| Delhi undercover - part one
A trip to Delhi for a day or two was the chance to experience three of the city's finest hotels. How would they stack up? Which one will best suit you? I took it upon myself with colleague and friend of many years, Mr G, in tow to find out. With the monsoon coming early and little warning of our arrival, it was, literally, an undercover operation.
The Taj Mahal Hotel
Manoj sums up the Taj experience in Delhi. He used to work as an engineer for one of India's deregulated telecoms companies and now he is a driver for the Taj Mahal Hotel. What defines Manoj also defines the Taj; he swapped helping 8 million new users join mobile phone networks every month (just think about that number for a moment; it tells you much about India today) for a job as a brand ambassador. Punctual, impeccable, courteous, thoughtful, smoother of bumps in your travel plans (and of pot holes in the road), never imposing and always ensuring you enjoy every minute of your 'Incredible India!' experience. Manoj makes politeness seem special because, even in a life packed full of luxe-trotting, it comes no more sincere than this. The remarkable thing about The Taj Mahal Hotel in New Delhi, and for that matter all Taj Hotels we feature, is that Manoj is not a one-off. Taj has identified the precise polarity of supreme service and attracted only individuals who want to make this their mantra. It makes you ask "why aren't other hotels like this?" and answers it at the same time.
Two days are not enough to do this wonderful city justice, even when waking hours are extended by jet lag. But this is how most visitors experience India's capital city, whether they are using Delhi as a holiday gateway to Rajasthan, the Himalayas or elsewhere, or, increasingly, as a business entry point to one of the world's fastest growing economies.
As an India-junkie, I knew what to expect, but was surprised at how much less daunting everything was than on my last visit. The (completely full) daytime BA Business Class flight from London was as smooth as any I could remember and the pick up at the airport was equally soothing. Arriving at 11pm means the traffic's bearable, but high humidity was obvious from the moment we left the air-conditioned terminal building. Manoj arrived, white-gloved, white-tuniced and black-hatted, armed with cool towels and cold water. His smile was a good omen.
The Taj Mahal Hotel wears its 5 stars with a Mughal twist. At 30 years of age, it's not an old hotel (and far from the most beautiful, to be honest), but it occupies a prime site with, from the upper floors, a wonderful city vista: Luytens' Rashtrapati Bhaven (once the opulent home of the Viceroy and his 2000 servants and now the Presidential Palace, with a few less helping out), the Rajpath and the expansive greenery that this part of town luxuriates in. Always ask for a room with this view, as the alternative, overlooking the pool, is less remarkable.
The rooms were two Deluxe Kings. Spick and span with everything you'd want for a short stay, although the bathrooms, beautifully fitted, were on the small side for one so spoilt. I've always thought you can tell a lot about a hotel by studying the underbelly of a basin - here, everything was as well finished below as above, and cleaner than most hospitals. The typical Taj design aesthetic isn't to everyone's taste, but you can't criticize the generous attention to detail. The 42" Samsungs are state-of-the-art, faxes in every room, desks and WiFi lead to impressively early emails back at base, beds are super comfortable, sheets are crisp, pillows just right, towels are thick and large, remote controls actually work and everything is spotlessly clean. There was even a little box on the desk containing scissors, pencil, ruler, rubber, Pritt Stick, etc. How thoughtful for a business-trotter.
Taj Suites
If you have a suite-tooth, the Presidential Suite is as vast as any corpulent industrialist or ego-fuelled politician would ever want, with plenty of room for entertaining and directing worldwide operations, but my pick of the rooms are the newly refurbished Executive Suites - especially ones with a Presidential Palace view. These are spacious junior suites, clean-lined, coolly upholstered with lashings of leather and white marble in the bathrooms. They are contemporary and stylish, with a groovy Maharajah flavour that's just about right for anyone looking for an elegant stay in modern India.
The public spaces buzz with a melange of international grand-tourists, businessmen and local socialites. The staff float about attending to everyone's slightest whim; girls in red saris or salwar kameez, men in dark suits. However, the huge main space with multi-domed ceiling is compromised by rather dull furniture, masking the central large white marble fountain. The rear entrance from the pool, however, features a dramatic and impressive white marble staircase decorated with intricate fretwork - making a case for sometimes entering by the back door...
The food's always great at Taj hotels. With the European-style Grill Room on the top floor fit for high-powered politicians and plutocrats, House of Ming offering Sechuan and Cantonese cuisine, we chose the new Japanese restaurant, Wasabi, with fish flown in daily from the world's finest fish market at Tsukiji, Central Tokyo. The food is Nobu-good, without exaggeration, and the interior, touched by minimalist design, counterpoints the succulence of the cuisine. A mouthwatering selection of negiri sushi and rolls was washed down with a glass of 2004 Schlumberger Riesling, followed by a dainty glass teapot-like carafe of chilled, dry and fragrant saki.
With sleek new suites and designer Japanese restaurants, is this early evidence of a new Taj city experience emerging? Much is changing on the sub-Continent and Taj is keeping pace, but while this aesthetic adventurer welcomes design evolution, the magical service must never change.
Peter Matthews
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