A rare find - a quiet hotel in New Delhi

Advantages: Calm professional staff, quiet setting
Disadvantages: If you can't get it at a bargain rate, it's not worth the price.

...Ciao must despair of some of us members and the near-geological timescale we seem to work on. I requested this hotel over three years ago and have finally got around to writing about it. Proof at last that if I'm given long enough I'll eventually get round to almost anything. When and Why? We visited Delhi at the beginning and end of a tour to Ladakh, high up in the Himalaya range. Ladakh is at such high altitude that you really can only sensibly go in the summer months and since there's no option other than to go through Delhi to get there, that's an absolutely dreadful time to be in the city in terms of the heat, but a fantastic time to get a bargain on a hotel deal. The Metropolitan was one of our summer bargains. My love for Delhi I love Delhi and nothing gives me more pleasure than to stay a few days in this...

koshkha 23.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Metropolitan Hotel, New Delhi

One of the world's best hotels - in Delhi!

Advantages: A landmark hotel
Disadvantages: It's a long way from home

...Before we start, a warning. This is a long review - you might want to go and get a cup of tea and a couple of biscuits before you start reading. I got a bit carried away. Are we ready? OK, let's go and visit one of the world's classic hotels. Background to our visit ******************* Back in February I placed a booking with Exodus (an 'adventure travel' company) for a trip to Ladakh in the Indian Himalayas with a stay in Delhi at either end of visit. I'd rejected the flight inclusive option (because it used Gulf Air) and splashed out many years worth of Virgin Flying Club 'miles' on two economy tickets for my husband and myself. I love Delhi and I wanted some extra time to see a couple of the museums and monuments so I booked the flights a day early on the way out and a day late on the way back. Consequently I needed to find...

koshkha 09.07.2006 · Read review
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Review of Imperial Hotel, New Delhi

Delhi: A Cultural Melting-Pot

Advantages: Great attractions; fabulous culture; fascinating history
Disadvantages: Very noisy and polluted in parts

...I will always remember Delhi, though I am unconvinced it is entirely for the right reasons. Indubitably, the city is possessed of the omnipresent grime that clogs the capillaries of any developing metropolis; the difference being that where some such cities may be exhibiting a straightforward case of arteriosclerosis, Delhi is the outcome of consuming a McDonalds and three packets of cigarettes at every meal. Aesthetically, it can be equally pleasant. Once you get past the grotesque horrors, however, there are a wealth of things to be done. The Red Fort is probably the most famous landmark Delhi possesses, but it's almost certainly not the most impressive. Not that this is what you will be thinking when you gaze up at the rearing parapets, shrouded in clouds of soaring black kites. And a word of caution - if a rickshaw driver...

salar15 11.11.2007 · Read review
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Review of Delhi (India)

Delhi, hard work but well worth it

Advantages: Great people, great value, great sights
Disadvantages: noisy, crowded and hard work sometimes

...Arriving in Delhi from Bangkok, the first thing I noticed was the lack of air pollution, which was definatly not what I was expecting. I arrived at New Delhi airport in late February and after Bangkok's humidity and pollution New Delhi was litterally a breath of fresh air. The people in Delhi will stare but not as much as in other parts of India. Most will help you out when they can, however, it can be hard work in the tourist spots as the sellers are always shouting and trying to get you into their shops, but once you adopt a hard faced persona and walk quickly then it won't bother you. The sights in Delhi are amazing, however, some havn't been kept well, such as the red fort. An Indian lady who I stayed with was really upset by the Red Fort as she said she had been their 20 years ago and it had deteriated so much since then. I...

1connorse 05.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Delhi (India)

Delhi - shopping for discerning people

Advantages: AFFORDABLE; WHOLE SPECTRUM OF SHOPPING
Disadvantages: NO REGULATORY MECHANISM, HIGH INCIDENCE OF CHEATING AND DECEPTION

...Delhi - A discerning shoppers' paradise So you have landed in Delhi and have since seen its 'places worth seeing'? Now what about shopping? Delhi has something for everyone. It offers a total shopping experience. From high end shopping to pedestrian level shops; from indigenous ethnic products to sprawling shopping malls, Delhi has it all. But having said that, I must qualify the same with some ground rules and facts. Delhi, much like Bangkok is a market for discerning eyes only. You go in for outer sheen and gloss and you had it. I will go by the main shopping centres and then will elaborate on each. Delhi Haat and surroundings Delhi haat is a veritable one stop shop for all those who want to carry back ethnic memoirs of India. Here you would find shops by those very people who are the creators of their products. Thus you can...

IDTD 17.04.2005 (19.06.2005) · Read review
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Review of Delhi (India)

Delhi

Advantages: Trying to find the best in the situation
Disadvantages: So far, I haven't succeeded

...To really know a city, you have to experience it firsthand. Explore it. Get lost and find your way back (map optional). Conquer public transportation. Wander and discover things you've never noticed before, even if you've been down this road dozens of times before with your parents. It is in this way that I can claim, even in the smallest way, knowledge of Washington, New York, London, Bombay, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Bruges, Strasbourg, and strangely enough, Benares. I have seen these places and made them my own through the sheer thrill of realizing success. But I have no claim to Delhi. On the flight from London to Delhi this Christmas, the man sitting next to me, whose name I cannot remember, asked me what I liked about Delhi. I considered his question for a moment then replied that I was still trying to figure that out...

mystikchick17 10.01.2006 · Read review
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Review of Everything that starts with D ...

A Portrait of Old Delhi

Advantages: Beautifully written
Disadvantages: Slightly disappointing ending

...Introduction In an effort to wean myself off crime fiction, I searched the ordinary fiction shelves in my local library for some books that looked interesting and ended up with this one. Written in 1980 by one of India's most famous writers in English, Clear Light of Day is about the reunion of two sisters in Old Delhi. I know very little about India, old or new, but I found this book to be a fascinating insight into Indian culture. The author Anita Desai was brought up and educated in India. She has written a number of novels, including children's novels, short stories and novels for adults. Three of her books, including Clear Light of Day, have been short-listed for The Booker Prize. She teaches literature in the US, but also spends time in the UK and India. Her books are written in English. The story Tara returns to India...

sunmeilan 24.03.2006 · Read review
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Review of Clear Light of Day - Anita Desai

Most of our rooms have no windows...

Advantages: A bed?
Disadvantages: Internal room; Location; Overpriced

...housed the architects of New Delhi when it was being designed and built) do not make for a good hotel in 2008. Actually, I almost forgot about breakfast, with the haphazard place settings (tables missing specific items of cutlery, or cups, or napkins - we fetched our own cutlery off another table after sitting for five minutes) and the uninspiring choice of food rounded off this as a stay to forget. Oh, and finally, with this being located in Old Delhi it can be a little difficult at times to get a taxi driver or autorikshaw driver to take you there - Old Delhi is horrifically congested at times. Given we were their in high season the cheapest rooms start at around £140 a night (with a 12.5% 'luxury' tax to be added). Waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much....

blackpuddinonnabike 03.11.2008 · Read review
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Review of Maidens Hotel, Delhi

The Madonna without the corset and stockings

Advantages: great location, clean rooms, fair prices
Disadvantages: The single towel

...The Challenge ************* Finding a hotel in Delhi is never a simple matter. At one end of the scale you have the super-luxury international 5-stars for those with deep pockets or company expense accounts. My favourites (both reviewed before) are the exquisite Imperial and the attentive Oberoi. Both can compete with hotels anywhere in the world. If you can afford them, they'll spoil you rotten but at busy times of year, you'll not see change out of £200-£400 a night. In the high-end category you'll also find some distinctly 'ordinary' hotels as well - the Siddarth is a great example of over-priced and under-equipped Delhi hotels. The top of the range hotels can be a bit of a bargain if you are willing to visit in the stifling summer months but for most of us they are off limits at peak times of year. Moving from the sublime to...

koshkha 17.12.2007 · Read review
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Review of Hotel Madonna, New Delhi

Please don't ride on the roof

Advantages: New, clean, fast and cheap
Disadvantages: Not always easy to know where it is or where it goes

...ceiling fans; the smell of hundreds of spicy packed lunches and the feet of all your fellow passengers. Was I close? So now if I say 'state of the art metropolitan transport system that's clean, cheap, cool and should be the envy of the world' you might be confused. But this is Delhi and I'm talking about the new Delhi Metro or 'Mass Rail Transport System'. But before I tell you about the system itself, let's look at why it was needed. Why did Delhi need a metro? ***************************** Pollution - locals used to say that breathing in Delhi was like smoking 20 fags a day. The air was so thick with dirty diesel fumes that if, at the end of the day you blew your nose and had a little peek in your hanky, the bogies were black (oh please, don't pretend you don't have a look). The government took the bold step of taking all...

koshkha 08.07.2006 · Read review
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Review of New Delhi Metro, New Delhi