The small two-storey summer palace in a wooded compound just west of Hamirsar Lake was the home of Madansinhji, the last titular Maharao of Kutch. Built in the 1860s in Italianate style, the building itself was badly damaged in the 2001 earthquake but the surrounding gardens, the mango grove and a small museum housed in an adjacent annexe have reopened.
The museum holds personal effects of the last royal family — period photographs, hunting trophies, monogrammed silverware, the maharao's robes — set in glass cases beneath chandeliers. It is dusty, modest, and slightly poignant. Combine the visit with a walk around the lake.