Bombay, oggi nota ufficialmente come Mumbai, è la più grande città dell'India e capitale dello stato di Maharashtra. In origine era una conglomerazione di 7 isole lungo la costa del Konkan che con il tempo si congiunsero tra loro e in seguito con la vicina isola di Salsette formando la Grande Bombay. Si stima che la popolazione della città ammonti a 17 milioni (Stima del 2005). Bombay è la sesta città al mondo per numero di abitanti. Bombay è anche uno dei più grandi porti ed è di fatto la capitale economico finanziaria del paese oltre che la principale porta d'accesso per i visitatori esteri. Ha un carattere cosmopolita ed eclettico simbolizzata dalla presenza nella sua area metropolitana di stabilimenti cinematografici e studi televisivi noti con il nome Bollywood.

Divisioni

Da sapere

Storia

Cultura e atteggiamenti

Clima

Come arrivare

In aereo

In treno

In autobus

Come spostarsi

In auto

In taxi

In autorickshaw

In treno

Bombay suburban railway route map

In autobus

In traghetto

Lingue parlate

Da vedere

Attività ricreative

Apprendere

Yoga

Università

Lavorare a Bombay

Acquisti

Dove mangiare

Ristoranti speciali

Bancarelle con cibo

Ristoranti "Udupi"

Irani cafes

Thalis

Catene di Fast food

Cosa mangiare

Bere

Coffeeshops

Alcohol

Dove alloggiare

Taj Mahal Hotel at night

Economici

• Supergrowth, +91 22 2284 6079 for paying guest accommodation in South Bombay.
• Bentley's is a great budget hotel, but often booked up.
• Hotel Orritel West, Andheri West Mumbai 400053. +91 98199 09599. Reservations +91 22 2673 2256, +91 22 2673 2257 (info@orritel.com) [1] This is a reasonably good budget hotel with airport transfers, a 24 hour coffee Shop a garden restaurant and conference and banquet halls.

Prezzi medi

• Hotel Rosewood, Tulsiwadi opp. A/C Market, Tardeo, Mumbai 400 034 (Nearest landmark is Crossroads Mall, M M Malviya Road. You have to turn left at a little lane a couple of blocks down from Crossroads. ), +91 22 2494 0320-29, +91 22 2496 0318, +91 22 2498 3568-69 (rosewood@vsnl.com, fax: +91 22 2498 3567) [2]. The location is somewhat inconvenient, but has a good restaurant - Oh! Calcutta(see Eat section of South Bombay). Rs.1750-4500 (exclusive of tax).

Prezzi elevati

For travellers with deeper pockets, try any one of the follwing:-

• JW Marriott, Juhu
• Taj Hotels in Mumbai, Including the Taj Mahal in Colaba, providing the most charming, and possibly most expensive, rooms in the city, and the Taj Land's End, Bandra, Mumbai.
• the Leela Kempinski

Contact

The area code for Bombay is 22. Prefix +91 If you are calling from outside India. Phone numbers are eight digits long but on occasion you will find a seven digit number listed. That is probably an old listing. They made the changeover from seven to eight digits a few years back, when they allowed private service providers to offer telephony. Just add a "2" to the number and it should work just fine, however if that does not work try prefixing "5".

Phone booths can be found all over the city. Though they are coin operated, there is usually someone to run the place. (Typically the phones are attached to a roadside shop) You need to keep putting 1 rupee coins into the slot to extend the talk time, so keep a change of 1 rupee coins handy with you. The person running the booth will usually have them. If you find a booth marked STD/ISD, you can call internationally or anywhere within the country. Fees will be charged according to the time spent and a meter runs to keep track of your time. You pay when you have finished your call. Often it is difficult to find one that is open early in the morning or late at night.

Cell phone coverage in the city is excellent. There are many service providers offering a wide variety of plans. Among them are Hutch [3], BPL Mobile [4], Airtel [5], Dolphin [6], Reliance [7] and Tata Indicom [8]. It might be a good idea to buy a cell phone and use one of those prepaid plans to get yourself connected while you are in the city.

Cybercafes are located at virtually every street corner and the rates are quite low. Just keep in mind that they have probably not kept pace with advances in hardware or software, so if you find yourself in one of them, don't be surprised if you are stuck with a really small monitor, Windows 98 and IE 5.0. Also data security is an issue. Change your password after you use it at a cybercafe.

Many coffeeshops like Barista have started offering wi-fi. You will find wi-fi hotspots in Chembur, Pamposh, Phoenix Mills, Santa Cruz and Sterling Baristas. You can also find for-pay Wi-fi at the airport, provided by Tata Indicom.

Stay safe

Although famous for its night-life, foreigners (especially women traveling alone) are advised not to stay out late alone. If you do, avoid taking the help of strangers. Also, do not wear attractive and extravagant jewellery while traveling by public transport. Avoid skimpy and provocative outfits while walking around on the streets, it would be a good idea to carry a light shirt/shawl which you can get rid of once you're indoors in a restaurant or pub.

Emergency numbers

• Police: 100
• Fire: 101
• Ambulance: 102

The services have improved quite a bit but they are more likely to respond to a phone call from a house/office etc rather than a public phone.

Cope

Get out

• Mumbai Metropolitan Region: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region around Bombay is fast developing into a major conurbation. If you need to get to the surrounding cities of Thane, Navi Mumbai or Kalyan, bus services are available
  • TMT (Thane Municipal Transport) operates services in the Thane city and areas around it.
  • The MSRTC (Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation), commonly known as ST, operates services from selected points in the city to the extended suburbs. From Dadar, services to Navi Mumbai and Panvel and from Borivali to Thane being the most prominent. Numerous other important routes are also covered in the MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) by the MSRTC.
  • NMMT (Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport) operates services in Navi Mumbai Area, and a few points around. They also have services from Mulund in Greater Mumbai.
  • KDMT (Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Transport) operates in the Kalyan-Dombivali Area with a few connections to Navi Mumbai.

The suburban train service, mentioned above, does a good job of connecting the surrounding cities.

• Raigad district of Maharashtra lies just south of Bombay. It is famous for its beaches and forts. You can get there by road or by ferry from Bombay. The important ferry routes are:
  • Ferry Wharf, Mazagaon - Mora (Uran)
  • Ferry Wharf, Mazagaon - Rewas (near Mandwa) -These are in the budget range.
  • Gateway of India - Rewas Fast boats and Catamarans operated by private operators. Service approximately every 2 hours, suspended during the monsoon season, i.e. May-October. From Rewas, take a bus or car to Alibag.

• Hillstations - Matheran, Lonavala, Khandala,Mount Abu.