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As the World Turns, So Do The W Hotels of Our Lives

Where: Parel, Senapati Bapat Marg, Mumbai, Lower Parel, India

W Hotels is playing a serious game of "Around the World" having just announced a W Hotel in Mumbai due to open July 2015. While Starwood Hotels kept mum on any other plans for the 350-room hotel, DNA India has the scoop on the location:

The property is part of an iconic mix-use development christened ‘Namaste Tower’. The construction site is the erstwhile Ambika Mills land parcel located a few hundred metres south of another soon-to-open luxury hotel, Shangri-La, atop the luxury retail mall Palladium at High Street Phoenix at Lower Parel.

The Namaste Tower design is actually meant to reflect the namaste yoga gesture where two wings of the hotel are clasped together like hands greeting the city of Mumbai. Ommmm....

Meanwhile, the W Mumbai already has its own website. Disappointingly there is no mention of "Bollywood cool." Hope they fix that copy up right quick.

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The Taj Mahal Palace Reopens In Mumbai

Where: 1 APOLLO BUNDER, Mumbai, India

Yesterday was India's Independence Day so it was a fitting day to welcome back the Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai, which reopened its Palace Wing yesterday. This part of the beloved hotel had been closed since the terrorist attacks of November 2008, which killed 166 people and also hit Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, a railway station and a cafe.

The Tower Wing of the hotel has been open for more than a year but now, with $37 million worth of renovations, the Palace Wing is now back in business as well. Part of the restoration project included work on the Taj's extensive art collection, which has been painstakingly restored for the reopening—with over 300 important pieces now hanging in the banquet hall, the lounge, and a bar off the main lobby.

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Oberoi Mumbai Has Reopened, Glass Bathrooms And All

Where: Nariman Point, Mumbai, India, 400021

Nearly 18 months after the terrorist attacks, the Oberoi Mumbai reopened on Saturday. Not even the volcano stopped proceedings (although it meant the European contingent couldn’t make it over for the do).

According to the press release:

The hotel has been transformed and will now offer a contemporary, luxurious ambience.

The new pictures do look gorgeous – especially the rooms that look out over the water. The only thing is that, for a business hotel, we’re pretty taken aback by the glass-walled bathrooms (lovely to look at the sea from the bath; not so nice to have your colleague in between).

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The Oberoi Mumbai Will Reopen April 24

Where: Nariman Point, Mumbai, India, 400021

One of the hotel's new restaurants. We’re thinking Ziya, presided over by a Michelin-starred chef

It’s been nearly 18 months since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, but while the Taj reopened pretty quickly, the Oberoi has been closed to be completely gutted and transformed. And finally, it’s been announced, it’ll reopen April 24.

According to the press release:

The Oberoi Group’s luxury hotel on Marine Drive in South Mumbai has been completely transformed to offer fresh contemporary interiors, new facilities and the latest technology.

All guest rooms and suites have been renovated, and include spacious marble bathrooms.

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Jessica Simpson Checks Into The Taj Mahal Palace

Where: 1 Apollo Bunder, Mumbai, India

Good old Jessica Simpson. Fresh from serenading guests at the Serena Hotel in Kampala, she’s moved on to Mumbai to film the next episode of her new show, The Price of Beauty.

She stayed at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, which reopened last December after the devastating terrorist attacks, and had a party thrown for her by Bollywood actress Neha Dhupia at the Vie Lounge bar on Juhu Beach. According to the Daily Mail, she “fitted right in with India’s fashion elite.” Wonder if she cracked out the guitar as well?

Having gone down a storm and impressed everyone with her henna tattoo and bindi, she left Mumbai for London yesterday. We’re not jealous. Really.

[Photo: Daily Mail UK]

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Checking In On The Taj Mahal Palace, Post-Terrorism

Where: 1 Apollo Bunder, Mumbai, India, 400 001

It's a couple of months now since the terrorist attacks and, two weeks later, an accidental fire, caused havoc for the poor Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai. We figured it was time to check in on this Taj and see if it's really up and running again.

And it looks like, just as they promised, the Taj Mahal Palace reopened the rooms of the Tower Wing plus the restaurants, banquet hall and chambers on December 21. That's a pretty impressive at just 24 days after the attacks.

A brass and bronze sculpture named the "Tree of Life" which was already on display in the hotel has now been turned into a memorial to the 31 people who died at the Taj during the terrorist attacks, with their names inscribed at its base.

Since the reopening there hasn't been too much gossip amongst guests; a traveler who stayed there a week after the reopening said it was "good to see things starting to buzz again albeit a bit quietly". But hey, we can understand being a bit quiet about things there.

[Photo: Dey]

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Mumbai Hotels Re-Open With Parties and Prayers

Yesterday, both of the five-star Mumbai hotels attacked by terrorists in November — the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and Tower and the Oberoi — reopened to guests. The swift repair and re-opening of the hotels were meant to serve as a symbol of hope and restoration for the city of Mumbai, which has been devastated by the attacks that claimed more than 170 lives.

According to an LA Times report, the Taj re-opened only its tower wing yesterday, as the Palace wing (which houses the restaurant, where some of the worst fighting took place) could take more than a year to completely repair. From the Times:

The Taj marked the occasion with a grand party in its tower featuring Bollywood stars and other local celebrities, several of whom took to the podium to offer their own heartfelt homage to those who died in the attacks.

Meanwhile, the Oberoi held an afternoon prayer service with religious leaders from eight denominations to mark the re-opening (only one of the two hotel buildings in the complex opens to the pubic, as the other still has a few months of repairs ahead).

[Photo: EPA/STR]

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Mumbai's Taj Mahal Tower Will Reopen December 21st

Where: 1 APOLLO BUNDER, Mumbai, India

After the devastating terrorist attacks on November 26th in Mumbai virtually destroyed the city's iconic Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and Tower, the hotel had vowed to reopen as quickly as possible. Though a fire on the property last week presumably caused some setbacks, Taj announced today that the hotel has announced an official (partial) reopening date of December 21st:

Only the rooms in the Taj Mahal Tower will be reopening on the 21st (the Palace and the Tower are two different structures), but the hotel released this statement:

Acknowledging the massive efforts devoted to the Hotel’s swift re-opening, Mr. Raymond Bickson, Managing Director and CEO, The Indian Hotels Company Limited, said, “We dedicate our reopening to the city of Mumbai as affirmation of the values of courage, resilience and dignity.”

“To reopen the Taj with such speed but with no loss of attention to details, shows our resolve to commemorate all the innocent and brave people who lost their lives during the terrorist attacks. In their honour, the Taj will shine again in all its brilliance,” Mr. Bickson added.

The hotel will have only been closed for less than a month when the doors reopen at 7 p.m. next Sunday.

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Fire Breaks Out at Mumbai's Devastated Taj Mahal Palace Hotel

The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, which was nearly destroyed in the devastating Mumbai terrorist attacks two weeks ago, suffered a fire on its 20th floor early this morning.

According to an Associated Press report, officials have not yet said what caused the fire (possibly a short circuit), but it was under control quickly and there were no casualties reported.

When we headed over to the hotel's own website to see if they'd updated their news page with details about the blaze (they hadn't), we learned a bit more about the efforts that have been underway since officials announced that they'd be working to get the iconic hotel restored as quickly as possible:

In addition to the recovery of guest possessions and luggage from those parts of the hotel where safety conditions allow, specialist teams have already begun clearance of damaged fittings, rubble and furniture.

Everyone involved in the work is motivated by a single-minded determination that the hotel will shine again in tribute to the people who fell during the terrorist attacks on the city of Mumbai. But the rebirth of the hotel does not simply involve bricks and mortar. Ministers and clerics of seven religions will also be contributing services and ceremonies of blessing and benediction.

Hopefully, this fire won't cause any major setbacks in their efforts to rebuild and recover.

[Photo: EPA/STR via Guardian]

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Mumbai's Trident Hotel to Re-Open December 21

Where: Nariman Point, Mumbai, India, 400 021

Bloomberg News is reporting that the Trident Hotel Nariman Point in Mumbai which was attacked in last week's horrific terrorist attacks on the city, vows to re-open on Dec. 21.

Additional security will be put in place at the hotel, Oberoi Group, which manages the property, said in a statement e-mailed from New Delhi.

While the damage wasn't as bad as the sister Oberoi Hotel, the Trident Hotels website also says a "round-the-clock" effort is going on to get the place to re-open. The hotel evacuated over 300 hundred guests during the attacks.

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Mumbai Hotels Determined to Rebuild and Re-open

After last week's devastating terrorist attacks on the Taj Palace Hotel and the Trident-Oberoi in Mumbai, the affected hotels have vowed to rebuild and re-open as quickly as possible.

According to a report from Reuters, the Trident Hotel is set to re-open in 10 or 15 days looking just as good as it did before the attacks:

Trident, the tower block of EIH Ltd's the Trident-Oberoi Hotel, is being cleaned and its broken windows and doors replaced, said Ketaki Narain, director of corporate communications for the Oberoi Group.

Employees have returned to work, and new security measures are being put in place, she said, without giving details.

The lobby of the Trident is already "sparkling clean," and the employees are ready to go. Unfortunately, the older Oberoi wing of the hotel suffered much more damage, so it may take quite a bit longer to reopen — it should still be a few months now.

The Taj Mahal Palace nearby (pictured), which was nearly destroyed in the attacks, has been constantly updating a webpage devoted to news about condition of the hotel here, and the front page of the hotel's website displays a single bold red statement: "We are working to restore the symbol of Mumbai’s enduring spirit and dignity."

[Photo: Julian Herbert / Getty Images via Denver Post]

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Taj Palace Nearly Destroyed in Mumbai Terrorist Attacks

Just before we left for Thanksgiving vacation, reports were coming out of Mumbai about terrorist attacks on city including attacks on two of the most popular luxury hotels---The Oberoi Hotel and The Taj Palace Hotel.

At the Taj, the gunmen broke in room after room and shot occupants at point-blank range. Some were shot in the back. At the Oberoi Hotel, the second luxury hotel to be attacked, one gunman chased diners up a stairwell and at one point turned around and shot dead an elderly man standing behind him.

When the three-day siege on Mumbai was over, 183 people had been killed. The final gunbattle between the terrorists and Indian commandos actually went down at the Taj inside the hotel's restaurant. As this photo from the NY Times demonstrates, you can see how hard the Taj was hit. Much of the hotel's lower floors were also on fire and it has been reported that the top floor is gutted.

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