WHEN Health Minister Digvijay Khanvilkar�s son Vishwavijay married Sumitra, niece of Public Works Minister Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, the entire Maharashtra government�s cabinet turned up at Kolhapur to attend the wedding. And they stayed at the Hotel Victor Palace at Rukmini Nagar on the old Poona-Bangalore Road. This is Kolhapur�s best and most luxurious hotel, prominently located, and within kilometres from the railway station, bus stand, and airport... in case you are chartering a plane and flying down to Kolhapur like the cabinet ministers did.

Hotel Victor Palace is a three-star equipped with all the amenities of modern living. It has 52 centrally air-conditioned and well-appointed rooms that are elegantly furnished. These are spacious, they have separate dressing rooms, and luxurious bathrooms with shower stalls. The hotel has four special theme suites: Blue Lagoon, Heritage, Orchid and Penthouse, each one of them lavishly furnished and different from the rest. An Executive Room (single occupancy) costs Rs. 1,115 and double occupancy, Rs. 1,350. The Superior Room costs Rs. 1,650; Deluxe Suite Rs. 2,200; and the Theme Suites cost Rs. 2,600. Hotel Victor Palace also has budget category rooms available.

The hotel is known for its food. It has four restaurants catering to different tastes. The Bikaner is exclusively vegetarian in menu, it maintains a strict veg kitchen, and serves Indian, Chinese and Continental food. Shamsher is the non-vegetarian restaurant serving Mughlai, Chinese and Indian food. It has a select Kolhapuri cuisine menu that is outstanding. Regiment is the bar and Palmgrove, the coffee shop located by the poolside that is open round the clock and often used as a restaurant by Kolhapur families.

But the hot-spot of Hotel Victor Palace is its state-of-the-art discotheque Cyber Space, the only one in South-Western Maharashtra. It is equipped with 4,000 watts of mind-blowing sound power, techno lights (Martin Sweepers, Roboscan, Starflash and Robocolours), a professional dance floor, and manned by professional DJs. A number of theme parties are organised here.

Hotel Victor Palace is also the only hotel in Kolhapur which has a swimming pool. And an Olympic-sized pool, with underwater lights and crystal clear water that is maintained in high quality standards. The health club is called Mind & Body, it is equipped with modern workout equipment, a jacuzzi, steam bath and sauna. Regular yoga and aerobics classes are held in the health club. There is a beauty parlour called Cleopatra for women and Caesar for men.