India Hill Stations - Dharamsala - The Grace Hotel

India Hill Stations include The Grace Hotel at Dharamsala. It was built in the traditional hill architecture. This 200 year old country manor makes an elegant statement against the backdrop of the richly forested Dhauladhar mountains.

Grace Manor belonged to the late Mehr Chand Mahajan, first chief justice of India and prior to that Prime Minister of Kashmir. His son, Yogeshwar Mahajan restored the ancestral home and adapted it as a Welcomheritage hotel. The ambience of deep-rooted history and hospitality quietly pervades the establishment.

The town of Dharamasala clings dramatically to the hillside in the upper reaches of the Kangra valley. Since the exiled Dalai Lama took up residence and made his headquarters in Macleodganj, Upper Dharamsala, the town has become home to a large Tibetan settlement.

Accommodation

The 11 rooms and 4 suites have a simplicity and understated elegance and the stylish dining room in Dharamsala are all in keeping with the old world charm and dignity of the country manor Making it one of the most interesting India hill stations.

Dining

Indian and Chinese cuisine are served in the dining room.

Hotel Features and Leisure Activities

There is also a great deal to be visited in the vicinity:

The Museum of Kangra Art in Dharamsala has an important collection of miniature paintings from the Kangra school, some local jewellery, excellent traditional wood carvings.

McLeodganj the upper town is 10 km away up a steep and winding road. Here there is the residence and headquarters of the Dalai Lama.

Dip Thekchen Choeling Monastery with its golden roof can be seen glinting amongst tall pine forests. The Library has an exhaustive collection of books, manuscripts, and archival photographs on Tibet with important original sets of manuscripts, sacred texts and prayer scrolls. The first floor is a museum with Buddhist images, bronze figures and a collection of mandalas, including the only wooden mandala outside Tibet.

Astro Medical Institute offers Tibetan medicinal cures.

Tsuglagkhang the main Buddhist temple or (cathedral) is a five-minute walk from the main bazaar. Built on the lines of the one in Lhasa, the temple is surrounded by red and gold prayer wheels. Every afternoon, monks from the Namgyal monastries conduct debates on theological issues in the courtyard.

Norbulingka Institute teaches various skills including wood and metalcraft, silk weaving and thangka paintings. It also has a small museum with a fascinating display of traditional dolls.

Church of St. John in the Wilderness is the only remaining vestige of the British presence here. This chapel, built in 1860 is worth a visit for its beautiful stained glass windows. Severely damaged in a major earthquake in 1905, it was rebuilt. It still has the origional old bells which were cast in London and installed in 1915. The grave of Lord Elgin, ex-Viceroy of India is here.

Area Infomation

This hill town in the Kangra valley, 150 km from Mandi, has extremely pleasant weather in the summers, with warm mornings and cooler nights. The heavy monsoon showers are in July and August and the snowy winters are cold but it still draws visitors throughout the year.

It is home to the Dalai Lama and his Tibetan government in exile, it has a very large Tibetan settlement. The distinct Tibetan architecture, prayer flags and golden roofed monastries can be seen on the hillsides.

Getting There - Distances