Claridges

Description:

• With over half a century behind it, this elegant hotel -- in an upmarket residential neighborhood, convenient to many Central Delhi sights -- retains some of its authentic old-fashioned charm and period sophistication. Renovations in recent years have been met with several steep jumps in price, which is pretty much in keeping with the trend in all the five-star options, but it's nowhere nearly as expensive -- or as impressive -- as The Imperial (reviewed below). Accommodations are a very mixed bag, and you'll pay according to the relative level of comfort and aesthetic appeal you enjoy. The cheapest accommodations are in the Premium Wing, while Deluxe Wing rooms are more elegant and considered. Claridges rooms in both wings have private balconies and a more sumptuous look. More expensive still, are the Club suites; these are chic and contemporary, with wooden floors and muted tones, and they're designed with business travelers in mind (bedside control panels, interactive computer technology via plasma TVs); nos. 128 and 228 face the central pool. When you book, indicate whether you want a slightly antique or swish, modern look to your room. Claridges may not offer the same posh luxury as the city's overrepresented Western chains, but in many ways you'll find better comfort in the smart, down-to-earth restaurants and watering holes that feature highly on the local social barometer. Dhaba is the Punjabi restaurant, done up like a roadside truck stop; it serves a refined, hygienic version of the simple, tasty food found along North India's busy highways, and Sevilla is a new semi-alfresco Mediterranean restaurant under a canopy of trees and thatch; the attached vodka bar is sublime.

  Facilities: 4 restaurants; 2 bars; tea lounge; patisserie; pool; kiddies' pool; health club; gym; spa; sauna; steam; travel agency; car hire; business center; shopping arcade; salon; 24-hr. room service; babysitting; laundry; dry cleaning; doctor-on-call; currency exchange; Wi-Fi enabled.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Recommended 2010