Help with first trip to Bangalore
Hi all,
I have to make a quick trip to Bangalore for work. I have never been there, and would love some advice. I am of Indian origin (but never lived there) so language is probably not going to be a problem. I am going there in the middle of a family vacation, so time is very important - I am only there for a day and a half, maybe two days.
My client does a department to arrange business trips, but since this is an add-on to my personal trip, they cannot help with these arrangements, and have just asked me to bill them.
In any case, the client site is in Hebbal. I am flying in reaching BLR at 8 am.
- How long will it take to get from the airport to Hebbal? I would like to be able to schedule some meetings that day. Should I play it safe and just schedule them for after 1 pm?
- What should I do for ground transportation? Should I arrange for a car and driver (from where, and how much would it be?), or should I just get a pre-paid cab from the airport, and deal with in-city travel using cabs? In my estimates, I had budgeted about $50 a day for transport, which I thought would give me a lot of wriggle room, but it sounds like Bangalore is much more expensive than Kolkata (no big surprise there!)
- What would be a good hotel near the client site? I have a "decent" budget, but again, I would rather be close to the client site than sit in traffic just to be able to stay at a nice place. But I would love to stay at either the Leela or Oberoi... are they too far? Any good hotels near Hebbal?
- Any advice on female work clothes? This is a non-IT chem lab environment, so business suits would probably be overkill, but again, should I play it safe? (Its normally business suits in the US office)
- I am still debating on if my 1-yr old comes with me or stays "home" with grandma (Spouse is definitely thinking of coming). Do you think hotels can arrange babysitting? Should I trust that service, or just play it safe and leave her home?
- Recommendations for restaurants with good food will be great. We are not interested in "happening" places, just quiet upscale places with good non-European food.
All help and suggestions are deeply appreciated!
DG