ISKCON New Vrindaban (Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra Temple and Prabhupada's Palace of Gold) stands in Moundsville, West Virginia, United States, is a shrine to Radha Vrindaban Chandra, Krishna Balaram, Sri Nathji. It is also known as Palace of Gold, America's Taj Mahal, RVC Temple.
The Palace of Gold has been called 'America's Taj Mahal' and was named one of the eight religious wonders to see in the United States by CNN. It is one of the most visited tourist attractions in West Virginia and a major pilgrimage site for the Hare Krishna movement in North America, alongside the community's active Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra temple. New Vrindaban was founded in 1968 by Kirtanananda Swami and Hayagriva Das, early disciples of A.C.
United States carries a distinct temple identity of its own: Home to the largest Hindu temple outside India, alongside decades-old community mandirs built by generations of the diaspora.
Darshan hours and daily worship
Published sources do not give a single clean daily window for this temple; see the notes below for what is documented.
The Palace of Gold and grounds are open daily 10:00 am to 5:00 pm; temple darshan and aarti schedules should be confirmed directly with New Vrindaban
Festivals and special-day timings
Regular darshan hours are usually extended, or set aside entirely, on these dates.
| Festival | Period | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Janmashtami | September | Celebration of Krishna's appearance day |
| Appearance of Srila Prabhupada | September | Commemorates the founder of ISKCON |
| Radhastami | September | Celebration of Radha's appearance day |
| Festival of Colors | October | Community color festival |
| Govardhana Puja | November | Traditional Krishna-related observance |
History and architecture
Architecture
Palace of Gold is an ornate structure of marble, gold leaf and carved teakwood, built largely with donated labor by community members who learned construction skills on the job; set within landscaped gardens, ponds and peacock walks
History
New Vrindaban was founded in 1968 by Kirtanananda Swami and Hayagriva Das, early disciples of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). The Palace of Gold was originally begun in the early 1970s as a planned residence for Prabhupada; after his death in November 1977, before its completion, the community transformed the project into an ornate memorial shrine, dedicated on 2 September 1979. The community grew to several hundred residents by the 1980s, was expelled from ISKCON in the late 1980s amid a leadership crisis, and was formally readmitted in 1998.
Planning your visit
How to reach
Located at 3759 McCrearys Ridge Rd., Moundsville, WV 26041, in the Appalachian foothills near Wheeling, West Virginia
Where this information comes from
Confidence: Medium. Festival dates were pulled from the temple's 2026 calendar and will shift in future years since Hindu festival dates follow a lunar calendar; entry fee figure comes from a third-party travel blog rather than the temple's own current pricing page