The Claridges, New Delhi

Last year a colleague introduced me to the Claridges Hotel, in Delhi, and it's now a favourite.  Besides being within easy walking distance of Lodhi Gardens it's peaceful and very relaxing with friendly, competent staff - a nice place to come back to after a few weeks travelling round rural areas.  I don't stay there all the time - it's outside my budget unless I can find a good special online - but I do enjoy their quirky touches:

Flowers
There are lots of flowers everywhere - in the rooms, and up and down the hallways.  Not only are the flowers REAL (and not dusty, as so many fake flowers are!) they smell great, and the whole hotel smells pleasantly floral.  It's a huge improvement on the plug-in chemical diffusers hidden away in many other hotels.  I start my stay in a lot of hotels hunting down all the power points and making sure nothing nasty is plugged in.

Laundry
As if it weren't wonderful enough that someone else does my laundry for me, if I ask for my laundry to be folded (as opposed to hung) it comes back discreetly packaged in its own basket.  I don't think anyone takes as much pride in laundry as Claridges' housekeeping!  Inside the basket everything, including my pyjamas, is starched into crisp submission.  Because nothing says Well Dressed For Bed like properly starched collar and cuffs.

I once got a shirt rejected by housekeeping: they sent it back because it came in with a small stain on one shoulder and, thinking they couldn't take the stain out (they were right), they didn't want to wash it in case I assumed they'd put the stain in.  It was quite a battle to get that shirt washed and back into my limited wardrobe again but eventually, and with some anguish, the Head Housekeeper agreed to accept a garment which could only be delivered back to the guest in an imperfect state.

My shirt, with a note politely rejecting it

Food

Breakfast!  Watermelon juice, fresh fruit and  bircher muesli 

The food is excellent, with lots of fresh fruit and vegies.  I stock up on salads and western food (they do a mean pear, rocket and blue cheese salad!).  Most western meals in room service come with teeny tiny bottles of Tabasco sauce; I guess in case you find your meal too subtly flavoured.

Emergency spice with all Western meals.  That's a 500ml bottle of water: the Tabasco really is small

There is an on-site bakery which makes and sells bespoke cakes for parties and functions, and which services the hotel's cafe.  There are traditional-looking cakes to eat with coffee which would give any patisserie competition...

Raspberry & white chocolate mousse

...and some amazing looking non-traditional options!  I've not (yet) had corn-on-the-cob cake but maybe one day I'll be tempted.  For research.

Gardens
Unusually, in my experience of Delhi hotels, Claridges has an outdoor restaurant (with excellent tapas!) and a separate, beautifully manicured, lawn on which, depending on the time of day, you can order afternoon tea, a drink, or a light meal and watch people coming and going through the main entrance.

My current hypothesis is that Indian sparking wine is very good, however I continue to increase my sample size to ensure my results are statistically significant