The Taj Mahal Palace Tower

The Taj Mahal Palace: Mumbai’s Most Famous Hotel, and Why It Matters

The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel opened in 1903, making it one of the oldest luxury hotels in India. The founder, Jamsetji Tata, reportedly commissioned it after being refused entry to a Europeans-only establishment nearby; the story may be apocryphal but it captures something real about the building’s character. The hotel became a symbol of Indian ambition and excellence before Indian independence, and it has maintained that identity through the decades since.

The building occupies the corner of Apollo Bunder in Colaba, directly facing the Gateway of India and the Arabian Sea. The Heritage Wing, the original 1903 Florentine Gothic structure with its distinctive blue dome, is the heart of the property. The Tower Wing, added in 1972, is a straightforward modern hotel block and architecturally inferior, but offers better harbour views from the upper floors.

Staying Here

Heritage Wing rooms start around $400-600 USD per night and go significantly higher for suites. The Taj Club rooms in the Heritage Wing include breakfast and lounge access; for a first visit, the lounge access matters because the Heritage Wing’s public spaces are worth experiencing at leisure. Room 121, with arched windows facing the sea, is the most requested in the original wing.

The swimming pool on the Tower Wing roof is unusually good for a city hotel. The Jiva Spa in the Heritage Wing does Ayurvedic treatments starting around ₹3,500 per hour.

Dining

The hotel has seven restaurants. Masala Kraft on the ground floor of the Heritage Wing does upscale Indian regional cuisine; the Hyderabadi biryani is reliably excellent at ₹1,800-2,200 per dish. Wasabi by Morimoto handles Japanese food and is worth booking for the omakase. The Sea Lounge, facing the Gateway of India, serves high tea from 3pm (₹1,800 per person) with views of the harbour traffic and is a viable option for non-guests wanting to experience the hotel without a full meal.

The Golden Dragon restaurant, one of Mumbai’s older Chinese establishments, is in the Tower Wing and has a loyal clientele including the city’s Cantonese and Hakka communities. The dim sum quality is notably high for Mumbai.

Without Staying

Non-guests can visit the public areas without restriction. The lobby, the Sea Lounge, the Shamiana coffee shop, and the pool bar are all accessible. The hotel has been through significant trauma: the 2008 terror attacks targeted the Taj specifically and lasted three days. A memorial now stands in the lobby. Visiting with some awareness of that history changes how you see the building’s continued existence.

The Gateway of India and Colaba

The Gateway of India monument, directly in front of the hotel, was built to commemorate George V’s 1911 visit and then became the spot from which the last British troops departed India in 1948. The symbolism is dense. Ferries to Elephanta Island (the 7th-century rock-cut Shiva cave temples) depart from the waterfront beside the Gateway; the journey takes 60-90 minutes and the caves are genuine and worth three hours.

Colaba Causeway, 400 metres from the hotel, has antique dealers, leather goods, textiles, and street food. The narrow lanes behind the causeway have more interesting shops than the main road. Crawford Market, 2km north, is the old wholesale market building designed by William Emerson in Gothic Revival style; the produce stalls inside and the street food surrounding it are excellent for a late morning visit.