India Travel
Accommodation and eating in Central Bengal
The Shantiniketan area holds a reasonable amount of accommodation, with the university’s International Guest Houses ideal if you’re planning a medium or long-term stay. The Tourist Lodge’s restaurant is popular for its simple wholesome cooking while the rooftop Paschimi, run by a Indo-British couple, is especially good in the evenings, serving Mediterranean food including pasta
Bolpur Lodge, Bolpur. Although it the Old and the New, although the old one looksmay look like a hostel, the large lodge set off the main road has a pleasant leafy courtyard, a/c rooms and a restaurant.
Bonpulak, Shyambati. Three wonderful airy rooms in a pleasant family home with a small colourful garden and meals by prior arrangement.
Camellia, Prantik, near the railway station. A concrete intrusion in a disappearing rustic landscape near Prantik station. Comfortable with a good restaurant and swimming pool open to nonresidents (from Rs75).
Chhiiti, 241 Charu Palli, Jamboni. Comfortable and well-laid-out complex, with thatched cottages, some a/c, and a good restaurant. The most luxurious option around Shantiniketan; credit cards accepted.
International Guesl House, Shantiniketan. The university runs two of these large guesthouses -newer. Large simple rooms and a cheap restaurant.
Khelaghar, 135 Purva Palli. A quiet leafy garden with comfortable cottages that need to be booked ahead.
Khushi Lodge, Ratan Palli. Papular and welcoming guesthouse with a Japanese connection but small rooms; the rooftop restaurant - Paschimi - serves Western food and is great in the evenings.
Surabhi Lodge, Shantiniketan Road. One of a handful of similar small lodges along this stretch of the main road from Bolpur. Plain rooms and poor location. For more comfort try Sathi around the corner.
Tourist Lodge, Bolpur Tourist Lodge Road. Large and rather institutional, but otherwise not too bad. A/c rooms, cottages, dorm (Rs80|, a garden and a decent restaurant.
Related Properties from Gurgaon
Accommodation and eating in North Bengal
Kalimpong's acute water shortages are likely to influence your choice of accommodation - few of the lower-range options have running water. The market area (Tenth Mile) and the area around the Motor Stand are where you will find most budget hotels. The best restaurants are in the hotels - the Kalimpong Park, Crown and China Garden. Other options include the legendary Gompu's bar and restaurant a: Dambar Chowk which serves great momos; the Mandarin, a Chinese restaurant at the Motor Stand; and the basic but friendly Kelsang, tucked around the corner from the Motor Stand servmg curd and Tibetan food.
About Calcutta and West Bengal
Unique among Indian stares in stretching all the way from the Himalayas to the sea, WEST BENGAL is nonetheless explored in depth by few travellers. That may have something to do with the exaggerated reputation of its capital, CALCUTTA, which is actually a sophisticated and friendly city that belies its popular image as poverty-stricken and chaotic. Certainly the rest of Bengal holds an extraordinary assortment of landscapes and cultures, ranging from the dramatic hill station of Darjeeling, within sight of some of the highest mountains in the world, to the vast mangrove swamps of the Sunderbans, prowled by man-eating Royal
Information about Calcutta
The efficient and friendly Government of India Tourist Office, Shakespeare Sarani (Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 9am-lpm, is your best bet for information on Calcutta,'West Bengal and destinations further afield, and can assist with itineraries and booking tours.The Government ofWest Bengal Tourist Bureau. 3/2 BBD Bagh East, arranges tours of Calcutta and package trips around West Bengal. They also issue permits and book tours and accommodation at the Sunderbans and Jaldapara wildlife parks. Tourist information counters at the airport and Howrah Station offer the same services. English-language newspapers such as the
Information on Calcutta
The efficient and friendly Government of India Tourist Office, 4 Shakespeare Sarani (Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 9am-1 pm;) is your best bet for information on Calcutta, 'West Bengal and destinations further a field, and can assist with itineraries and booking tours. The Government of West Bengal Tourist Bureau, 3/2 BBD Bagh East (©033/248 8271), arranges tours of Calcutta and package trips around West Bengal. They also issue permits and book tours and accommodation at the Sunderbans and Jaldapara wildlife parks. Tourist information counters at the airport and Howrah Station offer the same
Central Bengal
Central Bengal offers little in the way of major sights to tempt tourists off the Calcutta-Darjeeling route. It is a low-lying rural region where the pace of life is in stark contrast to that of its frenetic capital, Calcutta. Shantiniketan, built on the site of Rabindranath Tagore's lather's ashram, is a haven of peace, and a must for anyone interested m Bengali music, art and culture. The other highlights of the region include a cluster of exquisite terracotta temples in Bishnupur, the rums of Gaur, the region's seventh-century capital, and the palaces of Murshidabad. capital of Bengal's last independent
Mirik in North Bengal
MIRIK, 45km southwest of Darjeeling near the border with Nepal, is the region's newest resort, primarily geared up for domestic tourists. There is a large and lively Gelugpa or "yellow hat" monastery above the picturesque central lake, but most of the tourism is centred around boating on the lake. Surrounded by large tea estates and pine forests, Mirik is a pleasant enough place and can be visited as a long day-trip from Darjeeling or as a stopover on an alternative route down to Sihguri. Most of the accommodation is restricted to the newer Krishnagar settlement at the southern end of the
Accommodation and eating in Eastern Madhya Pradesh
Most of Bandhavgarh s new and established hotels, all of which are in Tala, cater for travellers on a higher budget, and offer "jungle-plan" prices - all-inclusive 24hr deals including meals and two Jeep safaris per person. However, there are also a few budget lodges and mid-priced hotels. The only option for eating outside your hotel is at one of the friendly, cheap dhabas on the main road.
North Bengal in North Bengal
North Bengal, where the Himalayas soar from the flat alluvial plains towards Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan, holds some magnificent mountain panoramas, and also some of India's best hill stations. Most visitors pass as quickly as possible through Siliguri en route to Darjeeling, Kalimpong and the small state of Sikkim. For anyone with a bit of time on their hands, the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary, home to the one-horned rhino, bison and wild boar, east of Siliguri near the Bhutanese border, makes a worthwhile detour. Besides the occasional strike, few travellers will notice, but today the region is wracked by political turmoil, with
Malda and around in Central Bengal
The large, unattractive commercial town of MALDA. 340km north of Calcutta, straddles the highway co the north and is renowned for ins local mango harvest. A natural port, at the confluence of two rivers, it was once a prosperous trading post for silk and cotton: in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries it housed Dutch, French and English factories. Little of interest has survived from that period, but Malda makes a good base to explore the historic sites of Gaur and Pandua, both earlier capitals of Bengal, which can be reached by either bus or tonga. Malda is on the main line
Pandua in Central Bengal
The splendid Adina Masjid at PANDUA, 18km north of Malda, built by Sikander Shah around 1370, was in its day the largest mosque in the subcontinent. It now lies in ruins but these still betray the origin of much of the building materials - carved basalt masonry from earlier Hindu temples was used to support 88 brick-built arches and 378 identical small domes, the design following that of the great eighth-century mosque of Damascus. Other monuments include the Eklakhi mausoleum - one of the first square brick tombs in Bengal with a carved Ganesh on the doorway; and Qutb Shahi Masjid,
Eating to Rameshwaram in Central Tamil Nadu
Eating in Rameshwaram is more about survival than delighting the taste buds. Most places serve up fairly unexciting "meals". Arya Bhavan and Kumbakonam, W Car Street. Both places are run by the same family and dish up standard, inexpensive veg “meals”. Ashok Bhavan, W Car Street. Offers cheap, regional varieties of thalis. TTDC Hotel Tamil Nadu, near the beach. Gigantic, noisy, high-ceilinged glasshouse near the sea, serving good south Indian snacks and "meals:: - many items on the menu are unavailable, however.
Eating from the Kanpur in Central UP
Few of the high-street eating places can be recommended, but several of Kanpur's better hotels such as the Landmark and the Meghdoot have good restaurants. Budhsen, Virhana Road, Nayaganj. A popular restaurant with an adjacent sweetshop which, along with the posh Haveli. is one of several options on this busy and central shopping street. Kailash Misthan Bhandar, GT Road, Gumti 5. The best of a couple of roadside cafes near Moti Jheel, serving snacks such as dosas to locals who come here to take the evening air. Shanghai, the Mall. In the centre of town, popular with well-heeled locals, many of whom
Coastal Bengal
The coast of West Bengal consists of two very distinct sections, on either side of the River Hooghly. To the east are the Sunderbans, one of the largest estuarine deltas in the world covering an area of 2500 square kilometres. Here you'll find the Sunderbans Tiger Reserve and the seaside resort of Bakkhali. On the west side of the Hooghly, an unbroken line of beaches goes all the way to Digha, the last resort before the coastline of Orissa begins.
Eating and drinking North Bengal
Darjeeling has plenty of choice for eating out. The more touristy of its restaurants are around the top of town. Many of the hotels, such as the Windamere and New Elgin, have good multi-cuisine restaurants. The Aliment has an excellent budget traveler friendly menu (you can have a meal for Rs40-100) while Triveni opposite is similar and the Tower View produces excellent home cooking. The New Embassy restaurant at the Chinese-owned Valentino is well worth the splurge. For drinks or light meals, try Joey's Pub,a friendly place on Dr SM Das Road with good atmosphere, or Beni's Cafe on the
Along the Hooghly to the sea In Coastal Bengal
As the Hooghly bends south on its way to the sea, it becomes larger and larger; when it reaches the Bay of Bengal at Diamond Harbour, 50km south of Calcutta, it is very wide indeed. The harbour was used by the East India Company, and a ruined fort is said to date back to Portuguese pirates. The trip down here from the city, by bus or train from Sealdah station, is a popular day's excursion for Calcuttans, though it's also possible to stay the night at the Sagarika Tourist Lodge, which has some a/c rooms. Book through the tourist office
Eating in Mumbai
In keeping with its cosmopolitan credentials, Mumbai (and Colaba above all) is crammed with interesting eating places, whether you fancy splashing out on a buffet lunch-with-a-view from a flashy five-star revolving restaurant, or simply tucking into piping-hot roti kebab by gaslight in the street.
Murshidabad in Central Bengal
Set in the brilliant green landscape of rural Bengal, historic MURSHIDABAD lies close to the bustling commercial town of Behrampur, 200km north of Calcutta. Several eighteenth-century monuments along the banks of the Hooghly stand as reminders of its days as the last independent capital of Bengal. Established early in the eighteenth century by the Nawab Murshid Quli Khan, Murshidabad was soon eclipsed when the forces of Siraj-ud-Uaula were defeated by Robert Clive at the Battle of Plassey in 1757, as a result of which the British came to dominate Bengal from the new city of Calcutta. Clive described Murshidabad as
Nagpur Eating in Maharashtra
While Nagpur's swish hotels, such as the Hardeo and jagson's Regency, boast the majority of its top gourmet restaurants, a number of smaller, less pretentious places to eat around Central Avenue and Sitabuldi offer excellent food at a fraction of the cost.
Accommodation and eating in North Bengal
The best restaurants are located in hotels and Hill Cart Road has the greatest choice. Apsara, 18 Patel Rd, opposite Tenzing Norgay Bus Terminal. Down a lane parallel to the main road, this is a friendly and helpful Tibetan-run hotel close to all amenities. Chancellor, Sevoke Mor, corner of Sevoke and Hill Cart roads. Welcoming and central Tibetan-run hotel with a quiet block at the back; good Tibetan, Chinese and Indian food is served in the restaurant. Cindrella, Sevoke Road, 3rd mile. Five kilometres from the bus station. Large and comfortable with spacious grounds, a sauna, Jacuzzi and swimming pool, travel
Thripunitra Eating in Kerala
Unusually for Keralan cities, Kochi offers a wide choice for eating out, from the delicious fresh-cooked fish by the Chinese fishing nets at Fort Cochin, to the sophistication of the Bmntori Boatyard. Between the two extremes, various popular, modest places in Ernakulam serve real Keralan food. The ferries run all evening, and so it is possible to enjoy a meal on one of the more atmospheric islands before heading back to Ernakulam at about 9pm.