Good value hotels: Indian addresses

Meher Mirza and Bharati Motwani suggest good-value hotels in four of the country’s biggest cities.

Hotels in India have a reputation for being expensive but there are plenty of reasonably priced options if you know where to look. Here are some affordable properties in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Delhi.

MUMBAI

Aside from a cluster of hotels gracing the airport district to the north of the city (the domestic and international airport terminals are about 6km from one another, but prepare for heavy traffic), most properties are located beside the beach in Juhu and in upmarket south Mumbai. If you have business in Nariman Point, head southwards – this part of town is where all the tourists congregate, too.

Courtyard Mumbai International Airport

About 3km north of the airport (though the hotel notes it will be a 30-minute drive to the domestic terminal and ten minutes to the international in normal traffic), the Courtyard by Marriott’s 330 rooms have wired/wireless high-speed internet (Rs 750/£9 per 24 hours), iPod docks, flatscreen TVs and data ports. Tea and coffee facilities are provided, and guests staying in rooms with mini kitchens can shop for goods at the hotel’s Mo Mo Mart. There are two restaurants serving international and Asian fare (one has a takeaway station), along with a fitness centre and an outdoor pool. The hotel scores highly for its cheery, competent employees.

• CTS 215, opposite Sangam Big Cinemas, Andheri Kurla Road; tel +91 22 6136 9999; marriott.com
• Rooms from Rs 7,500 (£92)

  Best Western Emerald Hotel and Executive Apartments Less than a five-minute walk from Juhu Beach is this 66-room property. Rooms offer free newspapers, shoeshine service, safes, tea and coffee facilities and high speed wired internet (Rs 750/ £9 per 24 hours). All have ergonomically designed workstations, while studios, one- and two-bed apartments also have kitchens. There are two eateries, and the hotel’s central location means you don’t have to go too far to experience some of the city’s best restaurants and bars.

• Juhu Tara Road; tel +91 22 6714 4000; theemerald.com
• Rooms from Rs 5,373 (£66)

Four Points by Sheraton Navi Mumbai Located 40km from the centre of Mumbai and close to the Vashi business district, the Four Points’ 150 rooms will not win any interior design awards but facilities include free wired/wireless internet, an iron and ironing board, TV and DVD player, free newspaper, fruit basket, and tea and coffee. There is also a business centre, spa, outdoor pool, 24-hour gym, round-the-clock concierge, and four food and drink outlets.

• Plot 39/1, 6 to 15, Sector 30A, Vashi; tel +91 22 2781 7777; starwoodhotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 9,294 (£114)

Gordon House hotel This 29-room boutique hotel in touristy Colaba is a few minutes from South Mumbai’s office district, Nariman Point. While it’s a bit pricier than the other properties featured here, it oozes charm from every pore. Rooms are split between Scandinavian, Mediterranean and countryside themes, and all come with free services including wifi, breakfast, a welcome drink, two bottles of mineral water per day, DVDs and ironing. There’s no fitness centre but the hotel has an agreement with a nearby gym. It also has a popular nightclub named Polly Esther’s and a Pan Asian restaurant.

• 5 Battery, Apollo Bunder; tel +91 22 2289 4470; ghhotel.com 
• Rooms from Rs 12,780 (£157)

Ramee Guestline Hotel Juhu Located by Juhu Beach, the 88-room property describes itself as a “four-star budget” hotel. Room amenities include free wifi, tea and coffee facilities, safes and 24-hour room service. Guests staying in Executive and Premium rooms get airport transfers. There are three dining options, a spa, fitness centre and pool.

• 462 A/B Nair Road; tel +91 22 6693 5555; rameehotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,165 (£76)

Fariyas Located just off the bustling main street of Colaba Causeway is the unpretentious 87-room Fariyas hotel. All rooms have free wifi, a minibar and air conditioning, and guests have access to a health club, spa and rooftop pool. There is also an executive lounge, restaurant and bar. Step out into the midst of the tourist trail to find hip restaurants and attractions such as the Gateway of India. It’s a few minutes by taxi to Nariman Point.

• 25, off Arthur Bunder Road; tel +91 22 6141 6141; fariyas.com
• Rooms from Rs 7,000 (£86)

The Ambassador Near to Churchgate rail station and a ten-minute drive from the lively art and shopping district of Kala Ghoda is the Ambassador. Bypass the plain exterior and you will get quality at a good price. The 112 rooms offer wifi (Rs 562/£7 per 24 hours), workdesks and air conditioning. The hotel also boasts a gym and Mumbai’s only rooftop revolving restaurant.

• Veer Nariman Road; tel +91 22 2204 1131; ambassadorindia.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,855 (£84)

CHENNAI

In Chennai, IT companies are mushrooming and bringing with them a surge of business travellers. The national and international airports in the south-west of the city are minutes from each other and connected to the centre by Anna Salai road. Two rivers glide through the city, the Cooum and Adyar, and it is between them that you will find Chennai’s bustling business districts. Close to Cooum River are Egmore and Triplicane, the commercial centres.

GRT Grand

Situated in commercial and shopping hub T Nagar, the 133-room GRT Grand is a top-draw Chennai business hotel trying to position itself as a boutique property. All rooms have free wifi and Corporate rooms offer breakfast in the Club lounge. Grand Club rooms come with airport transfers and happy hour drinks in the lounge. There is a pool, a well-equipped gym, a beauty salon, and four food and drink venues.

• 120 Sir Thyagaraya Road; tel +91 44 2815 0500; grthotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,778 (£84)

The Residency Towers The 174 rooms at the centrally located Residency Towers are immaculate and offer free wired/wireless internet, workdesks, 24-hour room service and safes. Guests can check in at any time. There is a health club with a sauna, and the Bike and Barrel is one of the city’s most popular nightspots.

• Thyagaraya Road; tel +91 44 2815 6363; theresidency.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,281 (£77)

Fortune Select Palms India’s ITC hotel chain offers up this swish 129-room property in the technology area. Amenities include 24-hour room service, wifi (Rs 665/£8 per 24 hours), two restaurants, a bar, a 24-hour coffee shop, a small gym and a spa.

• 142 Rajiv Gandhi Salai; tel +91 44 3988 4444; fortunehotels.in
• Rooms from Rs 6,840 (£84)

Lemon Tree hotel The hotel is about half an hour’s drive from the airports. The 108 rooms feature wifi (30 free minutes, then Rs 1,737/£21.50 per 24 hours), workdesks, blackout curtains and double-glazing. There’s a pool, gym, business centre, coffee shop and bar.

• 72 Sardar Patel Road; tel +91 44 4423 2323; lemontreehotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,959 (£86)

KOLKATA

Kolkata is a city of contradictions. Amidst the poverty are the rising monoliths of modernity, gleaming structures of glass and steel. In the twisting warren of Esplanade lanes in central Kolkata, beautiful 19th-century buildings stand in a state of decay next to thrumming commercial establishments. The south of the city is home to multiplexes, malls, amusement parks and discos. Jostling for space in the urban sprawl is a group of hotels offering excellent services.

Fortune Park, Panchwati

Situated on the Kona Expressway, a 45-minute drive from the airport, this 65-room property offers two hours of free wifi a day, a minibar, tea and coffee facilities, and 24-hour room service. There is also a coffee shop open day and night serving an international selection of food, plus two bars and a large outdoor pool.

• Kona Expressway, Howrah; tel +91 33 3988 4444; fortunehotels.in
• Rooms from Rs 5,519 (£68)

Kenilworth hotel Located a ten-minute drive from the city centre and 45 minutes from the airport, the Kenilworth’s 101 rooms and suites offer flatscreen TVs, free wifi, safes, 24-hour room service and free soft drinks. Pulse, the hotel’s health centre, has a gym, steam room and spa, and there are four food and drink venues, including a bakery and an English-style pub.

• 1-2 Little Russel Street; tel +91 33 2282 3939; kenilworthhotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,869 (£85)

Peerless Inn In the pulsing heart of the city lies the Peerless Inn, part of the Peerless hotel chain. It’s a hop away from some of Kolkata’s biggest tourist attractions – Eden Gardens, Victoria Memorial and New Market – and a 100-metre stroll from Esplanade metro station. You can watch the city ebb and flow from the large windows in all of the 122 rooms, which come with a free welcome drink, internet, fruit, daily newspaper, five local phone calls, mineral water, turndown service and safe. There’s a well-equipped gym, and don’t miss one of the multi-dish thalis in the iconic Bengali restaurant, Aaheli.

• 12, Jawaharlal Nehru Road; tel +91 33 4400 3900; peerlesshotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,505 (£80)

Floatel A floating hotel built on an old steamer moored on the Hooghly River, the 49-room Floatel provides a unique stay. It boasts good eco-credentials and efficient service, though the relatively spartan in-room comforts run only to a TV, tea and coffee facilities, and 24-hour room service. Wifi is offered for Rs 500 (£6) per 24 hours. There is a restaurant on the top deck and an open-air bar. The business centre is perhaps the most scenic in Kolkata, with views overlooking the soft waves of the Hooghly. There is also a massage centre and gym.

• 9/10 Kolkata Jetty; tel +91 33 2213 7777; floatelhotel.com
• Rooms from Rs 4,647 (£57)

DELHI

Not so long ago, Connaught Place was the heart of Delhi’s business activity, but now most offices have moved elsewhere, leaving behind mainly government blocks where the slow-turning wheels of bureaucracy continue to grind. Gurgaon, 30km to the south with its neon-bright skyline, is the new business and financial hub, with Greater Noida – a new township with wide expressways and green, uncluttered industrial spaces – fast catching up. There are plenty of good four-star business hotels offering five-star facilities at very competitive prices.

Ibis Gurgaon

Situated in Gurgaon’s central business district, 25km from the airport and next to an 18-hole golf course, India’s first Ibis hotel has 217 small yet fully-equipped rooms, with flatscreen TVs, tea and coffee facilities, minibars and free wifi. There is a 24-hour restaurant – the buffet breakfast is one of the hotel’s best features – along with a bar, fitness centre and two meeting rooms.

• Block 1, Sector 53, Golf Course Road; tel +91 12 4475 5000; ibishotel.com
• Rooms from Rs 5,183 (£64)

Fortune Select Excalibur This Gurgaon property offers 135 rooms with a writing desk, flatscreen TV, tea and coffee maker, minibar and safe. Guests get two hours of free wifi (six in Fortune Club rooms), and those in suites have access to the Club lounge, which offers breakfast, all-day drinks, evening snacks and cocktails. There is a gym and a pool, and the hotel is a 30-minute drive from the airport and 20 minutes from the CBD.

• Main Sohna Road, Sector 49; tel +91 12 4398 8444; fortunehotels.in
• Rooms from Rs 7,550 (£93)

Lemon Tree East Delhi Located in Kaushambi, the industrial zone of East Delhi, this hotel is on the top two floors of a mall and offers all the ambience and mod-cons the chain is associated with. The 55 rooms are contemporary in style, with flatscreen TVs, tea and coffee facilities, minibars and 30 minutes of free wifi (then Rs 160/£1.90 per hour, or free in the 24-hour business centre). There are rooms with special amenities for female travellers, a coffee shop, gym, pool, and a free buffet breakfast. Note that the hotel does not serve alcohol.

• Plot No 1, Kaushambi; tel +91 12 0442 3232; lemontreehotels.com
• Rooms from Rs 5,283 (£65)

Lemon Tree, Gurgaon The brand has three hotels in the satellite city. The 45-room City Centre and 49-room Udyog Vihar properties are full-service business hotels with room facilities such as 30 free minutes of wifi (unlimited in the business centre), safes and mineral water. Room rates include a buffet breakfast. The 81-room Lemon Tree Premier at Leisure Valley is more upscale, offering larger rooms with superior facilities, a pool, spa, bar and all-day café. All three have a gym.

• City Centre: 287, Millennium City Centre; tel +91 12 4416 0303.  Rooms from Rs 6,732 (£83)
• Udyog Vihar: 866 Udyog Vihar; tel +91 12 4442 3232. Rooms from Rs 5,263 (£65)
• Leisure Valley: 48 City Centre; tel +91 12 4448 0200. Rooms from Rs 7,957 (£98)

Radisson Blu Greater Noida The hotel’s 175 rooms are stylish, soundproofed spaces with 40-inch TVs, free wifi, floor-to-ceiling windows and premium bed linens. The 24-hour restaurant serves a huge free breakfast, and there is a Pan-Asian eatery and bar. A spa opened last summer, and a rooftop grill will launch in the next few months. The Radisson Blu allows easy access to offices in Noida, Greater Noida and central Delhi, and is 45km from the airport.

• C-8, Site IV, Second Cross Avenue Road; tel +91 12 0451 7777; radissonblu.com
• Rooms from Rs 5,999 (£74)

Ramada Gurgaon Central Brand new and centrally located, this 94-room hotel is close to the city’s malls and clubs. The rooms are more luxurious than you might expect, with wooden flooring, plush sofas, 32-inch LCD TVs, free wifi and turndown service. A huge breakfast is included, as are airport transfers. A coffee shop, Oriental restaurant, bar, spa, fitness centre and terrace pool complete the leisure facilities. There are three meeting rooms, with the largest holding 160 people.

• Site No 2, Sector 44; tel +91 124488 6400; ramadagurgaoncentral.com
• Rooms from Rs 6,999 (£87)