Most likely you have an international flight departing Bombay late evening or very early morning. Then the chances are high you will end up spending the evening in the Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport. What a waste. You really don’t have to. Follow my tip, and I promise your last hours in India will be great.
A typical scenario is that you arrive at the domestic terminal in the afternoon, or you have checked out of a downtown Bombay hotel at noon, or you arrive by car or train from wherever you have been. Anyhow, if you don’t have a good plan, you are pretty sure to spend some long and boring hours in the airport. Don’t let a taxi driver talk you into taking you to a great restaurant. Don’t even think about going to central Bombay, unless you have a lot of time.
What you need is a plan where the success is 100% guaranteed, and here it is:
Go to my favorite Bombay airport hotel, The Leela. It is 7 km from the domestic terminal and just 1,5 km from the international departure terminal. Change boring with having a great time, in this excellent airport area oasis.
Take a walk and have your favorite drink in the beautifully landscaped garden and pool area. Head for the Chinese restaurant The great wall. I would like to strongly recommend the Peking Duck. The cook will slice the meet in front of your table and it is served as it should with pancakes and hoisin sauce.
Whatever is left of your duck, will be used to prepare a wonderful noodle dish and finally a soup. You will not leave hungry. The restaurant is open until midnight. This is my family’s clear dining favorite.
If you are not in the mood for the duck (I hope you are), then he Leela has other very good options. The 24hour Brasserie Citrus, is a safe choice. The Italian restaurant Stella is also highly recommended. The Leela has a very good Salon and Spa – so why not book a haircut or massage before your flight home. I think the Spa is open until 10 PM.
If you have even more time before your flight, relax in the lobby lounge, knowing It’s just a five minutes drive to the international departure terminal.
Warning:
after visiting once – you will keep coming back. Your wife and kids will demand coming back, not only for a few hours, but for a few days – to start or end your India trip.
We have both started and ended our India trips there for more than 10 years. We have even celebrated Christmas there, that is how good we like The Leela.
Excellent, I’ve actually been mulling what to do with my last night in Bombay. At best I’ll have a few hours in-between arriving from a domestic flight and waiting for my international departure. Too short to do any worthwhile sightseeing but too long to waste away in the airport.
Good to hear. So now you have a plan 🙂
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