MUMBAI, INDIA - FEBRUARY 21: The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel on Febuary 21, 2014 in Mumbai, India; Shutterstock ID 214733773; Your name (First / Last): Lauren Gillmore; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online-Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: 65050/ Online Design /LaurenGillmore/POI

Shutterstock / saiko3p

Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai

Top choice in Mumbai (Bombay)


Mumbai’s most famous landmark, this stunning hotel is a fairy-tale blend of Islamic and Renaissance styles, and India’s second-most-photographed monument. It was built in 1903 by the Parsi industrialist JN Tata, supposedly after he was refused entry to nearby European hotels on account of being ‘a native’. Dozens were killed inside the hotel when it was targeted during the 2008 terrorist attacks, and images of its burning facade were beamed worldwide. The fully restored hotel reopened on Independence Day 2010.

Much more than an iconic building, the Taj’s history is intrinsically linked with the nation: it was the first hotel in India to employ women, the first to have electricity (and fans), and it also housed freedom fighters (for no charge) during the struggle for independence.

Today the Taj fronts the harbour and Gateway of India, but it was originally designed to face the city (the entrance has been changed).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Mumbai (Bombay) attractions

2. Gateway of India

0.08 MILES

This bold basalt arch of colonial triumph faces out to Mumbai Harbour from the tip of Apollo Bunder. Incorporating Islamic styles of 16th-century Gujarat,…

4. Chatterjee & Lal

0.3 MILES

A gallery with work by emerging artists in a space that once served as a 'godown', a cotton-storing warehouse.

6. Jehangir Art Gallery

0.38 MILES

Renovated in recent years, this excellent gallery hosts exhibitions across several galleries of all types of visual arts by Mumbaikar, national and…

7. Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue

0.42 MILES

Built in 1884, and tenderly maintained by the city’s dwindling Jewish community, this white and indigo-trimmed synagogue emerged from under years of…

8. DAG

0.43 MILES

This top gallery is spread over three floors of a beautifully restored cream-coloured colonial-era structure. Its quarterly-changing exhibitions are…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "india/mumbai-bombay/attractions/taj-mahal-palace-mumbai/a/poi-sig/1285522/356405",
      "destination": "Mumbai-(Bombay)",
      "continent": "Asia",
      "country": "India",
      "city": "Mumbai-(Bombay)",
      "position": "superzone"
    }