Taj Ganges Varanasi

When we stayed at this hotel 5 yrs ago, it was the best in city. But it was tired. Well, what was tired then is TOTALY RUNDOWN now! Public spaces are fine, but the guest rooms badly need refurbishment and cleaning. Our suite was not functional nor was it clean. Stains as big as ones fist on the carpet, a shower that sprayed water all over the floor, no soap dish, burned out light bulbs. etc Housekeeping unresponsive. WiFi not working despite repeated assist by IT guy. Then business office argues about internet charge. Mgmt apologetic, but just kept talking about future. My question: What about my 3 days stay? My agent has requested a total refund!

I had seen the photos of the rooms at the Taj Ganges posted on this forum. So I was very pleased that the room I was allocated was far nicer. I think some floors of the hotel have been renovated.

The hotel is an ugly building, but the grounds of the hotel are very nice, an oasis in the mayhem that is Varanasi - a fascinating place.

One problem we had, was that we wanted to go to eat at a restaurant recommended in the 'Lonely Planet'. El Parador. It was very difficult to get out of the hotel! The main desk told us there were no taxis, that the 'food served in the hotel was the best, so we had no need to leave!' We insisted, and it was worth the short taxi ride to the restaurant. El Parador is a small rooftop restaurant, run by a Gurker family. The food was fresh, good choice and quality; the homemade bread and puddings were great.

We arrived on an overnight train from Delhi exhausted to find that they had cancelled our booking - claiming that our travel agent had instructed them to do so even though we had booked with them direct. The room we eventually ended up in was nice enough, after complaining about the first two. For some reason a double bed in India in most cases means two singles pushed together - not very romantic. The swimming pool was closed for renovation, which we weren't told when we made our booking. The food in the Indian restaurant was excellent and Varanasi is an amazing place to visit.

We had a two night stay here.

Varanasi is a dirty place - stand in the street for five minutes & you'll need a shower. So it was nice that this hotel is comfortable & clean.

Room was same as any other standard hotel. You are woken at the crack of dawn with everyone rushing to the Ganges to see the bathing. Traffic noise is also a problem with locals hooting horns all night.

Quite nice food although service seems to slow down when they have a big party in. We also had to leave early on our last morning so pre arranged with the restaurant to have breakfast early. This was not passed on to the morning staff as they got a bit shirty about us sitting down, despite a large group of other tourists half way through their breakfast.

Praise to the Taj Ganges this was the only hotel that put the chilie symbol on the menue to indicate hot food.

Business centre very good and reasonable too.

We wanted to go out for a walk to buy some t-shirts the man on reception said you'd have to travel 15km to buy! After we had run the gauntlet of the rickshaw & taxi drivers on the gate - try explaining to a native that you just want to walk for a change - we found a shop a mere 500 yards from the hotel. I think the staff need educating about their locality.

There was a Hindu wedding on our last night which nobody objected to us watching from the sidelines.

The Taj Ganges is top of the list on Trip Advisor probably because it is the tourist hotel. I would recommend this hotel to others.

Varansi is mystical and probably the dirtiest part of India that we saw. The hotel is a great refuge from the busy town but it is not perfect. Staff in the hotel are up to the normal high standards you expect in a Taj and the restaurant excellent. Highly recommended are the signature dishes that the menu highlight. The small bar is not well used. The executive room we had looked a little tired but we soon warmed to it - Varanasi is not Delhi and everything needs to be viewed in the context of that. Power cuts occured about twice each evening, and although short do remind you exactly of where you are. Security at the hotel is good as there is a lot of hassle waiting for you at the gates. Unfortunately to get to the large gardens you must pass the snake charmer and rickshaw man inside and that little hassle is the only complaint I can have about the hotel. The travel desk deserves a good mention as they organise things for you superbly.

The Taj Ganges is a really nice hotel, a welcome oasis in Varanasi. Our room was small, but immaculate and comfortable. The bed was perfect. There are power-outs all day, every day in Varanasi, but at the Taj, the outages never lasted more than a minute. Food was delicious, but we did have one surly, incompetent waiter. The other waiters more than made up for the "---", though, especially when I got sick and he brought me plain pasta, free of charge. The travel desk also arranged a tour for us with an incredibly knowledgeable guide. The pool was under construction, and it would have been nice if they'd told us that they had another off-grounds pool available. Oh well.

The Taj Ganges Benares was the third accommodation my spouse and I stayed in during our recent two-week tour of northern India. Our reservation for this hotel the nights of September 14th and 15th was arranged by Thomas Cook as a part of a tour package of Varanasi and Khajuraho. When we arrived, we were told we had been upgraded to a superior room, I suspect because they desired to consolidate guests on the lower floors due to renovations that were being made on the 5th floor. Our room was on the first floor at the end of the left wing of the hotel, closest to the main street. You could hear some traffic noise through the windows, but it was by no means unbearable. By about 11:00 in the evening it was quieter.

Excluding the entryway and bathroom, the room was approximately 3.5m x 2.1m and contained a large double bed, extra-firm but comfortable, with nice linens and pillows. The furnishings in the room were not modern, but were quite acceptable. The bathroom was clean, spacious and supplied with decent toiletries, hairdryer, and good quality cotton towels. The bathtub and shower tiles were starting to look aged and there was a small amount of water damage apparent on the walls in the entryway. Considering there was a noticeable mildew smell outside the room in the corridor, the small amount of water-damage was not surprising. I suspect the first-floor rooms and corridor will undergo renovations very soon after the upper floors of the hotel are finished. None-the-less, the room, the bathroom and the hotel in general are very good for the price. The breakfast buffet in my opinion was very generous and excellent overall. It contained dishes of Indian breakfast foods including idli and potato dishes, an omelette station, a nice fruit bar with yogurt and lassi drink, fruit juices, cereals, english breakfast foods (sausage, bacon, scrambled and boiled eggs roasted tomatoes and I think baked beans), a cold-cut and cheese station and a bread station.

The hotel lobby was very inviting. It was bright, spacious and nicely decorated with large mural paintings of the ghats and rituals of the Ganges. In the evenings there was a musician in the lobby playing very pleasant Indian music, creating a nice ambience during teatime. The Varuna restaurant had very good, very affordable Indian food and excellent service. The Prinsep Bar had a decent happy hour (20% off of drinks and snacks) but felt a little cramped and could use some improvement to the overall ambience (possible add some mood-lighting, candles, plants or a fishtank). There is a shopping gallery just off of the lobby, although we didn't buy anything from it. The swimming pool was under renovation during our stay, which didn't matter since it rained or drizzled most of the time we spent in Varanasi. The pool looked like it would be nice once it was finished. The workout room is located in what looked like a small hexagonal-shaped building outside of the main hotel, next to the swimming pool. Glancing inside, it looked fairly modern and clean, with lots of windows. It had at least 6 or 8 machines and some free weights. It seemed good but unfortunately we enjoyed so much touring I wasn't able to use it. I was however able to use the business center and paid 138 rupees for one-half hour of internet usage. The grounds behind and around the hotel are very nice. There is a nice restaurant patio with what looks like an area for musicians or live entertainment. There are some lovely rose gardens and mango trees next to the tennis court. Behind those there is a small park with a grass jogging track around the park. It is very pretty and peaceful.



My overall opinion is that, discounting the mildew smell, our room was of a 3 to 3.5 star standard and the rest of the hotel is 4-star. The hotel is a very good value. I would definitely try to stay at this hotel again. Our stay in Varanasi and our guide provided by Thomas Cook were excellent. We are seriously considering returning for a second visit next year or shortly thereafter.

From our early arrival on the train from Agra (we looked so frightful that they let us have our room early!) to our check-out, this hotel provided excellent service. It is in a wonderful garden that is pleasant to hide away in from the frantic activity on the streets of Varnasi!

Highly efficient, courteous staff made our stay at this hotel an absolute delight. Our room was lovely, the landscaped grounds provided a needed refuge from the hectic atmosphere of the city, the food in both restaurants was fabulous, and the live Indian music performed in the lobby and at the Varuna Restaurant added a very special touch.

you almost don't see the hotel from main road, as yoy enter the hotel via a small and lush driveway. Upon enterting the hotel, live music is played making you feel like you are the only guest there.

Check in is very quick, and thehotel room is adeuqate for your needs. The hotel ground are plesent, with a very small gym, few ball games, small tennis court and there vegetable garden.

The food is by far the best aspect of the hotel. Service is impecabile, and the staff is freindly. Buffet breakfasts are great with fresh orange juice and continental style spread. If you don't see anythign on the menu, jus ask them to make it up!

Overall and enjoyable stay at the hotel.