Heritage and boutique hotels in Mumbai

Jamsetji Tata commissioned this Indo-Saracenic hotel, which opened in December 1903, before the Gateway of India that now stands beside it. In 2017 it became the first building in India to have its image protected as a trademark. The original Palace wing of 1903 and the Tower of 1972 are two separate buildings, so check which one your room is in. Non-guests can book afternoon tea at the Sea Lounge, with views of the Arabian Sea, by prior reservation. The Taj Mahal Palace.

One of the original 1930s Art Deco buildings on Marine Drive, run as a hotel for over half a century: spacious, simply furnished sea-facing rooms and one of the best windows in the city onto the Queen's Necklace at dusk. There is no spa or rooftop bar; the view is the point.

A boutique hotel in a 1910 building five minutes on foot from the Gateway of India, with 25 individually designed rooms mixing Art Deco lines, colonial-era pieces and local craft. There is a small cafe, a wellness room and a craft boutique, and the staff arrange dawn walks at Sassoon Docks and heritage cycle tours.

A hostel in a Colaba building more than a century old, within walking distance of the Gateway and Colaba Causeway, with air-conditioned dorms and private rooms. The old-Bombay building is the character.

Billed as India's first art hotel, with fourteen rooms each given to a different artist and a theme from Indian philosophy and mythology, so no two look alike. Small enough to feel like a guesthouse, with a spa and concierge, in leafy Bandra among cafes, boutiques and sea-front promenades.

Soho House's first Indian outpost rises eleven storeys over Juhu Beach, with a rooftop pool and bar that catch the Arabian Sea sunset. The 38 bedrooms have bone-inlay furniture and lampshades stitched from sari fabric, and hotel guests get access to the club's restaurants and spaces. The choice for a scene rather than silence.