Maimun Palace is the most important historic building in Medan and the former seat of the Sultanate of Deli, which grew rich from tobacco in the late 19th century. Built in 1888–1891 and covering 2,772 square metres, the palace blends Malay, Mughal, Moorish, and European architectural elements in a way that is both extravagant and coherent.
The throne room, with its yellow furnishings (the royal colour of Malay royalty), is the centrepiece. For a small fee you can dress in period costume and be photographed in the throne room. The gardens surrounding the palace are peaceful and shaded. Nearby, a small museum building holds artefacts and documents from the Deli Sultanate. The palace is open daily, and the surrounding neighbourhood retains a number of early 20th-century colonial and Chinese shophouses worth exploring on foot.