very involved with supporting the local community (in particular encouraging the local traditions), with the school which she has been instrumental in establishing (and which is next door to the Palace), and with raising her lovely family. We were also fortunate to meet the current Maharaja, an academic and author, and honoured that he shared some (very good!) wine with us over dinner. The whole family are keen, or I would even say passionate, about "creating a humane and sensitive window into the life of this region and its peoples, without disturbing it". In this spirit, they provided local guides in whose company we visited the tribal villages to watch and participate in their festivals. We walked freely around the villages finding out about (and photographing) their way of life: we visited a village nursery and a school for the older children and had lunch in the village served in bowls made from banana leaf. We visited markets where we met and enjoyed meeting the local people and, in contrast, we visited ancient rock paintings in the hills nearby. The journey to the rock paintings gave us the opportunity to observe rural life - with herders taking their cattle to pastures (with buffalo detouring to swim in the local lake), people working in fields and women working in their homes. And so much more....... We have to mention the fun we had also and especially to mention Jolly, who allowed me into his kitchen, no less! I am no chef, but we had great fun chopping onions and learning how to create recipes. We also enjoyed a trip in his jeep to the kitchen garden, where vegetables and herbs are grown. There's so much more to see and do in the area and, this may sound slightly arrogant (I hope not) but we feel that we made real friends while we were there. We can't wait to go back.…
My wife and me reached Kanker Palace in the afternoon of 22nd October and were welcomed by Jolly and Jai, two amazing, genuine hosts you could ever come across. After freshening up, we met them again who took us around and explained about the property in detail. It's history and the way they keep it up is unbelievable, considering that it is located it such a remote area. The entire family made sure to meet us which made the stay even better. The food was amazing and the taste of Daal (Lentil) cooked by Jolly will never be forgotten. Overall, a holiday that we will always remember. Highly recommended to people who love history and at the same time want to have a peaceful, relaxed holiday.
A long weekend and we decided to go down south from Raipur. And Kanker heritage provides an option of an unique experience near Raipur. The main palace was closed for stay in monsoons and we stayed at the KP cottages, which are in the palace grounds. These cottages have a nice garden in front and seating. We spent a lot of time in the verandah while our kid enjoyed the open spaces. The room itself was small with just enough space around bed to move around. Also seepage made the walls damp. The bathroom (including a dressing area) was almost as big as the room. The room had TV with lots of channels and AC (which by the way is not there in the heritage rooms). However the room was packed well and even with the rains and dense growths we did not see any insects in the room. Service was good with great food. We loved the simple but delicious food, both non-vegetarian and vegetarian. Major highlight was meeting up with Jolly who spent a lot of time with us, talking about the property, history of the place and future trips to Jagdalpur. Another cute gesture by his daughter of keeping her old tricycle for our kid made us smile. These personal touches make an otherwise average place awesome. Would we travel again? Definitely as a stopover for Jagdalpur. Maybe we will try out the annexe rooms next visit. However the cost difference is vast between the cottages and palace rooms.…
Our trip to Kanker was a fascinating experience. The whole family took us in and treated us like long lost friends. They are delightful people and they took great pleasure in answering our many questions and explaining how things work in rural India. We went to tribal villages and assisted at 2 melas accompanied by their trusted members of staff. The rooms in the palace are large and beautifully furnished, the whole palace is full of interesting artifacts, many with very compelling histories. The gardens are beautifully laid out and the visits to the school and the farm are a must. Jolly runs the kitchen and the food was delicious. We made some dear friends who we hope to see again and we thank them all for this inforgettable time.
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