by Mannika Chopra
with photography by Vijay Verghese

See also Andaman Islands | Bangalore | Goa | Gulmarg | Himachal | Ladakh | Mumbai | Rajasthan | India Spas | Nepal treks | Sri Lanka | Yangon | Bhutan Guide

Hotel Contact Information         See Photographs

Negotiate that long, snaking immigration queue and you’ll be ready to encounter your first real Indian-style distraction. A bewildering array of counters offering all manner of transport await you as you exit Customs. First time travellers, especially women, should opt for the yellow sign saying ‘Pre-Paid Taxi’ in bold, black letters. The counter is run by Delhi police who take down your name and destination before you pay. Prices are fixed on the basis of distance and amount of luggage. A one-hour journey from the airport to the Delhi’s city centre will be around Rs300 (exchange rate roughly US$1 = 41 Indian rupees). At journey’s end, simply hand over the computerized slip. Tips are optional but outstretched palms and heart-rending stories are to be expected. Interestingly enough, if you're at the head of the immigration queue and have no check-in baggage to wait for, you could be right through the airport and into the taxi scrum in ten minutes.

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Regal canopy on Raj Path

Safe they might be but the yellow and black taxis, normally Maruti Suzuki vans, are not air-conditioned. If this sounds alarming, there are other options. Prices can rocket from Rs500 to Rs800 depending on the car. So research well before choosing. An ITDC air-conditioned prepaid cab will set you back just Rs550 for a marginally cooler – and less dusty – ride into town. Some transport providers tempt unsuspecting passengers by saying they are ‘pre-paid’. Look for a grimy window with strapping men twirling their moustaches and peering in deep puzzlement at dusty computers, and that’s likely to be a genuine ‘prepaid’ counter manned by cops, the city’s finest.

Delhi’s taxis are supposed to charge according to the meter. This is of course an aspirational, rather than actualised, ideal. It is mandatory for all taxis to have meters, which start from a baseline of Rs15 while the auto rickshaw (three-wheel scooters), start at Rs5. These autos, or scooties for the die-hard “Delhi-wallahs”, offer a darting rollercoaster ride ending with the usual all out haggling. Make sure the meter is turned on as you get in. Taxi meters, mysteriously covered in towels, are invariably out of order, or set to whirr at Olympian speeds in no relation to distance, speed, time or any other sensible yardstick you might think of. Then there are the surcharges, with complex calculations, tabled in well-thumbed charts. My advice? Surrender to India. Toss your watch (you won’t be needing it here), lie back and enjoy things. Do it India style and the journey will be fun, full of surprises and even the odd, fully-revealed taxi meter – that works. And now certain parts of Delhi are connected by an efficient underground Metro train, the digging works for the extension lines in evidence all over the city.

Tombsand walks at Lodhi Gardens

Delhi is awash with hotels to suit all budgets and tastes. And they are always full. From dodgy backpacker hotels in grungy Daryaganj where rooms are available for US$5 and not-too-pinching New Delhi guesthouses, to brisk Delhi business hotels like The Oberoi, and the spacious suites of the ultra exclusive Trident in Gurgaon (almost a suburb of the capital now), a whole range of rooms is available. Expect houseful signs and exorbitant prices. Here, US$300 might be considered a steal. All the good New Delhi hotels have smoking and non-smoking rooms. Credit cards are accepted at all establishments, except perhaps at shifty Daryaganj dives, otherwise ATMs are conveniently located. When room rates or any facility like the Internet is being quoted remember it is without the luxury tax, which in Delhi is a crunching 12.5 percent. As yet hotels in Gurgaon pay no luxury tax and are therefore cheaper.

New Delhi business and luxury hotels

Although top end hotels are fairly evenly distributed all over the city Central and South Delhi hotels are much the rage. This is also where most of the best New Delhi hotels are located and for the purposes of this hotel review we’ll start at the centre. Well established in the premium range is The Oberoi New Delhi. Part of a very efficiently-run international chain, the seven-storey, 279-room hotel overlooking Delhi’s spiffy, 19-hole golf course brings with it oodles of pedigree along with a stupendous location. Built in 1965 the hotel may be looking a tad frayed compared to the brash new hotels that have sprung up but it still sports a jaunty stride and offers Louis Vuitton and Cartier outlets in its shopping arcade. Deluxe rooms face the pool while premium rooms either look across to the golf course or the magnificent 17th century Humayun’s Tomb. Corner deluxe suites at this top New Delhi business hotel offer both views and come at a none-too-cheap US$900. Off season rates (mid April-end August) are around 15 percent lower than the rack rates. All rooms come with 24-hour butler service and Internet. Maintaining devilishly detailed guest profiles, including their tastes in movies — apparently James Bond is a favourite with Japanese executives – ensures as many as 45 percent of guests are repeat clients.

Brisk Oberoi New Delhi/ photo: hotel

The Oberoi’s business centre is expanding. Besides providing the essentials – fax, Internet (charges range from Rs250 for one hour to Rs2,000 for 24 hours) and photocopying machines, the centre also organises translation and provides interpretation facilities. The latest addition to The Oberoi is the spa managed by Banyan Tree. Within its glass and Turkish marble interiors, the spa is heavy with the scent of aromatic oils and soft music. For business travellers a special jet lag massage is priced at Rs1,750. The more laid back sister hotel Maidens is in Old Delhi.

A ten-minute walk from lively Khan Market, where bookshops, boutiques and flower shops compete with provision stores, is the Taj Mahal Hotel New Delhi on tree-lined Mansingh Road. Part of the fast-growing Taj group, the hotel has provided the backdrop to many Bollywood Hindi films. Lemon essence is a signature scent that wafts throughout the property. The lobby has long been a popular “Delhi-ite” hangout with its marble filigree and ceiling cupolas decorated with enamelled inlay. A recent renovation has yielded somewhat mixed results though. A huge, marble fountain with an orb at its centre now dominates the lobby at odds with the more delicate Mughal friezes adorning the walls.

This has not stopped the hotel running 100 percent occupancies with premium rooms booked almost year-round. Just off the lobby are two of Delhi’s acclaimed signature restaurants — The House of Ming, specializing in Szechuan Chinese, and the Machan, a 24-hour coffee shop known for its deserts like Bulls Eye (a sinful mélange of ice-cream, and warm chocolate cake doused with a bitter chocolate sauce).

Ornate Taj Mahal Hotel/ photo: hotel

Built in 1982, this 12-storey business hotel has over the years assumed an iconic status with excellent service and a great location. Its terrace-facing, deluxe rooms overlook a grassed terrace dotted with Alstonia trees growing in massive planters. Armchairs in the room come with a handy footstool to rest tired legs. Most deluxe rooms have king-size beds though a queen is available on request. A standard size safe is available in all rooms and for extra storage, the lobby manger can provide more locker space at a charge.

Higher up the scale, the Club Rooms for jet-setting business travellers offer the same space but more freebies: two-way airport transfers; round the clock access to the Club lounge with its private meeting areas, breakfast buffet, all day coffee and tea service and complimentary drinks during Happy Hours. On Club floors special rooms have been specially designed and set up for single women travellers. Security cameras outside the door enable women guests to see their visitors on their hotel telephones and, perhaps, to turn them away if they are not good looking enough.

If you want lavish, then the Presidential Suite overlooking India Gate and Rashtrapati Bhavan (the Presidential palace), fits the bill. Pakistan supremo Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Tony Blair have dined off its Christofle crockery, and slept on the ultra-soft Frette cotton sheets. All this of course sets the state exchequer back by a cool US$5,000 per night. But then, you get a treadmill, laptop, six TVs, projector, desktop computer and a 2,950sq ft suite. The Taj is a fine downtown garden area New Delhi business hotel with high standards.

But the city’s undisputed jewel in the crown is the majestic The Imperial New Delhi. Centrally located near Connaught Place on Janpath, the prime Delhi shopping strip – and adjacent to the government-run Cottage Emporium – the hotel was built in 1936. Dilapidated Raj has given way to colonial chic infused with all mod cons, including Oriental-looking door girls and stunning flower arrangements in the lobby. Award-winning restaurants like the Spice Route and the stylish bar 1911 add to the hotel’s cachet.

The Imperial's laundered colonial tone

This 231-room Delhi heritage hotel set in verdant grounds doubles easily as a business address and offers huge dollops of history. The old high-ceiling rooms built at a more gracious time, remain, along with the colonial décor, now substantially spruced up. Towels and sheets are monogrammed with the hotel’s insignia given by the British to the family, who owned the hotel. Good-size standard rooms come with names like Heritage and Imperial and the best views open out poolside. With basic rooms starting at US$350, rates are comparatively high but the maxim that you pay for what you get holds particularly true here.

It’s easy to see why The Imperial is often called a hotel museum. Its corridors, which double as art galleries, are lined with original watercolours and oils, while 17th and 18th century antiques dot the public spaces. A daily hotel tour details the Imperial’s many, many hidden treasures, some of which you will happily trip over during any casual walkabout.

Close by is The Shangri-La Hotel New Delhi, run by the Hongkong-based chain. A spacious lobby is lit by three huge chandeliers and further embellished with a plasma TV. This new kid on the block is all spit and polish and gleams with self-confidence. Its well-polished granite floors might be a challenge for those in overly tall stilettos. Positioned as a prime downtown business hotel, the Shangri-La attracts a fair bit of custom from Southeast Asia. All its rooms are road facing and the higher up you go the more likely you are to spot Delhi’s enduring monuments and landmarks like India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan and Parliament House. This location is pretty much at the heart of Sir Edward Lutyens’ Delhi where roundabouts (not traffic lights) regulate traffic along broad tree-lined radial avenues. This is the part of town where Delhi as a garden city is best enjoyed. The Shangri-La offers its own garden with shaded trees and outdoor pool where you can enjoy a bite alfresco before the sun beats down in earnest. Of course, should you wish to catch the rays, stretch out at the pool. Later retire to the spa for a rubdown or customised treatment.

Signature restaurant at Shangri-La Delhi

For large boned westerners the Shangri-La’s superior rooms might be a tad snug but are very comfortable nevertheless. A floor-to-ceiling glass wall separates the bedroom from the bath and a screen can be rolled down if you insist on being coy. Every room comes with a copy of the book, Shangri-La, after which the chain has been named. All rooms features LCD TVs, high-speed Internet and, a useful touch, ironing board and iron. Guests on Horizon Club floors get complimentary ironing of two items of clothing every day.

Besides the usual facilities, the business centre provides conference rooms, translation and interpretation services and even prints business cards (Rs600 for a set of 100). The hotel boasts some excellent and rather trendy restaurants with international cuisine. This is a brisk centrally-located Delhi business hotel that is making a mark.

Across the roundabout from the Shangri-La, the Le Meridien New Delhi was built for the Asian games in 1982 and it has been newly refurbished. The all-black marble lobby has been transformed into an all-white affair, with several plasma TVs providing entertainment for lobby loungers. A massive glass pillar backs the reception area in an odd stab at futuristic design. The older rooms feature black marble and thick floor carpeting while the newly renovated Club Rooms come with mood lighting – popular with honeymooners. Where the hotel comes up trumps is in its care for disabled guests. There are ramps everywhere and bathrooms are equipped for the handicapped. InterContinental The Grand New Delhi (one of two InterCon hotels in the Indian capital) is perched on the fringe of Connaught Place, the heart of town. The hotel lobby features an airy four-floor atrium. This InterContinental is close to central Delhi offices as well as shopping. Rooms come in three categories - Presidential Tower, Club InterContinental Floors, and Deluxe. There is an outdoor pool and business travellers can avail of high-speed Internet. Lawyers will feel at home at the Law Club, a special facility for the legal-eagle crowd.

The Claridges: residential style

The white-washed old world The Claridges New Delhi occupies a corner garden plot not far from the Taj Mahal New Delhi and it is very popular with journalists, and Western visitors. The place has gone through several useful renovations and offers modern service and amenities in a low-rise residential-style building that offers great atmosphere, not to mention alfresco tea on the lawns. Popular Indian restaurant, Dhaba, has been a Delhi mainstay for years, and The Tandoor knocks out good kebabs. Claridges offers small conference facilties and a modern business centre. Expect attentive service in an informal setting.

The Park New Delhi (a member of “design hotels”) is smack in the middle of town on Parliament Street, close to Connaught Place and overlooking the historic observatory Jantar Mantar. It occupies an unassuming white-washed building that is easy to miss. Step inside though and the place is transformed, with mood lighting, Arabian-nights glass-bead curtains, cool lounges, and bright splashes of colour. There are 224 rooms with 25 deluxe rooms, seven deluxe suites and four presidential suites. On the super luxury “Residence” floors, rooms come with fax machine, VCD player, butler service, Jacuzzi, and an in-room personal safe. The hotel will be happy to provide a laptop upon request. Twenty-four-hour dining is on offer at MIST, a private swimming pool is at hand, and to work off the day’s stress, there’s The Spa with sauna, steam room and massage. Much thought has gone into the design concept. Overall the hotel is light and airy. With fewer rooms it might have passed off as a boutique hotel. The Park is a rather well run business hotel in Delhi’s central district with funky rooms and flourishes that may appeal to jaded travellers.

Top-drawer Delhi conference hotels, closer to the city’s diplomatic areas and the airport, along Sardar Patel Marg, include ITC Hotel Maurya Sheraton & Towers and the neighbouring Taj Palace Hotel New Delhi. From US Presidents Bush and Clinton, to Chirac and the King of Saudi Arabia, nearly all visiting heads of state have stayed at the Maurya Sheraton, probably at some inconvenience to other guests. Billed as one of the best Delhi business hotels, its seven floors are divided into three wings – Maurya, Towers and ITC One.

Funky room at The Park/ photo: hotel

Enter the main lobby and you are under the Indian version of the Sistine chapel. When the hotel was launched it commissioned well-known artist Kishen Khanna to paint scenes from Indian village life on its domed ceiling. Look carefully and you can see a cow being scrubbed with what looks like a loofa, wandering mendicants and doe-eyed village women. Stained glass panels painted by India’s foremost rebel artist, MF Hussain, ring the outer windows.

The most economical wing is the Maurya where the basic rooms start at a whopping US$325. Best views overlook the garden and pool the worst, the hotel’s engineering plant. Standard rooms are not cramped at all and come with a bathtub. The more spacious Luxury Suites come with 42-inch plasma TVs and king-size beds. Twins beds are available only in the Sheraton Towers wing. Noisy room renovations should be complete by third quarter 2006.

The hotel has a well-equipped health club but no dedicated spa. Apart from its VIP clientele, perhaps the Maurya’s most well known asset is the Bukhara restaurant which has become a landmark in Delhi serving traditional north Indian cuisine including kebabs that melt in your mouth. Reservations are recommended. Or try Dumpukth, featuring steamed nawabi cuisine. Another big draw is tarot card reader Ma Prem Usha (approx US$35 per reading).

Right next door is the 421-room Taj Palace Hotel New Delhi. Built in 1987, its expansive white marble lobby is cut down to size by the presence of a newly opened Tea Lounge where you can sip 32 different kinds of teas. With two separate entrances, the hotel is positioned as a prime New Delhi conference hotel catering largely to business delegations which probably accounts for the larger in-room safes. Nearly the size of mini-bars these safes look like they will comfortably house a laptop, and the kitchen sink. But even these are to be upgraded. The new safes will not only be spacious enough for widescreen laptops but will also have electrical sockets. The Taj Palace also provides video conference facilities and a nine-hole putting green.

The Grand: closer to the airport/ photo: hotel

All rooms are either city or pool facing. Premium rooms are favoured. The more luxurious Club Rooms come with complimentary Tarapaca wine, airport transfers, breakfast at the Club Lounge, cocktail hour and private check-in. Spread over six acres the hotel is known for its eateries like the Orient Express, where a meal for two with drinks will set you back roughly Rs3,000. More economical is the newer Masala Art, which serves fusion Indian food, sometimes cooked in olive oil and probably the only food outlet in Delhi that serves sanitized sugar cane juice.

The government-run The Ashok in the heart of the green diplomatic enclave has more competitive rates. With 550 rooms it’s easily the capital’s biggest property and is a popular Delhi conference and meetings hotel. The Ashok is a landmark building and not only for its distinctive sandstone exterior (mimicking the famous Red Fort). Not in the same league as other business hotels, periodic attempts have been made to revive this historic hotel. New restaurants have opened, like Marchenber which serves Lebanese and lounge bar pub, Ssteel. But it is Amatrra, its charming lifestyle spa, which is the hotel’s new inspiration. Techno-gym equipment, Vichy showers, yoga classes and an automatic shampooing machine are all on offer here.

The Shervani New Delhi is in the residential heartland of Sundar Nagar near the exhibition grounds, the Old Fort and a bustling shopping market. The converted residence is positioned as a New Delhi boutique hotel with just 19 rooms. Enjoy high ceilings, a terrace with treetop views, a business centre, and a small gym. And in the central Connaught Place area, the city’s shopping and business hub, The Metropolitan Hotel, New Delhi, offers 180 rooms and suites, the Zen Serena Spa, and a variety of restaurants that offer international menus including Japanese.

South Delhi hotel options

The Hyatt Regency lies equidistant from central New Delhi and the airport. A two-acre property, its bustling lobby gives a sense of the kind of hotel it is: functional if not fancy, with a clean homogenized décor reflecting an emphasis on service rather than opulence. Black and white photographs of India taken by a peripatetic former general manager, Peter Fulton, garnish the walls. Hyatt offers a rate of the day depending on its occupancy. Rooms either face the insanely busy Ring Road or the quieter pool.

InterContinental Nehru Place/ photo:hotel

Though it might appear that the blare of traffic would seep into the rooms, nothing passes through the double vacuum windows. Rest or work in silence. Club Floor rooms come with extra amenities – access to the club lounge, free drinks in the evening, and airport transfer. Suites have highly polished wooden floors, washrooms with double glass washbasins, and are large enough to accommodate a wardrobe and luggage rack. Business related facilities include hiring of laptops and cell phone against a security deposit. La Piazza, Hyatt’s Italian restaurant has constantly been voted by locals as the most authentic Italian food in the city.

Farther south, close to the Qutab Industrial area, is the 60-room Qutab Hotel with business centre, 24-hour room service, children’s facilities, swimming pool, health club and bicycles should you wish to limber up.

The InterContinental Nehru Place is a 218-room five-star hotel in a busy South Delhi suburb. The hotel offers its signature executive Club InterContinental rooms with satellite TV, coffee-making facilities, a dedicated lounge, high-speed Internet, iron and ironing board, weighing scales for the finicky or fat, and an endless stream of complimentary drinks and snacks. A one-touch service centre button gets things moving without the fuss of calling several departments. Work out at the gym with aerobics or yoga while your kids snack on the specially created kids’ menu.

The InterContinental has its eye on Delhi meetings and conferences and offers six meeting rooms, the largest of which can handle up to 850 people reception style. Looking for fancy equipment to wow the boss with your presentation? No problem. Check out the DVD player, flip charts, LCD projector, stage lights, and 35mm slide projector. The entire hotel is WiFi enabled. Plug in and log on.

The Manor: laid back/ photo: Amanresorts

Sibling hotel Crowne Plaza Hotel Delhi, is farther south in New Friends Colony with easier access to the Okhla and Noida export processing zones. The hotel also offers fast getaways for Agra day-trips if you fancy taking in the Taj Mahal. The 240-room hotel offers 82 Club Rooms all with 42-inch flat-screen plasma televisions and a pampering Club Lounge. The Crowne Plaza offers “medical tourism” packages exploiting its proximity to Apollo Hospital and the Escorts Heart Institute and also provides three rooms fully equipped to cater for disabled guests. All rooms and public areas offer Wireless Internet.

The Manor, a friendly, chic 10-suite residential establishment in the leafy South Delhi suburb of Friends Colony provides an overnight stop for Amanresorts guests bound for Rajasthan. Dating back to the 1950s, The Manor offers gardens, open space, and a decent Italian restaurant. If you want an unhurried atmosphere away from the bustle of downtown, and attentive service, this is the place for you.

Delhi airport area hotels

If it’s a 700m outdoor jogging track and tennis courts you are looking for then the ten-acre, The Grand New Delhi is for you. Slightly off the beaten track, the standalone property built from Dholpur stone lies in isolated splendour just fifteen minutes from the international airport. A cavernous beige and gold lobby is dominated by a domed interior covered in 22 carat gold leaf. Scattered faux palms inside compete with real trees outside. With its endless space it offers the largest Delhi hotel spa. Each massage room has its own separate shower. Unlike other luxury hotels the Grand lets outsiders use the gym for a daily charge (aproximately Rs1,000/ 6am–12pm) and Rs700 for the pool (6am-10pm). Premium rooms overlook nicely landscaped gardens though you have to try hard to see the Qutab Minar. Broadband is available in rooms at Rs250 for a half hour and Rs800 for four hours. WiFi is available at the lobby level at the same rate.

Connaught Place, the very centre of town

Located four kilometres from the airport, the Radisson Hotel Delhi is a red-brick five-star hotel that often plays host to the Dalai Lama. Its large lobby is fringed by the Great Kabab factory which has developed quite a cult following. The hotel has 228 rooms but the well-heeled business traveller will opt for the Radisson Club Floor with its 45 rooms and suites. Standard rooms do not have flat TVs but they do come with valet service. Seems fair. Executive suites overlook terraced gardens. Internet rates are a little more expensive at Rs300 for one hour and Rs1,000 for a full day.

Uppal’s Orchid Ecotel boasts 84 rooms, swimming pool, tennis courts and a nine-hole putting green. It doesn't come cheap though. Also near the airport, in a garden setting, is the more modestly priced (US$105 range) 82-room Ashok Country Resort New Delhi.

Delhi budget hotels and guest houses

Hotels in the central Connaught Place area cover all price ranges and are ideal to access restaurants, shops, and sightseeing. Located right in the hub of the action, Hotel Connaught is usually happy to work out good package rates. Far from splashy, it’s cream-washed exterior makes it look like a large house rather than a hotel. Inside, find a marble lobby, reception, and special facilities for the disabled. The hotel’s best rooms overlook Shivaji stadium where hockey matches are played at the crack of dawn in summer – to beat the heat. The more swank rooms are panelled in wood and can be a little overwhelming but are a favourite with foreign-domiciled returning Indians, in winter. A computer room serves as a business centre.

The ancient Nirula’s Hotel in Connaught Circus (another name for Connaught Place) is part of the city’s folklore. Small and cosy, its rooms bear the imprint of a bygone era. Despite their age, deluxe rooms are well maintained and overlook the traffic madness of Connaught Place. A major advantage is, the hotel is surrounded by restaurants. Nirula’s also runs the adjoining Potpourri (all you can eat buffet Rs110), the Chinese Room and the Pegasus bar.

Hotel Connaught: value/ photo: hotel

South Delhi is teeming with guesthouses. They may not be plush but they are certainly more cost effective than five-star hotels and offer a personalised touch in a Delhi home. At the Maharani guest house in Sundar Nagar, you can choose from deluxe rooms and suites. Centrally air-conditioned, each room comes with an attached bathroom, and room service. Further down the road is the more impressive Jukaso Inn that has also opened a hotel in Gurgaon. With a terrace garden, the 28-room guest house, started 35 years ago and is favoured by academics and Western visitors. Internet is available only in the lobby at Rs50 for an hour of usage. Standard rooms are small and a trifle tacky and the suites a little dusty. La Sagrita tourist home, also in Sundar Nagar, has smaller rooms but is fortunate enough to be overlooking a pleasant park.

Located in splendid seclusion in a spiffy New Delhi suburb, walking distance from the beautiful Lodhi Gardens, is the 11-room Ahuja Residency, a Golf Links guesthouse that has been in operation for 25 years. It faces one of the suburb ’s many parks and caters mostly to diplomats and UN officials. Internet is available in the rooms at Rs100 for a full day and for use of the in-house computer located in the lobby there is a charge of Rs100 per hour. In South Delhi’s Greater Kailash, the Madhuban Inn is one of the city’s older guest houses and located conveniently opposite a bank. Used by short-stay business travellers and wedding parties, good long-stay rates are also available here. There is no Internet although the rooms are equipped with safes.

More stylish, and on same road as Taj Palace and the Maurya, is Hotel Diplomat. With 25 rooms, it is a clean, smart hotel sometimes accommodating an overflow from its more upmarket competition up the road.

Gurgaon hotel guide

Trident Gurgaon/ photo: hotel

As the hub of Delhi’s burgeoning information technology business, Gurgaon is also seeing the launch of many new hotels. Undoubtedly top of the pops is the Trident Hilton, ten minutes from the airport and 35 minutes from India Gate. With its domes and stone trellises, the exterior of this minimalist property offers a fusion of Middle Eastern, Mughal and contemporary. The low-rise hotel blends into the landscape. A central reflective pool lined with Italian tiles absorbs the traffic sounds from National Highway 8. To play down human activity the hotel has no obvious driveway. Guests walk to the lobby and its gold-leaf domed ceiling while the luggage gets whisked away to your room from the main entry point.

The serenity, space and seclusion is apparent in the 136 rooms as well. Most are located on the ground floor. Superior rooms face the garden and premium rooms, the pool. Executive suites overlook a water feature adorned with fragrant frangipani trees. Butler service is available for all guests and if requested female butlers can cater to women travellers.

For all its apparent quietude, the Trident is very, very corporate, a fact reflected in the conference rooms, which have facilities like drop-down projectors and video conferencing. Premium rooms offer ergonomic chairs. The hotel also downloads and prints newspapers for guests from their home country.

Located in Sushant Lok the 43-room Park Plaza could almost be a boutique hotel. It’s small enough, standing on just half an acre, but perhaps its style is not classy enough. Affiliated to the larger Radisson hotel, it looks like a clean European hotel catering for IT executives. Standard rooms overlook a busy highway. Rooms are spacious but a little soulless and come with all the routine accoutrements – safe, coffee and tea-making facilities, and mini bar. A wellness centre is available as is a rooftop pool. Rates, especially corporate ones, are extremely negotiable.

Yes, an air-conditioned Metro

The Fortune Select Global Gurgaon looks a little tense – squeezed in between two hyperactive shopping malls. That minor blemish aside, this is a smart looking modern business hotel. It is part of the ITC chain’s Fortune Park Hotels selection. It has a fast turnover and caters to middle-rung business travellers looking for good rates and efficient service. With 60 standard rooms and 20 Fortune Club rooms, even during the low season it pulls in 95 percent occupancies. Club rooms are adequately sized, though some bathrooms come without a bath tub.

With its reception on its second floor, the Bristol Hotel Gurgaon has been able to filter out unwanted crowds. But although strategically located, the hotel does not seem to tempt the international visitor as much as the domestic traveller. It’s pricing is a bit awry too. For instance, the presidential suite is pitched at a staggering US$2,000 while standard rooms come for just US$250. But the good news is that all unsold inventory from its pastry shop is cleared out every evening at 50 percent discount.

The small Lemon Tree Hotel, City Center, is a bright, friendly and unfussy option in Gurgaon. You’ll find 45 rooms with WiFi, cable TV and, usefully, for that end of day unwind, an orthopaedic mattress. There is a business centre, fitness centre and meeting facilities for 30-70 people. Similar facilities are available at sibling hotel Lemon Tree Hotel, Udyog Vihar, another good value Gurgaon hotel contender.

Shopping in Delhi

Shopping in Delhi ranges from utterly extravagant - where Indian haute couture costs upwards of Rs2lakhs - to mid-priced malls and roadside bargain shopping on Janpath where everything from t-shirts, Tibetan jewellery, fake antiques, and Rajasthani mirror-work fabric, dresses, and cushion covers are on display. A lakh is a unit of 100,000 and this is a term you’ll frequently encounter in India if on business or doing anything dealing in large sums. Each residential area hosts a local market with provision stores. But the larger ones like South Extension, Greater Kailash, Defense Colony, and Khan Market also contain a vast array of curio, antique, clothing, book, flower, handicraft, and electronic shops. Most areas have different closing days so check before going.

Rajasthani embroidery at Janpath

If your Delhi shopping brief includes classy, upmarket Indian designer brands and fashion, head to Santushti Shopping Complex in Chanakyapuri, near Ashoka hotel, home to a clutch of leading boutiques and designer outlets. If you tire of shopping, Basil and Thyme (lunchtime only) is located in same complex known for its high quality desserts. Ambavatta building, near the Qutab Minar, is also an excellent source of stylish items.

Delhi and Gurgaon shopping malls have mushroomed. The more prominent malls are in Gurgaon (Lifestyle, Sahara) though South Delhi also has its fair share (Shopper’s Stop in Andrew’s Ganj and Westside in Lajpath Nagar). Quality is assured and most outlets will exchange items if they have not been used.

For Indian handicrafts, traditional items, and quality textiles, opt for the Cottage Emporium on Janpath, next to The Imperial. A government-run enterprise, prices here are fixed and haggling is not the norm. Dilli Haat (open all week), is a fun open-air market in South Delhi. It offers a serendipitous experience where you can bargain your head off. There’s a respectable selection of Indian ware and prices are much lower compared to the Cottage. Chandini Chowk in Old Delhi is known for its jewellery shops and silverware and Lajpath Nagar Market and Shankar Market are recommended for their textiles and fast tailors. A favourite Delhi shopping stop for visitors is FabIndia (Greater Kailash and Khan Market) where a huge array of clothes and furnishings is available, and Anokhi (Khan Market) which focuses on Rajasthani prints and fine cottons. For a quiet hang-out, with coffee shops, bookstores, and flavourful Indian Chinese restaurants, close to the Lodhi Gardens, try Khan Market.

Delhi nightlife, dining, and a pinch of culture

Dining in Delhi ranges from streetside food (a challenge to any Western constitution) to signature restaurants like 360 at The Oberoi, The Imperial’s Silk Route and Maurya Sheraton’s Bukhara (known for its North West Frontier cuisine and the favourite haunt of Presidents Clinton and Bush when they come a-calling). A meal for two in these restaurants, without drinks, will cost Rs3,500 to Rs4,000.

Cycle rickshaw: another way to get around

More economical but less splashy are Ploof (Lodhi Colony Market), famous for its selection of fish from all corners of India, and Divas (Greater Kailash II), for award winning Italian cuisine. Thai Wok (Ambavatta building) offers mouth watering views of the Qutab Minar and good Thai food while Yellow Brick Road at the Ambassador Hotel serves up dishes with names like Luyten’s Fantasy – actually a steak Diane with jacket potatoes. (Cost for two without drinks at these eateries is about Rs1,500). Or walk into Lodhi Gardens from Lodhi Road and eat fusion Mediterranean cuisine fashionably alfresco or in air-conditioned comfort, looking onto splendid greenery and old Sultanate tombs.

For good South Indian food in Delhi – dosas, idlis, vadas – you’ll get value for money at the Sagar chain (Defence Colony and Mallika Nagar markets). Sagar also runs an outlet at the Ashoka Hotel. The restaurant is purely vegetarian and does not serve alcoholic drinks. A meal for two is around Rs300. Its non-vegetarian sister chain, Swagatam (Defence Colony Market) serves excellent crabs and a meal for two kicks in at Rs800. More grungy, hugely aromatic, and strongly recommended for all intrepid travellers is the ever-popular Karim’s in a side street close to the Jama Masjid in crowded Old Delhi. It serves a vast selection of Muslim meat dishes and has another branch in Nizamuddin, a South Delhi residential suburb. The best way to access the eatery is via the Metro train service. Most restaurants stop taking orders by eleven.

Coffee purists can look out for Baristas, Café Coffee Day and Mocha. Besides serving beverages, mostly coffee, they offer light snacks for those on the go.

Delhi nightlife is almost an oxymoron in a city where entertaining is largely done at home, in civilised surrounds, with The Eagles or Ravi Shankar playing. But there is an emerging bar scene. Lounge bars are dotted all over the city - Buzz in Saket, Egos in Friends Colony, places around Connaught Place, and Fox in Gurgaon.

Cultural activities tend to peak during winter though cultural hubs like the India Habitat Centre or the India International Centre, both near Lodi Road, do offer regular dance recitals, films and lectures. Theatres near Connaught Place like Kamani Auditorium, the National School of Drama, and Sri Ram Centre, regularly run plays.

Well, as I said, throw away that watch and head into Indian Standard Time.

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The exchange rate is roughly US$1=Rs41. Below are rule-of-thumb seasonal rates for comparison purposes only. Daily rates will fluctuate considerably especially during the low season. Most hotels offer Internet specials. A 12.5 percent luxury tax will apply in Delhi. Gurgaon has no luxury tax as yet.

New Delhi travel agents

Cox and Kings. Address: Indra Palace, H-Block, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001, Tel: [91-11] 4129-7900/ 2373-8811, (e-mail: shaktisharma@coxandkings.com or www.coxandkings.com or www.bharatdekho.com).
GoDelhi. C-21/A, Second Floor,Supermart Commercial Complex, DLF-IV,Gurgaon 122016, Haryana, Tel: [91] 9899888207, (e-mail: poonam@godelhi.net or info@godelhi.net or www.godelhi.net).
Ibex Expeditions. G-66, East of Kailash, New Delhi-110065, Tel: [91-11] 2691-2641/ 2691-7829, fax: 2684-8403, (e-mail: ibex@nde.vsnl.net.in or ibex@ibexexpeditions.com or www.ibexexpeditions.com).
Sita Travels. Presidential Business Park, C-9 Vasant Kunj, New Delhi-110018, Tel: [91-11] 2612-1110 (24hr hotline), (e-mail: info@sitaindia.com or incoming@sitaindia.com or www.sitaindia.com).
Travel Corporation of India (TCI). C-35, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001, Tel: [91-11] 2341-6081 to 85, fax: 2341-5373, (e-mail: tcidel@tci.co.in or www.tcindia.com).
The TravelCo. 5/42 Kanishka Complex, K Block, Kalkajee, New Delhi-110019, Tel: [91-11] 2647-5342/ 6239626, fax: 2648-1812, (e-mail: labhitab@vsnl.com).

New Delhi business hotels

Crowne Plaza Hotel Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2683-5070, fax: 2683-7758, (e-mail: crowneplaza@crowneplazadelhi.com or www.crowneplazadelhi.com or www.ichotelsgroup.com). Rates from US$164 King Bed Superior.
Hyatt Regency. Tel: [91-11] 2679-1234, fax: 2679-1122, (e-mail: India.reservations@hyattintl.com or http://delhi.regency.hyatt.com). King Room from Rs8,100, Club King from Rs11,100.
InterContinental The Grand New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2341-1001, fax: 2341-2233, (e-mail: newdelhi@interconti.com or www.ichotelsgroup.com or www.interconti.com).
Standard from US$179.
ITC Hotel Maurya Sheraton & Towers. Tel: [91-11] 2611-2233, fax: 2611-3333, (e-mail: reservations.maurya@itcwelcomgroup.in or www.itcwelcomgroup.in or www.starwoodhotels.com). Executive Club from US$325, Sheraton Towers from US$375, ITC One from US$450.
Le Meridien. Tel: [91-11] 2371-0101, fax: 2371-4545, (e-mail: info@lemeridien-newdelhi.com or www.lemeridien-newdelhi.com or www.lemeridien.com). Royal Club room from US$300.
Metropolitan Hotel New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 4250-0200, fax: 4250-0300, (e-mail: info@hotelmetdelhi.com or www.hotelmetdelhi.com). Deluxe Room at Rs10,000 and Metropolitan Suite at Rs25,000.
Shangri-La Hotel New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 4119-1919, 2334-4422, fax: 4119-1988, (e-mail: slnd@shangri-la.com or www.shangri-la.com/newdelhi). Weekend rates from US$121 (Rs5,581), US$169 with breakfast.
Shervani New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 4250-1000, fax: 2435-5226, (e-mail: delhi@shervanihspl.com or www.shervanihotels.com). Standard Room at Rs6,000 and Suite at Rs8,000.
Taj Mahal New Hotel Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2302-6162, fax: 2302-6070, (e-mail: mahal.delhi@tajhotels.com or www.tajhotels.com). Rates from US$325 Superior single, Taj Club US$450.
Taj Palace Hotel New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2611-0202, fax: 2611-0808, (e-mail: palace.delhi@tajhotels.com or www.tajhotels.com). Rates from US$290 Premium, US$390 Club Room.
The Ashok. Tel: [91-11] 2611-0101, fax: 2687-6060, (e-mail: fom@theashok.com or www.theashok.com). Rates from Rs8,000 (single), Suites from Rs14,000-Rs65,000.
The Grand. Tel: [91-11] 2677-1234, fax: 2670-5891, (e-mail: reservations@unisonhotels.com or www.thegrandnewdelhi.com). Rates from Rs7,500, premium room.
The InterContinental Nehru Place. Tel: [91-11] 4122-3344, fax: 2622-4288, (e-mail: del-nehruplace@interconti.com or www.ichotelsgroup.com or www.interconti.com). Best InterCon online Rates from Rs8,500, King Bed Superior.
The Manor. Tel. [91-11] 2692-5151/ 2692-7510, (e-mail: info@themanor.delhi.com or www.themanordelhi.com). Rates from US$175 standard room, US$275 suites, and from US$375 Manor Suite.
The Oberoi New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2436-3030, fax: 2436-0484, (e-mail: reservations@oberoidel.com or www.oberoihotels.com). Rates from US$325, Suites from US$650. Advance purchase online rates from US$159-$169 low season.
The Park New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2374-3000, fax: 2734-4000, (e-mail: resv.del@theparkhotels.com or http://newdelhi.theparkhotels.com or www.theparkhotels.com). Rates from US$300.

New Delhi heritage and luxury hotels

The Claridges New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 4133-5133, fax: 2301-0625, (e-mail: reservations@claridges.com or www.claridges-hotels.com/Delhi/index.asp). Deluxe Room Premium Wing from US$230.
The Imperial. Tel: [91-11] 2334-1234/4150-1234, fax: 2334-2255,
(e-mail: luxury@theimperialindia.com or www.theimperialindia.com). Imperial Room rates from US$325 and up, Suites from US$450.

New Delhi budget hotels and guesthouses

Ahuja Residency. Tel. [91-11] 2462-2255/ 91124611027, (e-mail: info@ahujaresidency.com or www.ahujaresidency.com). Rates from Rs2,600 (single).
Jukaso Inn. Tel: [91-11] 2435-2137 (e-mail: jukaso@hotmail.com or reservationdel@jukasohotels.com www.jukasohotels.com). Rates from Rs5,000 (standard), Rs6,000 (suite).
Hotel Diplomat. Tel: [91-11] 2301-0204, fax: 2301-8605, (e-mail: diplomat@nda.vsnl.net.in or www.thehoteldiplomat.com). Single deluxe from US$125.
La Sagrita. Tel: [91-11] 2435-9541, 2435-8572, fax: 2435-6956, (e-mail: lasagrita@vsnl.net or lasagrita@del3.vsnl.net.in or www.lasagrita.com). Standard from Rs2,290 (single).
Madhuban Inn. Tel. [91-11] 2923-9311/ 4163-2448, (e-mail: madhubanholidayinn@rediffmail.com ). Rates from Rs1,295 (semi-deluxe), Rs2,895 (executive).
Maharani. Tel: [91-11] 2435-9521, 2435-9522, fax: 2435-4562, (e-mail: mgh@vsnl.com or www.mymaharani.com). Single from Rs2,200.
Nirula’s Hotel. Tel: [91-11] 2341-7219, fax: 2341-8957, (e-mail: delhihotel@nirulas.com or www.nirula.com/hotels/index.html). Single from Rs3,850.
Connaught Hotel. Tel: [91-11] 2336-4225, 2334-0757, fax: 2334-0757, (www.connaughthoteldelhi.com). Rates from Rs5,000.

Delhi Airport area hotels

Ashok Country Resort New Delhi. Tel: [91-11] 2506-4590, fax: 2506-3054, (e-mail: sahnihtl@del2.vsnl.net.in or www.ashokcountryresort.com). Deluxe from US$105.
The Radisson. Tel: 91-11] 2677-9191, fax: 2677-9090, (e-mail: businesscentre@radissondel.com or www.radisson.com/newdelhiin). Internet Rates from US$175.
Uppal’s Orchid Ecotel. Tel: [91-11] 2506-1515, fax: 2505-1516, (e-mail: info@uppalsorchidhotel.com or www.uppalsorchidhotel.com). Deluxe Single US$245.

Gurgaon business hotel directory

The Bristol. Tel. [91-124] 235-6030/ 951244351111, (e-mail: reservations@thebristol.com or www.thebristol.com ). Rates from US$225 single, US$450 suite.
Fortune Select Global Gurgaon. Tel: [91-124] 419-6666, fax: 406-2383, (e-mail: global@fortuneparkhotels.com or www.fortuneparkhotels.com). Rates from US$165.
Lemon Tree Hotel, City Center. Tel: [91-124] 416-0303, fax: 416-0404, (e-mail: hi.cc@lemontreehotels.com or www.lemontreehotels.com). Superior single from Rs7.990.
Lemon Tree Hotel, Udyog Vihar. Tel: [91-124] 442-3232, fax: 442-3212, (e-mail: hi.uv@lemontreehotels.com or www.lemontreehotels.com). Standard single from Rs5,500.
Park Plaza Hotel Gurgaon. Tel: [91-124] 415-0000, fax: 410-0555, (e-mail: ppg@sarovarhotels.com or www.sarovarhotels.com). Rates from US$225, Suites from US$450.
Trident Gurgaon. Tel: [91-124] 245-0505, fax: 245-0606.