zakami

Personally I think Bukhara is over-rated. It has gotten hype since Bill Clinton's first visit. Yes, it is amongst the better restaurants amongst the various hotels but you can find much better food at other restaurants around town. Of course, most out of towners do not know those restaurants, so picking Bukhara or other hotel restaurants is a no-brainer. Unfortunately, India does not have an equivalent of a Zagat so the internet does not help. Those places I mention around town are sometimes in areas not visited by a tourist and can be a drive to get to. Bukhara also appeals somewhat to the non-curry palate. Their food is more along the lines of Western food than your typical Indian food so that maybe another reason why it is preferred by the Western visitor. Of course I did not know any of this until I met my wife who grew up in Delhi and have since been "cultured" in Delhi ways. Having said that, I have been to Bukhara many a times albeit been disappointed a few so I will not discourage you from going. Since this is your first visit to India, I would recommend eating at the hotels as the quality (in terms of cleanliness) is higher and the last thing you want to end up with is Delhi belly. If you need some suggestions, send me an email or PM.


Do stay at the LM. It has a much better location than the Hyatt for most of the tourist circuit including shopping specially if you do not participate actively in the Hyatt program. You can even walk out of the LM and feel safe walking around and even reach a site or two but the surroundings of Bikhaji Cama Place (where Hyatt is) are not the same.

GUWonder

You covered it well. The LeMeridien is definitely better for most tourist purposes.

Swanhunter

I'll third the comment that the LeM is better for tourist purposes. And I would recommend Dum Phukt at the Sheraton over Bukhara.

beachfan

This is a helpful thread.

It's seems that, if location counts, Le M is a better choice than the Hyatt. It seesm that it may be a little better than the Sheraton Maurya on that account.

GUWonder, can you elaborate on the room advantages of the Le M over the Maurya? Since Le M is a lower category (I think), that might make the case compelling.

GUWonder

The Maurya Sheraton is better in terms of location if running around to embassies or if wanting a "quieter" experience. (Even then, if you get a room in the main building at the Maurya Sheraton facing the entrance, you may end up hearing all the call-outs for drivers and the like.) For tourist purposes, however, LeMeridien is better located. (You are going to need vehicle transport to see Delhi anyway, but with LeMeridien you could actually walk out the door and see some things; that isn't really an option at the Sheraton unless wanting to walk around a rather boring area that is the area around the Sheraton and stumbling upon an interesting building or something to be seen from the gates.

The LeMeridien rooms are more contemporary in style and more recently renovated and I've yet to end up in a small room there. At the Maurya Sheraton, the rooms in the non-ITC and non-towers sections (i.e., the ones accessed by the elevators in the main lobby on entrance into the hotel itself) are quite small and the rooms are less contemporary.

The LeMeridien award category is lower and doesn't have that peak-pricing level in points, so I'd just go for LeMeridien unless wanting a more lush pool experience. (The pool at LeMeridien is a boring concrete formation and the service at LeMeridien is not as forthcoming as at the Sheraton, but the difference is not such that I'd go running for the Sheraton when the Sheraton's priced at 30-60% higher than LeMeridien Delhi.

CTLAW

How would you compare the Meridien to the Shangri-la in Delhi?

SkyTeam777

The Meridien seems to be 10,000 points now! At least they have a lounge with evening snacks and breakfast, havent seen too many like that.

yosithezet

Does anyone know why I can't seem to get a non-smoking room to show up in this property even looking a month or more ahead? There seems to be plenty of availability in general at relatively good rates (INR 8000) but only smoking rooms.

Because I can't use the check box I ended up in a smoking room last week. They replaced the pillows and it turned out okayish but I'd prefer one that doesn't have the stench at all.

ethang801

how far is this property from DEL? i can get a room for 8500 without airport pickup or 10000 with airport pickup. is an extra 1500 rupees worth the airport pickup or would i be able to get a better rate from a taxi at the airport?
also, how far is this property to the main Delhi train station? and, will the hotel be able to assist me with booking transit to agra for the day? thanks!

drsmith

The hotel is about a 15 minute drive from DEL. I contacted the hotel after making my reservation and they charged me 1000 rupees for a airport pickup.

yosithezet

Welcome to FlyerTalk drsmith.

Are you arriving to DEL int'l or DEL domestic? I'd say int'l the hotel is 35-50 mins depending upon traffic. DEL domestic is probably 25-35.

The taxis are much much cheaper at the airport. But I'm not sure that you want to get into those taxis after a long flight. I have done it a few times only because i forgot to order a car from the hotel.

ethang801

i am coming on an AA flight so it arrives at 10 or 11pm at night and is AA international. would the hotel arrange a car aside from the room rate w airport included? how far is the hotel from the train station?

yosithezet

Sure. You just call them before you board your flight, give them the details and time of arrival. They will have someone waiting outside with a board with your name on it regardless of the timeliness of your flight. (i.e. don't fret if the flight is late, they'll be there)

I can't comment on the train station as I've never been. However, the hotel is very close to India Gate and the Parliament.

As a side note, they've just reopened the newly remodeled cafe next to the lobby. I didn't dine there but it certainly has a stylish decor.

tarunphy

Delhi has 3 main railway stations. The hotel is 2-3 kms from the New Delhi Railway Station NDLS. The most popular train for day trippers to Agra is the Bhopal Shatabdi leaving NDLS at 6:15 am taking about 2 hrs to get to Agra. At that time in the morning the drive from Le Meridien to the station shouldn't take more than 5-10 mins. I imagine the hotel would be able to arrange train tickets and transportation to catch the train fairly easily.

DCGuy

I had the same problem. I put a non-smoking room in the comments section of my reservation and that's why I got when I arrived. My entire floor was non-smoking, from what I can tell.

I just returned from this property and I was generally pleased. It's an uninspiring hotel in the public areas, but my room was actually quite beautifully designed. A control panel by the bed controlled all the lights, the a/c, etc. I loved the rain showerhead and all of the counterspace in the bathroom.

The service was quite good throughout the hotel and restaurants. The Le Royal Club was a nice place to do a little business, with free happy hour and a nice breakfast.

Overall, I think the location is good if your work is near Connaught Place or for government business. It is not really pedestrian friendly and it is hard to walk places--notwithstanding the constant barrage of touts--although there is a Metro station quite close (although an odd walk from the hotel).