City palace is another major tourist attraction in Alwar. It lies just below the Alwar fort and has massive gates. It has a tank lined by beautifully symmetrical chain of ghats with four pavilions on each side and two at each end. At present most of the complex is occupied by the government offices. The lower floor is used as offices while the upper floors are used as a museum.

This city palace was build by Vinai Singh in 1793 and called as Vinai vilas mahal after him. The architecture is a beautiful blend of the Mughal and Rajput architecture. The curved roofs and pavilions are simply superb and there is exquisite delicate embroidered work on the windows. The most alluring thing in this palace is the exquisitely carved durbar hall. This hall welcomes the visitors to this former citadel of the Rulers of Alwar. The palace has graceful marble pavilions set on lotus flower bases in the central courtyard. This palace was once the part of the maharaja’s ornate lifestyle and household. Among other things there is a drinking cup cut out of a single emerald in the treasury. There is a double storied four elephant carriage in the stables.

There is a small room in the hall that has beautiful frescos and you need to take special permission from the present king to look at it. There is a beautiful women’s room in this palace. This is beautifully carved and is a reminiscent of the past glory.

The city palace houses a museum in its upper floor and is famously called as the government museum. The museum spreads over three halls and houses a rare and splendid collection of manuscripts in Persian, Arabic, Urdu and Sanskrit. The manuscripts include copies of Babur Nama (autobiography of Mughal emperor Babur), Persian Poet Gulistan (the garden of Roses) and Bostan (the garden of spring). Other major attractions of the museum consist of an array of weapons and armory. There is a copy of Mahabharata painted by the artists of the Alwar School.

There is a splendid chatri inside the palace area. This is the Moosi chatri, which has Bengali roof and beautiful arches. Located within the chatri is a beautiful garden called as company garden or purjan vihar.