Mumbai sights and landmarks guide

Set your sights on Mumbai

It’s a popular tourist destination because of the European influences in its architecture. There are also a lot of businessmen who frequent the area due to the presence of the largest stock exchange office in all of India.

Traveling to Mumbai

Mumbai has one of the busiest and largest airports all over Asia. International travelers can just book a flight to Sahara International Airport. It’s 30 kilometers away from the city proper. If you come from any Indian city, you can take a domestic flight and arrive in Santa Cruz which is around 4 kilometers from the central part of Mumbai.

Going around Mumbai

There are two ways to enjoy the different sights of Mumbai. You can travel on the road or on the rail tracks.

There are plenty of metro trains that ply the streets of Mumbai so you will never have any hard time looking for a transport. This is also especially ideal for those who are in a shoe-string budget. You may also ride the rickety bus system or the double-decker cabs which are actually two of the favorites of both local and international travelers. You can of course move around the city by riding taxis, but it’s going to be very expensive. More remote locations can be enjoyed using a railway system. There are two of them: the Western and the Central Railways.

The sights of Mumbai

The sights in Mumbai are described as eclectic. There are modern edifices, classical architectural structures and ancient caves to name a few.

The Town Hall is one of the oldest neo-classical structures you can find in the city. It was built in 1833 by Colonel Tomas Cowper who led the Mumbai engineers. It stands 100 feet high. The main features of the building include the Doric columns and the three porticos. It was one of the great witnesses to the development and growth of the city. 

The Elephanta Island is an hour’s boat ride away from the city. It holds a number of ancient temples caves and shrines that go back to the sixth century. The entire island was in honor of the Lord Siva, one of the major Hindu gods.

Apollo Bunder or the Gateway of India is India’s version of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It was built to commemoration the visit of Queen Mary and King George V to the city in 1911.