The Taj group of hotels, owners of some of the most iconic hotels such as the Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai and Taj Falaknuma Palace Hyderabad, has brought out a new vacation promo at some of their properties at tourist hotspots in Kerala and Rajasthan. Wrapped under the Taj Holidays brand, it offers a package for stays and meals at some of their off-beat properties.

The promo, available for a single- or a double-occupancy stay offers 2 nights of stay, breakfast + 1 day meal and a 20% discount on F&B across the properties participating in the offer (taxes inclusive). You can extend the stay on a pro-rata basis and the weekday/weekend rates offered are the same. None of the palace hotels nor the ones in metro cities are being offered. You can book till 15th April 2012, for stays till September 30, 2012.

The rates offered are very reasonable as well. I could locate a 2 night stay package (single occupancy) for as low as USD 180 (Rs. 9,000) which is a deal for 2 nights in a luxurious resort along with breakfast and meals and taxes included.

I looked up to check out the rates so as to see there was a value proposition or not. I did not want to put up another offer like SPG’s last offer where 20$ upgrades were not present but advertised. Turned out, there were no catches involved. I looked up for Vivanta by Taj in Bekal, Kerela, a spacious property developed overlooking the Arabian Sea in north Kerala. Have a look below. The Early Bird Rate (prepaid, cancellation 15 days ahead) is better than the 20% discount and the Breakfast inclusive rate, and much better than the Best Available Rate, all of which quote ex-taxes.

If you are a member of the Taj Inner Circle program, you get to earn TIC points as well as a 100 point bonus if you book online.

Here are the properties being offered under the promotion:

• Vivanta by Taj – Malabar, Cochin
• The Gateway Hotel ,Janardhanapuram, Varkala
• Vivanta by Taj – Kovalam, Kerala
• The Gateway Hotel, Marine Drive, Ernakulam
• Vivanta by Taj – Trivandrum, Kerala
• The Gateway Hotel ,Beach Road ,Calicut
• Vivanta by Taj – Bekal, Kerala
• The Gateway Hotel, KM Road ,Chikmagalur
• Vivanta by Taj – Sawai Madhopur Lodge
• The Gateway Hotel ,Pasumalai, Madurai
• Vivanta by Taj – Hari Mahal, Jodhpur
• The Gateway Hotel ,Ramgarh Lodge, Jaipur
• Jai Mahal Palace, Jaipur
• The Gateway Hotel ,Rawalkot, Jaisalmer

Live From A Lounge is also present on Facebook, Twitter and available via RSS.

Last night, I was over at one of my favourite places in Mumbai, the Chambers Terrace of the Taj Mahal Palace, at the invitation of the Leading Hotels of the World. The LHW invited me over for their annual India Showcase, which is a cocktail evening they hold every year for clients, potential clients and some media publications. And this was thanks to the fact that I have patronised some of their hotels for a while. The last I stayed at was the grand Hotel Hessischer Hof in Frankfurt in 2010.

This last evening, a total of 41 hotels were going to be over. This included names like the Capella (Singapore), Orient-Express, Hotel Okura (Tokyo, Japan) and the The Datai (Malaysia). Obviously, there are many more and my pocket is full of business cards as of now, but I invite you to have a look over at their website at www.lhw.com to check out the scores of marquee hotels they have in their fold.

I chatted up with Philip Ho, the Vice President, Asia Pacific who takes care of the activities in this part of the world. When he realised I was a finance guy, we were talking about the economy and specially the Eurozone. However, I was also interested in understanding how a company like LHW works. I was told that the Leading Hotels of the World franchise is owned by some 70 hotel companies globally, with small footprints, who come together to market their properties in newer markets via the alliance. However, this is different from the various hotel chains where they put their own brand on properties they own or manage, even the luxury brands like Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental. Each hotel has its own identity, and in some cases, legendary identities like the Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai, and it is the precise reason why they come together to offer an experience via the alliance. Hotels have to be top notch, and they recently stopped accomodating chains  to keep their focus on selecting ‘Legends’ in the business.

Most interesting for me was to meet some of the hoteliers around and their families, some telling tales of how they grew up in a hotel, and at a young age asking friends “so which hotel do you live in?” That had us in splits. Also, ended up meeting Birgit Zorniger, who has been running the Taj Lands End recently and been the number 2 executive of the Taj Mahal Palace for a long while. It was nice to hear their stories, and of how hotelier kids look at the world outside. One anecdote said a lot, when a 6 year old hotelier kid was in another one of the LHW universe and counted a few fused bulbs in the lobby chandeliers and said this one could not be a good hotel since it had a few fused bulbs.

That the hotelier community is like a small family and most people know others in the fraternity was also evident. In spite of this being a business event, they all mingled around, and talked on a personal level, not hardselling their properties for a visit and so on. And introducing to friends from other hotels if they were around.

I wish I’d have stayed till the end. The wine was good and the food looked lovely, but I had to rush to a dinner with friends!

Conde Nast Traveller’s India team set out to give away their Readers Travel Awards 2011 at a grand function in New Delhi last evening, and there were some surprises and then some non-surprises which happened out there.Yours truly, being an avid supporter of all  things travel in India, did put in his vote too for the RTA 2011.

Here are some key highlights from the Award Results that came out last night:

- Airlines for Best Business Travel outside India: Singapore Airlines and Emirates

- Airlines for Best Leisure Travel outside India: Emirates and Singapore Airlines

Now this is not surprising at all, given that Emirates and Singapore Airlines both take traffic from India very seriously and use the hub-and-spoke model to fill seats on their long-haul flights. Being small city-state airlines, they have to depend on traffic from outside, and given that India’s own airlines are not being able to serve the demand fully, travelling via UAE or Singapore becomes an attractive option.

- Best Airline for Business/Leisure Travel in India: Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways

Now, here, glitz and brand has won over quality and service. I am branded a Jet Airways loyalist, though I have travelled Kingfisher also lately, and Indigo too. Okay, can’t recall if I travelled Spicejet or GoAir all of this past year, but I think Jet Airways has always had a far more consistent experience than Kingfisher. And a better route network, and which is why have I stuck with them for so long. But the glitz wins, and I sure hope it helps to be popular for them to get out of their current misery.

- Business Hotels in India: The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai and The Oberoi, Delhi

Bang on target! I love the Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai, and it is one of the iconic landmarks of Mumbai. In fact, I put it on my list of best Business hotels in Mumbai last month when I compiled one for CNNGo. The Oberoi Delhi is Aces too! Though of late, I like the Oberoi Gurgaon better

- New Hotels in India: Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad and Trident, Mumbai BKC

Again, wonderful properties, and the Trident BKC is on my list of best Business Hotels in Mumbai. Taj Falaknuma, I am waiting to try and review. I am still adding up the small change in my pocket to get the princely sum required to stay there!

- Hotel Loyalty programs: Taj Inner Circle and SPG

Wow! I have great respect for the Taj Inner Circle. In India, it sure makes sense to be a member. SPG being second to that, comes straight away from the fact that SPG is the loyalty program also adopted by the ITC/Sheraton alliance in India which is perhaps the second biggest luxury/business hotels spread in India. Of course, now that SPG is bringing its other brands to India, we’ll see that change (or not) over a period of time!

Here is the full list of winners on the Conde Nast Traveller website! Congratulations to all the winners, and great work, Conde Nast!

Related Posts:

• 10 Best Business Hotels in Mumbai
• Why I stepped on a Kingfisher plane yesterday!
• Flying Kingfisher: First impressions amongst the ongoing turmoil
• A Comprehensive update on the Kingfisher Route network
• The rumors are true: Jet Airways is the best airline in India