Hotels in Shimla

Staying in Shimla

The town's spine is the Ridge and the Mall, a pedestrian stretch along the crest with the church, the theatre and the shops, and the colonial buildings scattered along it. Below the Mall, the bazaars drop steeply down the southern slope to the bus stand and the railway station; above it, Jakhoo hill rises with its temple. The Viceregal Lodge stands at the western end of the ridge. Most arrivals come up by road from Chandigarh or Delhi, or on the narrow-gauge railway from Kalka that winds through the hills to a station on the lower edge of town. There is a small airstrip at Jubbarhatti some way out. Because cars cannot reach the Mall, ask the hotel how luggage gets from the nearest road to the door before you confirm the booking on AI Concierge. A hotel on or just off the Mall puts the walks, the views and the restaurants at the door, at the cost of the climb. The heritage houses around the ridge are the reason many people come. Hotels on the roads out of town, towards Kufri or down the slope, have parking and bigger rooms and need a taxi for every trip to the centre; they suit families and anyone driving onward.