
]
Halcyon Castle (now called The Kovalam Palace) was built in 1932 in the
princely state
A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...
of
Travancore
The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. A ...
, in the modern-day state of
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South C ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...
. It was constructed by M.R.Ry Sri Rama Varma Valiya Koil Thampuran, the consort of Maharani
Sethu Lakshmi Bayi
Pooradam Thirunal Sethu Lakshmi Bayi CI (5 November 1895– 22 February 1985) was the monarch, though designated as the Regent due to British policy, of the Kingdom of Travancore in southern India between 1924 and 1931. She, along with her y ...
, as a retreat for their family. In 1964 Valiya Koil Thampuran sold the entire property to the Government of India; since then it has been a luxury hotel. A dispute arose when the
India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), which was running the hotel, sold it to a private hotel resort group.
Radhakrishnan, S. Anil (9 April 2003) "Report to be submitted on Halcyon Castle row" ''The Hindu'' Chennai (Madras), India
It has since then been taken under The Raviz Hotels and Resorts and been renovated and restored to its former glory.
Status
Ravi Pillai
B. Ravi Pillai (born 2 September 1953) is a Dubai-based Indian billionaire businessman. He is the founder and chairman of the RP Group. As of September 2021, his net worth is estimated at US$2.5 billion.
Early life
Ravi Pillai was born on 2 ...
owns the hotel and the entire adjoining land area measuring around 65 acres; he has contracted with the Leela Hotel Group to manage the 5-Star hotel. It is a heritage palace that has been completely refurbished to maintain its original charm and is now available for guests.
Suites
The Palace has 4 suites named after the royal family and the goddesses after whom the queens were named after. The four uber luxurious suites are coloured red, rusty orange, blue and green with a view of The Arabian sea from each of the rooms. The renovated palace has Murano Chandeliers and Mantellassi furnishings and has state of the art automation.
References
Hotels in Thiruvananthapuram
Palaces in Thiruvananthapuram
Buildings and structures completed in 1932
1932 establishments in India
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