India GOLuxury stays in India: palace hotels, grand old hotels and quiet heritage houses
In India a luxury hotel is often a piece of history you can sleep in: a maharaja's residence in Jaipur, a nobleman's palace above Hyderabad, the hotel that opened beside the Gateway of India in 1903. This collection gathers eleven addresses, from former royal palaces and grand city hotels to a hill estate in Landour and a palace on the ghats of Varanasi, and says what sets each one apart.
Palace hotels, colonial heritage properties and five-star retreats: India's most extraordinary places to stay.
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Palaces you can stay in
Rambagh Palace, Jaipur
It began in 1835 as a garden house for the wet nurse of Prince Ram Singh II and by 1925 had become the main residence of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. He opened it as a hotel in the 1950s, and Taj has managed it since 1972. Persian carpets, antique furniture and gardens with peacocks keep the feel of a royal house.
Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad
Built by Nawab Sir Viqar-ul-Umra between 1884 and 1893, acquired by the sixth Nizam a few years later, and opened as a hotel in November 2010 after restoration. Falaknuma means "like the sky" in Urdu; the palace stands on a hill about 5 km from the Charminar.
BrijRama Palace, Varanasi
A palace on the ghats with the Ganga below the windows: marble floors, antique furniture and breakfast on a terrace facing the sunrise over the river.
Grand old city hotels
The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai
Opened by Jamsetji Tata on 16 December 1903 next to the Gateway of India, facing the Arabian Sea. It was one of the main targets of the November 2008 Mumbai attacks.
The Imperial, New Delhi
New Delhi's first grand hotel, designed by F. B. Blomfield, an associate of Edwin Lutyens, in a mix of Art Deco, Victorian and colonial styles, and opened in 1936 on Janpath, a short walk from Connaught Place.
Taj West End, Bengaluru
A heritage hotel set in a huge tropical garden with century-old trees, with the feel of colonial-era Bengaluru. More stays in the city: where to stay in Bengaluru.
The Oberoi, Mumbai
A contemporary hotel at Nariman Point beside Marine Drive, with the Arabian Sea in front of it.
Modern luxury and quiet retreats
Rokeby Manor, Landour (Mussoorie)
A stone house with wooden verandas, fireplaces and valley views in the cantonment above Mussoorie, kept in the spirit of an early 20th-century British hill residence.
Ritz-Carlton, Bengaluru, and Taj Taal Kutir, Kolkata
Two modern five-star hotels. The Ritz-Carlton on Residency Road is about service, restaurants and a spa in the centre of the city. Taj Taal Kutir in New Town is a calmer, greener base by a lake, away from Kolkata's dense centre.
Ashwem, North Goa
Not one hotel but a beach: a North Goa beach with hotels and restaurants right on the shore. More in where to stay in Goa.
When to go
The season matters more than the room. Jaipur is comfortable from October to March and very hot from April to June. Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Goa are at their best from November to February; in Goa the sea is closed from June to September. Delhi is best in October and February–March, with smog from November to January. Landour is good in March–May and October–November, and from July to August landslides can cut the road up.
❓ FAQ
Which palace hotels in India were real royal residences?
Rambagh Palace in Jaipur was the main residence of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II from about 1925. Falaknuma in Hyderabad was built by a Hyderabad nobleman and passed to the sixth Nizam in the 1890s.
When did the Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai open?
On 16 December 1903. It was commissioned by Jamsetji Tata and stands next to the Gateway of India.