[nkapoor777]

Planning to visit Kolkata between 1st and 4th September. The reason is the Argentina-Venezuela football friendly on September 2nd at Yuba Bharti Krirangan in salt Lake, Kolkata. I have already booked VIP enclosure tickets (courtesy Bookmyshow Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata, West Bengal, IndiaFootball Fest 2011, Argentina vs Venezuela Tickets on BookMyShow - Vrrrrooom!!! And it's gone!). The VIP enclosure better be worth it.

Now 2nd September also happens to be our marriage anniversary. So I am planning a 3-4 day trip with my wife and 2-year old boy.

Need advice on hotels (budget - 6-7k per night) and places to visit. Whether I should stay around the Salt Lake area or in the city? A friend mentioned Floatel which is a floating hotel anchored on the banks of Hooghly. Any reviews or feedback?

Most likely I'll be flying out on 1st Sep morning and coming back to Delhi by evening on 4th Sep. Although there is something in my head which says to take the Kolkata Rajdhani in Ist AC (the fare is exactly similar to cost of travel by air, barring a few hundred rupees diference) and return by air. The reason is I wanted my son to experience a train journey which he is very excited about. Any experiences, is it worth it?

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by nkapoor777

Need advice on hotels (budget - 6-7k per night) and places to visit.

I wanted my son to experience a train journey which he is very excited about. Any experiences, is it worth it?

Just jotting down a few thoughts, Nitin...

• Staying near the Salt Lake stadium initially makes eminent sense, since getting public transport from the stadium area soon after a match is sometimes difficult, and you might end up walking a fair bit to look for a taxi.Some suggestions of hotels nearby include The Stadel (right inside the stadium itself), Hotel The Sojourn :: A premier business hotel at Salt Lake, Kolkata, The Sonnet, Indismart Hotel. Kolkata (Calcutta) hotels. Rates from INR3900 and Casa Salt Lake / GD-309, Sector-3 Kolkata - Overview | Book Casa Salt Lake / GD-309, Sector-3 at Cleartrip | Best offers on Hotels in Kolkata, India
• You might want to check in at the Floatel for the remaining 2 days after the match, it should be a good experience. The area around the river and the Chowringhee area (now JL Nehru Road) are the heritage areas of the city, and you could visit a lot of places from there using the Metro train connections, such as the Eden Gardens, Indian Museum, New Market (oh, yesss... shopping!), the Victoria Memorial, Birla Planetarium, Kalighat temple (depending on how religious you are, and how much of a crowd you can bear), etc. etc.
• Might I even suggest you stay the last couple of nights at the Oberoi Grand Hotel? Perhaps the oldest 5-star hotel in the country, the most conveniently located for sightseeing of all kinds, and a heritage building in its own right - I can see Agoda . com offering rates of Rs.9009 per night there.
• 
• Rajdhani, or more preferably the Duronto Express, offers a lovely 1st AC experience - if you have the time, don't miss out on the experience.

[adg_andy]

The Stadel would be inside the stadium and The Sojourn would be right across the road. These would be the best bet. May I also suggest food @ either Peter Cat @ Park Street and cakes/pastry/etc at Flury's to get the old british flavour.

[nkapoor777]

Thanks Andy & Doc for your time over the phone helping out with this. Apologies for being AWOL for the last few days, was totally crushed at work.

I went ahead with The Sonnet for 3 nights (Sep 1st to 4th) due to various reasons (location, good reviews from friends with recent experiences,got a good deal as well through a local contact). Booked 1st AC tickets for the Howrah Rajdhani along with flight tickets for the return journey. So all logistics have been arranged for the trip.

Now comes the plan for what to do in Kolkata for 3 days. Doc inundated me with options over the phone last week (should have recorded the conversation, stupid me!). Let me see what I can achieve on this front. Please feel free to suggest options in the meanwhile.

[Deep Blue]

My wife has to attend a conference at Science city, Kolkata in the last week of feb. What would be the hotel options nearby, budget of 3-5k. She would be travelling with a friend.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by Deep Blue

My wife has to attend a conference at Science city, Kolkata in the last week of feb. What would be the hotel options nearby, budget of 3-5k. She would be travelling with a friend.

Nearest hotel to Science City (but certainly way above the budget) is ITC Sonar.

Lots of excellent options of B&Bs available in Salt Lake, in various sectors, well within (even below) your budget. For example: http://www.roomwale.com/rooms/1249-c...akfast-kolkata or http://www.tripadvisor.in/Hotel_Revi...st_Bengal.html. Public transport availability from Salt Lake to Science City is good too.

[Deep Blue]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Nearest hotel to Science City (but certainly way above the budget) is ITC Sonar.

Thank you SS-traveller. My wife stayed at Chrome Hotel
http://www.chromehotel.in/chrome.html
She was happy with the place. Incidentally, she is a dentist and was there to attend a dental conference.

[Rangy62]

Raking up this old post. I will be visiting Kolkata on 3rd Feb on the way to Arunachal. Will be staying overnight at Grand Oberoi. I have lived in Kolkata in 89-90 and those days Trincas and Peter Cat were good restaurants and had their own charm. Are they still in operation and how is the restaurant these days. Any inputs welcome. I would also like to know if any other places have opened up which is the place to go these days.

Thanks