Mumbai Travel Guide

Address: Mumbai, Mumbai City, Maharashtra, India

The Colaba District serves many functions in Mumbai, one of which is as the most popular place for tourists to stay while in the crowded city. Colaba is one of the islands that make up Mumbai, although it doesn’t have the feeling of a separate location from the rest of the city. This is where you’ll find the famous Gateway of India, which was completed in 1924.

The harbor immediately in front of the Gateway is a popular tourist hang out and also a spot where Bollywood producers often recruit Westerners for background parts in movies being made that same day or the following one. Colaba is also home to some of Mumbai’s best nightlife and priciest shopping, but mixed in with this you’ll find the same sort of chaos found through the rest of the city.

Hotels facing the harbor can be pricey, for India, but similar hotels just one block away can be good values. Colaba is close enough to other main attractions that it’s convenient for travelers, but it also offers a sliver of sanctuary as well, the importance of which you’ll understand when you get there.

Admission: Free, it’s a neighborhood

Hours: Always open and always crowded

Address: Crawford Market, Mumbai, Maharashtra India

Completed in 1869, the Crawford Market building is one of the oldest and largest permanent markets in the country. It’s located next to the Victoria Terminus, which is one of the largest railroad stations in the world, so it’s a convenient place to visit for most travelers.

The market has undergone several changes over its storied lifetime, but currently it’s mostly filled with imported food sellers. The enormous floor space inside is worth seeing, and the architecture is equally notable. Parts of the giant structure were famously designed by Lockwood Kipling, father of famed British novelist Rudyard Kipling.

The Crawford Market is one of the better examples of Colonial design, which has now been completed adapted to modern independent Indian life. The structure is pure British but inside you’ll find every manner of local fruits, vegetables, and meat, along with many imported products than can be hard to find elsewhere in the city.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily

Admission: Free

Address: Elephanta Caves, Mumbai, Maharashtra India

Thought to date back to Silhara kings of the 9th through 13th centuries, the Elephanta Caves are located on Gharapuri Island in Mumbai Harbour. Inside the caves visitors will find large sculptures of uncertain origin. The most important of the sculptures is of Trimurti Sadasiva, and stands over 3 meters high. The park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

The caves are just as popular as a day trip for locals as they are with foreign tourists. The island is 10 km from the docks at the Gateway to India monument in Mumbai Harbour, and the popular boat trips take just under and hour each way. When you reach the island you’ll be solicited by freelance guides, but you are best off ignoring them and using the official English-speaking guides, which do a better job and cost less.

Boats leave every 30 minutes between 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. each day, although during monsoon season the journeys may be canceled out of safety concerns. Tickets for the boats can be purchased from booths at the Gateway to India just before the voyage for a cost of 35 Rs, and twice a day a faster catamaran makes the trip for a slightly higher cost.

Admission: US$5 for foreigners, although it’s almost free for locals

Hours: Daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Address: Sanjay Gandhi National Park,Mumbai, Maharashtra India

This giant park is nearly surrounded by the bustling city of Mumbai, so the serenity available within makes it an extremely popular place to visit for locals. It’s said to be the largest park in the world that is completely within city limits. The most famous single feature in the park is the Kanheri Caves, which date back as far as the 1st century B.C. They aren’t as ornate as the Elephanta Caves to the south, but they are more important archeologically and are more protected from the public. The caves are one of many places inside the park where visitors can expected to be tracked by monkeys who are more than willing to take any bits of food they see in your possession.

An average of 10,000 people visit the park each day, and the most popular attraction is a miniature zoo where people can see many species of local wildlife more or less in their natural setting. Leopards, deer, and the Hanuman Langur are some of the more common animals usually spotted on the guided tours on the toy train that trundles through the park. Two ancient temples are also on display, although they haven’t survived in pristine condition.

Hours: 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily

Admission: 90 Rs

Address: Apollo Bunder,Mumbai 400 001,India

This historic hotel first opened its doors in 1903, and has hosted royalty, heads of state, and celebrities ever since. With a prime location overlooking Mumbai Harbour, the Taj Mahal Palace hotel is one of the most famous buildings in Colaba. It’s just a few steps from the Gateway to India arch, and is a tourist attraction in and of itself.

It was designed and built by Indians, having been commissioned by famed Indian industrialist Jamsetji Tata, reportedly after he was refused entry to another luxurious hotel in the area, which was open to ‘whites only.’ The grand architecture brings together Moorish, Oriental and Florentine styles, and the interior contains a large collection of art, furniture, and other ornaments that reflect the era in which it was built.

The hotel has 565 rooms, which start around US$300 per night, but non-guests can walk through the public areas on the bottom floor with no worries.

Admission: Free to see the lobby

Hours: Always open