The Taj Mahal Palace is a heritage, five-star, luxury hotel in the Colaba area of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, situated next to the Gateway of India. Built in the Indo-Saracenic style, it opened in 1903 as the Taj Mahal Hotel, and has historically often been known simply as "The Taj". The hotel is named after the Taj Mahal, which is located in the city of Agra, approximately 1050 km from Mumbai. It has been considered one of the finest hotels in the East since the time of the British Raj. The hotel was one of the main targets in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
Part of the Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, the hotel has 560 or 600 rooms and 44 suites and is considered the flagship property of the group; it employs 1,500 staff. The hotel is made up of two different structures: the Taj Mahal Palace and the Tower, which are historically and architecturally distinct from each other (the Taj Mahal Palace was built in 1903; the Tower was opened in 1972).
History
Early years
Pre Independence
The Taj Mahal Hotel was commissioned by Jamsetji Tata