Print
Email
Bookmark & shareBollywood flash, big-business glitz and the crushingly poor.
Mumbai is the bubblegum glamour of Bollywood cinema, shopping malls full of designer labels, cricket on the Oval Maidan, promenading families eating bhelpuri on the beach at Chowpatty, red double-decker buses queuing in grinding traffic jams and the infamous cages of the red-light district.
This pungent drama is played out against a Victorian townscape more reminiscent of a prosperous 19th-century English industrial city than anything you'd expect to find on the edge of the Arabian Sea. It's a city with vibrant streetlife, India's best nightlife, and a wealth of bazaars.
Fast Facts
Population
16,400,000
Currency
Name: Indian Rupee
Code: INR
Symbol: Rs
Electrical Plugs
230-240V 50Hz
Languages Spoken
Official: Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Bengali, Kashmiri, Kannada, Marathi, Gujarati, Telugu, Punjabi
Time Zones
GMT/UTC +5.5 (Standard Time)
Country Dialing Code
+91
Weights & Measures
Metric
India - Free Guidebook Chapter
Download the free Getting Started chapter or buy individual chapters from our India guide, in our online Shop.
› Go to the India download page.
Related Travel Stories
-
Bollywood or Bust
article by Michaela Gordon, December 2005
Step inside Mumbai and see a city of dreams, despair, drama and dazzle; heartbreaking poverty and staggering grandness. Read the full article ›
BLUELISTS blu,list to recommend a travel experience
-
Quintessential India
— 30 Dec 07 -
India Exhausted
— 09 Jan 07 -
Best City Views
— 21 Nov 06 -
Most luxurious spas in Mumbai
— 28 Feb 06 -
THINGS THAT MADE MUMBAI MEMORABLE - PART 2
— 28 Feb 06
Advertisement
Book Your Trip
Hotels & Hostels
Booking hotels is simple with Lonely Planet. See our reviewed and recommended hotels in one place and book online. Browse hotels ›
Lonely Planet Newsletters
Updates, offers and inspiration - straight to your inbox.
Subscribe now ›
Disclaimer: We've tried to make the information on this web site as accurate as possible, but it is provided 'as is' and we accept no responsibility for any loss, injury or inconvenience sustained by anyone resulting from this information. You should verify critical information (like visas, health and safety, customs and transportation) with the relevant authorities before you travel.
