http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950 http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950 http://ie2.trivago.com/images/layoutimages/logos/default.png http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950/review-o699977 Fri, 28 Jan 2011 11:13:00 +0100 http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950/review-o261676 Sat, 16 Aug 2008 22:38:00 +0200
Arriving at Mumbai airport in the early hours of the morning it was a relief to see a smartly dressed hotel representative with my name on a board. Mumbai airport can be a shock to the senses and leaving the relative comfort of the hotel and walking slap bang into a heaving mass of humanity, can be unnerving. The hotel guy led me to the kerbside where a driver met me and took me to a large white hotel car. Driving from the airport to the Leela took just a few minutes and all along the way I saw signs on the road verges and on the fencing to either side of the road advertising the fact that the 'beautification' has been paid for by the Leela - I thought that was a lovely touch. It's good to know that they don't just focus on making the hotel lovely, they give something back to the neighbourhood as well.

Arriving the first time I was taken up to a club floor and checked in by a neatly dressed lady in a sari. On my second visit I hadn't been booked for one of the exec rooms but was still given a special welcome. The hotel had checked their records, realised I was on a second visit, and I got the whole 'incense and red mark on the forehead' treatment as a 'valued returning guest'.

The lobby is beautiful - lots of light marble and high ceilings, and a beautiful smell of incense. Heading into the hotel there's a set of wide steps with bronze gods on either side, decorated with garlands and burning incense. The steps lead down to a seating area and a parade of shops where I spent quite a lot of time and money buying silks and some diamond earrings which were (much to my amazement) valued recently at about 5 times what I paid for them.

My rooms on both occasions were large, well equipped and beautifully decorated in a fine blend of international and local styles. On my first visit I had a lot of free time that I spent curled up in a big armchair, listening to the TV and reading novels about Mumbai and keeping an eye on the comings and goings of a small shanty community that was visible from my windows. It might sound voyeuristic to be sitting in air-conditioned luxury with anything you need just a phone call to the 'floor butler' away whilst watching rag pickers bringing their bundles of rubbish to be sorted on the ground just a few hundred feet away, but it's not at all unusual to find the juxtaposition of wealth and poverty around Indian hotels. On my first visit I also had access to the executive lounge which meant I didn't have to go down to the main restaurant for breakfast, was able to get free happy hour drinks and snacks and could sit quietly reading papers and magazines whenever I had some free time.

There are about half a dozen restaurants at the Leela and I've eaten in the Indian and Chinese restaurants and in each case the food and service were outstanding. I mentioned the pool and there's also a gym but at that time I didn't feel confident about going into the gym as a woman on my own (and to be honest, I was happier knocking back the drinks and eating the nibbles in the exec lounge).

On my second visit we asked the hotel to arrange a car and driver for the day because we needed to go into Mumbai to get some flight tickets changed. Considering it was a swanky 5-star hotel, the car they sent was remarkably scruffy and down at heel although any driver who can survive Mumbai traffic deserves a healthy dose of respect.

It's worth knowing that traffic in Mumbai is dreadful and if you want to get into the tourist areas of the city - for example around the Gate of India - it could easily take one and a half hours to get there. Therefore if you need to be in the city I recommend to book a city hotel, and if you need to be by the airport for an early or late flight, the Leela is a good choice.]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950/rating-e149426 Sun, 02 Sep 2007 22:52:00 +0200 http://www.trivago.co.uk/mumbai-84780/hotel/the-leela-kempinski-mumbai-97950/rating-e125896 Sun, 05 Aug 2007 21:54:00 +0200