SHIMLA
Around 45km from Shimla via Kufri. The cricket ground sits at about 2,444m, one of the highest in the world, but it is inside Rashtriya Military School and Army-maintained, so entry onto the pitch is restricted - view it from the perimeter. Palace history is disputed (see below), so enjoy the Patiala backstory as local legend.
Chail was developed in the 1890s as a summer retreat by the Maharaja of Patiala. Popular legend says he had been barred from Shimla by the British and built a rival hill station, though the versions of that story differ on the details. The palace's own history is disputed: Himachal Tourism describes it as dating to 1891, while other accounts hold that the 1891-92 palace built under Rajinder Singh was replaced by Rajgarh Palace, completed in 1951. It has been run by Himachal Tourism since the 1970s. The cricket ground, built in 1893 at about 2,444 m and one of the highest in the world, was begun under Rajinder Singh and finished under his son Bhupinder Singh; it now sits inside the Rashtriya Military School and is maintained by the Army.
