Where to stay in Mumbai: the best neighbourhoods and hotels

Colaba is the Mumbai of the imagination. The Gateway of India stands on the waterfront, boats chug out to the cave temples of Elephanta Island, and Colaba Causeway is a crush of pavement stalls, old cafés and bars. A short walk north, the Fort district has the city's finest colonial architecture, its museums and its art galleries.

It is also home to the most famous hotel in India. The Taj Mahal Palace, five minutes on foot from the Gateway, has watched over the harbour for more than a century, and the Taj Mahal Tower is its modern wing next door, steps from Colaba Causeway. The President, a short walk from Colaba Causeway, has an outdoor pool and a spa, and the Fariyas is a mid-range stalwart with a pool of its own. If you only have two days, stay here.

Marine Drive is Mumbai's front porch: a long curve of promenade along Back Bay, lined with Art Deco apartment blocks and, every evening, with half the city sitting on the sea wall to watch the sun go down. After dark the streetlights trace the bay in a string of gold, which is why it is called the Queen's Necklace. Nariman Point, the business district, sits at its southern end.

A sea-facing room here is one of the great Mumbai treats. The Oberoi and the Trident Nariman Point stand side by side at the foot of the bay, the Trident a 35-storey tower with views right along Marine Drive. The InterContinental has a rooftop pool and a rooftop bar, Dome, looking over the Arabian Sea, and the Marine Plaza has a sea-view restaurant. Colaba's sights are a few minutes away by taxi.

Halfway up the peninsula, the cotton mills that made Bombay rich have become its most fashionable address. Lower Parel and Worli are now a skyline of glass towers with luxury malls, destination restaurants and rooftop bars at their feet, and the cable-stayed Bandra-Worli Sea Link sweeps off across the bay towards the suburbs.

Staying here splits the difference between the sights of the south and the buzz of Bandra. The St. Regis is the glossy giant, with nine restaurants and bars, an outdoor pool and a full spa. The Four Seasons is known for its Asian restaurant, San Qi, and ITC Grand Central has an indoor pool and a classic feel. This is a base for people who like their city breaks polished.

Bandra is where young Mumbai goes out. Its western half is a villagey tangle of old Portuguese-style bungalows, churches, boutiques and cafés, with seafront promenades at Bandstand and Carter Road where the whole neighbourhood turns out at dusk. Its eastern half is Bandra Kurla Complex, or BKC, a gleaming business district of banks, consulates and expense-account restaurants.

Taj Lands End is the classic choice, on the Bandra West seafront with views of the Arabian Sea and the Sea Link. In BKC, Sofitel Mumbai brings a French accent to the business district, and the Trident Bandra Kurla is steps from the US Consulate. The airport is a manageable drive from here, which makes Bandra a clever base for a short trip.

Juhu is as close as Mumbai gets to a beach resort. The sand is long and wide, and in the evening it turns into a fairground of families, cricket games and stalls selling bhel puri and crushed-ice golas. You come to stroll, not to swim. The neighbourhood behind is home to much of Bollywood, along with the Prithvi Theatre and the ISKCON temple.

The hotels make the most of the seafront. JW Marriott Mumbai Juhu is the big one, a resort with three outdoor pools a short walk from the beach. Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach is right on the sand; Sun-n-Sand, opened in 1962, was India’s first beachfront hotel; and the Sea Princess is a smaller five-star with an outdoor pool. The airports are about 20 minutes away, South Mumbai a good deal further.

Mumbai's airport sits in the northern suburbs, and the traffic between it and the south of the city is famously slow. If you land late, leave early or are only here for meetings in Andheri, save yourself the journey and stay nearby. This is no bleak airport strip: the hotels are among the best in the city, and Juhu Beach and Bandra are close enough for dinner.

JW Marriott Mumbai Sahar has 588 rooms, a spa and three restaurants. Sahara Star, a kilometre from the domestic terminal, is built around a tropical lagoon under an enormous glass dome. The Hilton Mumbai International Airport is a more intimate place styled on a 19th-century summer palace, and Taj Santacruz has a spa and a health club.

Powai is Mumbai's breathing space: a planned suburb of wide roads and tower blocks set around a lake in the north-east of the city, with the forested hills of Sanjay Gandhi National Park just beyond. It is a long way from the Gateway of India, but handy for the airport and popular with business travellers and anyone staying a while.

The Westin Mumbai Powai Lake is the pick, a four-minute drive from the national park. Meluha The Fern is in the heart of Powai, with a pool, a spa and free parking, and Lakeside Chalet has serviced apartments with a pool, a health club and a tennis court.

Navi Mumbai was built across Thane Creek to take the pressure off the island city, and it is everything Mumbai is not: orderly, spacious and a little sleepy. Stay here for business in Vashi, Belapur or the industrial estates, not for sightseeing. The Four Points by Sheraton in Vashi has an outdoor pool and a spa, The Park is in Belapur's commercial district, and the Royal Tulip in Kharghar is about 40 km from the international airport.