A soft landing

Hi all, new to this forum so be gentle

I'm off to India in a few weeks time and would like to treat myself to a bit of a soft landing, i.e. I land at about 1 in the morning and want to have lined myself up with hotel somewhat nicer than the average $1 a night traveler's hostel... I also don't want to end up in some god awful chain like the Hilton, Best Western or other nasty werstern style place. Can anyone recommend a older, stylish, comfortable, clean, conveniently located place that I could book into for a night or two. I guess I'd be willing to pay up to about £40 / 70 USD. Will somewhere like this send a driver to the airport for collection?

Part B:

What good places are there for me to move on to after I'm settled? This is the part where I'm after the cheap as chips place that is clean and comfortable

Thanks in advance for any suggestions

Peat

You haven't said where you will be landing!

As we don't know where you are going to, check the hotel list here: http://www.indiamike.com/india/listings.php

Flying into New Delhi

Have a look at the hotel listings for Delhi that members have posted.

We usually stay at the Rak International in Paharganj but I think you are looking for something a bit more upmarket. They do have a left luggage service though, which is safe and reliable for a few rupees a day.

It might be slightly higher than your price range but still worth investigating--the Oberoi Maidens hotel in Old Delhi (not the Oberoi in New Delhi).

It's an alabaster colonial pile. Hemingway stayed there once. There are photos of Curzon's tiger hunts on the walls.

It's very close to the Jama Masjid and the Red Fort but out of all the noise and confusion.

I was last there in 1997. It has some musty Raj-era charm, though it may have been renovated recently.

Hi, Peat!

I can't help much with Part A of your question, as we went for the cheap-as-chips places right from Day 1.... however, Part B sounds more like my "meat"! However, I'm not clear on one point... are you asking ONLY about accommodation in Delhi, or are you planning, in your few weeks, to move beyond? I haven't got much to recommend in Delhi itself (I was told that the Broadway, in Old Delhi, is well-located and quite grand, and certainly not like a Best Western!), but I can certainly put you onto a couple of good places in nearby cities, such as Jodhpur and Agra!

If you want to be adventurous,,find your dream place after you land. 1 You might get a better rate than by booking in advance and 2. you can make sure its up to snuff..

I stayed at the Oberoi Maidens for one night last October - it was nice. It's quiet, has a pretty garden and good restaurants. For a more centrally located but decent place in the same general price range, I think Nirula's is good. If you want a REALLY soft landing (with a correspondingly HIGH price tag!!!) you could stay at The Imperial - but only if you have money to burn.

Don't bother with arraning a hotel driver. Just get a taxi at the pre-paid taxi window just outside the air terminal. There's info elsewhere (and in every India guidebook known to man) about getting a prepaid taxi at the airport, and the prices are fixed and very reasonable.

I think there will be enough adventure on my trip without having to cope with the hoards at 1:30am after a sleepless flight - call me a wimp - but I've done it many times before and I'd rather have a place ready and waiting for my first night...

jarman_ah - I'm in India for about 6 weeks so won't be staying in Delhi long and probably won't venture further south than Mumbai... taking in, Agra, Jaipur, Udaipur, Varanasi and a few other spots yet to be decided upon...

dzibead - the Imerial is WAY out of my league and yes, I'd read about picking up prepaid taxi's at the airport, but again thought, if I can get a driver pick up thrown in from the hotel then why the devil not

The Imperial is way out of my league too - but I've had lunch there!

It doesn't't seem worth it to try to arrange a hotel driver, since you never know whether your flight may be delayed, and if it's delayed a long time, the driver won't hang around and you'll end up getting a taxi anyway (as my friend and I had to do when our TRAIN was delayed in Calcutta last fall). The taxi is really easy and involves no hassle or delay and you don't have to worry about missing a connection with a pre-arranged driver.

The Hotel Broadway in Old Delhi has the worst beds in India (possibly the universe), the rudest day manager in Northern India and the finest Indian restaurant in the galaxy. Lots of atmosphere at this noisy hotel; great if you don't need to sleep!
After all what is a hotel for? Beats the hell out of me! Check out www.asiahotels.com or www.hoteltravel.com for mid price places. Good luck.

Have to say that I had a much better experience at the Broadway Hotel in Old Delhi and I would highly reccommend it as an intro to Delhi. The rooms were being refurbished about a month ago so surely completed by now (they weren't that bad before). The restaurant is FABULOUS, a great atmosphere, something very unique that you won't come across again - definetly worth staying there for that alone! They also have a free presentation each night showcasing different styles of Indian dancing, which is quite entertaining.

The night I arrived (at 1:00am) my travel agent had neglected to book my room , however the duty manager was very helpful and found me a room much to my relief. On arrival to the hotel via prepaid taxi, the driver didn't know exactly where the hotel was, we were crawling along in the dark searching, there were people sleeping on the pavement side by side cacooned from head to toe in thin blankets - I honestly thought that we must be in the wrong area, surely my hotel can't be amongst all of this , but there it was smack back right in the midddle of it!! During the day, the back streets close by are a great place to explore and the meat/fish markets about half hour away are worth a look but not for the faint hearted! Oh to be back at the Broadway.....

Forgot to mention, my bed was fine (and I'm pretty fussy about by beds!) and I didn't find it noisy. I'd rate it 8 out of 10, it's a 'real' hotel in a great part of Delhi. Personally I don't think Paharganj is the best place to stay for a first timer, just so congested , maybe on the way home! Would be good to know what you decide.