Sea-facing boulevards and colonial grandeur
Mumbai is a city of seven islands joined into one fast, ambitious metropolis. The Gateway of India faces the harbour beside the Taj Mahal Palace hotel, and the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco ensembles of the Oval Maidan are UNESCO sites. Evenings belong to Marine Drive's sweeping curve and Chowpatty Beach, where locals eat pav bhaji and bhel puri. Take a boat to the rock-cut Elephanta Caves, and look out for the dabbawalas delivering lunches across the city.