Golf in a royal estate
Within the sprawling grounds of the Laxmi Vilas Palace lies one of the more unusual features of royal Baroda — a golf course laid out across the palace estate. A legacy of the Gaekwads’ cosmopolitan tastes, the Gaekwad Baroda Golf Club offers a green, undulating course in the very shadow of the great palace — a rare survival of princely leisure in the heart of a city.
Wooded, landscaped and quiet, the course is a glimpse of the refined, Anglophile world the Baroda royals moved in. While it is a members’/club facility rather than a public sight, the green expanse is part of what makes the Laxmi Vilas estate so extraordinary.
A members’/club facility; admire the setting from the palace grounds.
The fairway.
Gaekwad tastes, laid out on a palace lawn
Palace green.
The course is laid out inside the Laxmi Vilas Palace estate, using the parkland the Gaekwads kept around their residence.
It reflects the Gaekwads' anglophile tastes — the same outlook that brought cricket, a European-trained court and Indo-Saracenic architecture to Baroda.
The result is an undulating, wooded course running in the shadow of the palace itself.
It operates as the Gaekwad Baroda Golf Club, a members' facility rather than a public park.
Reasons to make the time
Palace golf
Very few courses anywhere are laid out inside a working palace estate; this is the setting's whole distinction.
In the estate
Laxmi Vilas rises directly beyond the fairways, and the palace is in view from much of the course.
Green & wooded
The ground is undulating and well wooded, using the estate's mature trees rather than clearing them.
Gaekwad heritage
It survives as a piece of princely leisure infrastructure still in use for its original purpose.
Refined world
Baroda under Sayajirao III looked outward deliberately, and a golf course in the palace grounds is part of that story.
Unusual sight
Access is for members and their guests; casual visitors see the course from the palace grounds rather than play it.
What to look for inside
THE COURSEPalace golf
A golf course laid out within the Laxmi Vilas Palace estate.
THE SETTINGRoyal grounds
The palace grounds themselves, mature and wooded, which the course runs through.
How to spend an hour or two
See the green estate
See the course from the palace grounds, which is how most visitors will encounter it.
Learn the princely leisure
Read it as evidence of Gaekwad taste — the same outlook that produced the palace and the university.
Admire from the palace
Take in the wider estate, of which the course is only one part.
Sense the Anglophile world
Note how deliberately outward-looking princely Baroda was; this is one small piece of that.
Enjoy the setting
Enjoy the greenery — mature trees and open ground in the middle of a busy city.
Pair with the palace
Visit Laxmi Vilas Palace itself, which is open to visitors and the reason to come to this part of Vadodara.
Maharaja’s golf course.
A fairway by a palace
Within the Laxmi Vilas Palace estate, the Gaekwad Baroda Golf Club lays an 18-hole course across the royal grounds — a green, wooded survival of princely, Anglophile leisure in the heart of the city.
The rest of the district is covered in our Vadodara travel guide.
A members’ facility, best appreciated as part of the extraordinary palace estate.
Within the palace estate
A green royal golf course
A legacy of Gaekwad tastes
Princely leisure preserved
When to go
November to February is the pleasant season in Vadodara, and the best time in the palace grounds.
The monsoon greens the estate thoroughly, and the mature trees come into their own.
April to June is hot; the shaded parts of the grounds are the only comfortable option.
⏰ Visit in the cooler months and combine it with Vadodara's palaces and gardens nearby.
Timings & entry
- Open in daytime hours
- Best in the cool season
- An easy Vadodara stop
- Pair with nearby sights
- A members'/club facility
- Not a public sight
- Admire from the palace grounds
- Part of the royal estate
Getting there
By Air
Vadodara airport (~9 km).
By Rail
Vadodara Junction.
By Road
In/around Vadodara.
At Maharaja's Golf Course
GREEN & ROYALTY
Golf in a palace estate
What to shoot
The green estate.
Backdrop
The palace.
Setting
Wooded grounds.
Best light
Estate at golden hour.
Know before you go
More to see close by
GALLERYBaroda Museum
Art & picture gallery in Sayaji Baug
NATUREAjwa-Nimeta Gardens
Musical fountains & lakeside greenery
ISKCON Baroda
A serene Krishna temple & cultural hub
HERITAGEMS University
India’s famed Faculty of Fine Arts campus
RIVERFRONTVishwamitri Riverfront
Green riverbanks winding through the city
Champaner-Pavagadh
The UNESCO-listed sultanate capital below Pavagadh hill, where an intact 15th-century city of mosques, gateways and…
Where to eat near Maharaja’s Golf Course
Gujarati Thali
Sweet-savoury full meals.
Sev usal
Baroda's spicy snack.
Lilo chevdo
Famous Baroda street food.
Foodie city
Famous for sev usal, lilo chevdo & farsan.
Maharaja’s Golf Course FAQ
What is Maharaja's Golf Course?
Within the sprawling grounds of the Laxmi Vilas Palace lies one of the more unusual features of royal Baroda — a golf course laid out across the palace estate. A legacy of the Gaekwads' cosmopolitan tastes, the Gaekwad Baroda Golf Club offers a green, undulating course in the very shadow of the great palace — a rare survival of princely leisure in the heart of a city.
Where is it?
Laxmi Vilas Palace estate, Vadodara.
Is there an entry fee?
Members / club.
When should I visit?
October to March, in the cooler season.
What's nearby?
Vadodara's palaces, gardens and Champaner.
How long does it take?
It is a members'/club facility rather than a timed public sight — plan around a wider Laxmi Vilas estate visit.
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Published 24 June 2026 · Updated 24 August 2026