Bahawalpur: Palace, Tomb and National Park

For planning your trip, Bahawalpur offers two distinct areas of interest: historic architecture and the nature and wildlife associated with Lal Suhanra National Park. Noor Mahal and the Tomb of Bibi Jawindi offer different perspectives on architectural form and history. If you are planning a hotel stay, this distinction can help you decide on the focus of your trip first.

Palace architecture in Bahawalpur

Noor Mahal in Bahawalpur was built in 1872 in the neoclassical style, modelled on an Italian château. Two points of reference are important when looking at the building: its Italian château inspiration and its neoclassical design. If you focus on these stylistic influences, you can consider the palace as a distinct point of interest when planning your trip. Together with the Tomb of Bibi Jawindi, it offers a comparison of different architectural forms and materials.

The Tomb of Bibi Jawindi

The Tomb of Bibi Jawindi is octagonal and stands on a hill several metres high. It is made of brick masonry with glazed tile cladding. This makes it possible to consider the building’s basic form, its hilltop location and its materials separately, rather than classifying its architecture by a single stylistic label. Its relative chronology places the tomb in the period from 1206 to 1526 AD; this indicates a timeframe, not a single year of construction. The monument is protected under the Antiquities Act of 1975, as amended in 1992. In contrast to Noor Mahal, the description here is shaped by the octagonal plan and glazed tile cladding, while the palace is defined by its Italian château inspiration and neoclassical style.

Nature and wildlife at Lal Suhanra National Park

Lal Suhanra National Park is located in Bahawalpur District. Camel riding and horseback riding are associated with the park. Its listed attractions include Ovel Lake, a lion safari, chinkara, rhinoceroses, and black and mute swans. The themes therefore range from a named body of water and a safari to animal species and waterbirds. For trip planning, this offers a different focus from the architectural history of Noor Mahal or Bibi Jawindi: here, nature and wildlife take centre stage. You can first consider whether you are more interested in the buildings or in the themes associated with the park.

A wider look at Punjab

The wider destination of Punjab offers another architectural context. Noor Mahal is an Italian-influenced royal palace, built there by Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan IV in 1872. Derawar Fort is located in the Cholistan Desert near Bahawalpur in Punjab; Abbasi Masjid is within the fort complex. In Lahore, Jahangir's Tomb is in a garden on the right bank of the Ravi in Shahdara, on the northwestern edge of the city, and Anarkali's Tomb is on the grounds of the Civil Secretariat. Anarkali's Tomb is considered one of the earliest surviving Mughal tombs. Masjid Wazir Khan is in the old city near Delhi Gate. The Sunehri Mosque was built in 1753 during the decline of the Mughal Empire and is located in Kashmiri Bazaar in Lahore’s old city.

Find a hotel to suit your travel focus

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Discover more destinations: Bahawalpur, Lahore, Gujrat, Faisalabad District, Multan District, Sialkot District, Rawalpindi District.

Go to the broader travel overview: Punjab.