Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park / MAYFAIR SPA, Darjeeling

We would like to thank Mayfair Darjeeling for the lovely decoration and services on the occasion of my 1st Anniversary.
The Property is at a very prior location near the Mall road. However the view from the room or the lounge beaches is such beautiful that you prefer to stay there and just relax.
Stay Dates- 14th January 2024 to 16th January 2024.
Room Type - Cottage room upper floor

Wonderful hotel but the trudge up and down is certainly not for painful knees. There is no parking so one cannot bring your own car. Staff is attentive and the food is good. Paintwork could be classier and less tacky. The live band outside the dining room in the evening is a dampner. Overall the hotel is good and rooms are spacious and well appointed.
Area very secure and away from noise and great for morning walks being located in the Mall road and close to the governor's residence.

We stayed in the Campbell room. Beautifully appointed, cozy rooms.a bit of a concern would be that these rooms may get very hot and stuffy during the summers (as temperatures nowadays are increasing to new highs). They have provided fans but if temperatures keep increasing that may not suffice.
The rooms are very well decorated and they provide a wide range of teas, coffee, sodas, and snacks for the guests. I really appreciated how generous they are and the fact that they provide glass bottles for water.
The hotel is gorgeous with lovely flowers all over the place. It's quiet (opposite the Governor's House) and a great place to see Darjeeling the way it used to be decades ago.
It's a bright and colourful spot that is an easy 10 minute stroll away from the main Chowrasta at the Mall. There are viewpoints a minutes walk away and you can sit there and enjoy the mountain views and the elusive Kanchenjunga (if you visit in June).
Their restaurant is fantastic with wide variety, great food, and excellent service.
The management has done an amazing job with the way they have maintained the place and the way they make every guest's stay so comfortable. Would love to visit again!

You will miss North Indian food. Space crunch problem is there. Entrance to property is not thinkable.

Third class. Never ever go to this hotel. Their service is too bad. They do not keep their promise. Also a great cheater. They promised for inverter which will provide uninterrupted electricity. But practically, what happened with us is worse. We could not bathe continually for two days due to cold water, neither did they start guesser nor provide hot water in bucket. A pathetic situation faced by me as well as by my wife. Also we had to stay in dark due to electricity breakdown. We made a contract for site seeing. We didn't go for 3 points visit in morning due to poor weather, but they didn't refund any money. Last but not the least, the hotel is too high above the mall area. You will be tired to return to this hotel. Also very cold inside the room. A thin blanket was provided which was not enough to tackle the coldness there.

Best to watch red panda, himalayan black bear, magestic royal bengal tiger SAMRAT, black panther, wolf, fox

Very well maintained Zoo, One of biggest in Hill Stations that I have visited.
Darjeeling Zoo is also very old and still remains one of the main highlights in terms of sight seeing.

Must visit at Darjeeling with family, to have knowledge about trekking.and trekkers also.gd at afternoon, nice snacks and sitting facilities.

Its good. Not too many animals. A bit difficult for people with knee and back problems since it goes uphill.

Really nice u can see each and every Anomal clearly with near distance and enjoy musium is also very attractive you love it, institute is also good

A good small zoo, clean, neat and healthy looking animals. Can take small children. Overall well made and can surely visit.

The price of ticket was 50 in 2021. I think it is the biggest zoo in West Bengal. Here you can see a museum also

Perfect Holiday Destination. Highly recommended for a memorable stay. Mall Road walking distance. Ambience, Food, Staff all Perfect?

The hotel is just amazing! The food was heaven. Staff is very friendly and it just feels like home. Highly recommended!

1. The place is very well maintained and clean

2. The staff was also very sweet and helpful

3. Special mention of Ms. Seema who is in the housekeeping/laundry department… I accidentally stained the sheets and she was very sweet to say that she would look after that … and at that point she didn’t even know that we were going to pay her for it nor did she expect anything from us …

4. The ONLY MAJOR drawback of this place is that it has no lift … so we had to climb two floors every time (we were given rooms on the second floor) …

5. We had also booked one suite … the suite was located a bit farther in another building, next to our building… but there were many steps to climb over there as well, since there is no lift over there too…

6. A special mention of ALL the young men who served us till late in the night and made SO MANY trips to our floor without complaining … I can only remember Ajay’s name … sorry I can’t remember the rest …

I’m giving it 4 stars ONLY because of the absence of a lift … this place is definitely not advisable for senior citizens and for people who have difficulty in climbing stairs …

Since I stayed in Mayfair Silliguri. Little bit underwhelming experience. Overall property is good minus swimming pool. The staff service has a scope to improve

Great location, great hospitality, great food, overall an excellent hotel to stay in Darjeeling. The hotel is very tastefully decorated. It has fair number of activities for adults and children.
It is close to the mall and Chowrasta, major tourist points of Darjeeling, yet is on the quieter side of Darjeeling. Has a traffic-free walking trail with 3 viewpoints of Kanchenjunga mountain close by.
If you are looking for a luxury hotel in Darjeeling then this could very well be the one that you are looking for.

I had a knee surgery after a fracture. Since this trip was planned before that I visited. They have special guest rooms for special needs. Loved the room very spacious and my room had wheel chair access. I had a relaxing weekend

Enthralling ambience & sonorous live music at Mayfair Darjeeling made for a perfect evening!

Amazing hospitality.awesome view and very comfortable rooms.
Staff is super helpful and understanding. I sincerely thanks Mr Mohnti for all the support he landed during my stay.

Probably the best Hotel now in Darjeeling Town. Excellent property in an excellent location, right next to the Governor House

What a wonderful Mayfair Darjeeling hotel! It's a five-minute walk from Chowrasta Square. The hotel is well maintained, clean and interior is luxurious and breakfast is served as a great buffet, and all the staff are friendly. Next time I go to Darzlinga, I'll definitely go to the Mayfair Hotel.

Must visit without any question in mind. They have maintained very well and all animals r there in good health.

I did not stay at this hotel so far but I have bad experience and wants to share with all. I have booked this hotel through agoda/booking.com through my credit card with free cancellation. I cancelled the booking within free cancellation period. But hotel refund me amount after deducting 5% bank charges. So pl ensure what you will get if cancelation is free and they have not send me any refund invoice showing deduction of bank charges.

Ajay Mittal

Loved the deluxe rooms n suite at Mayfair Darjeeling. Great service too. Chef is excellent. The ambiance, cleanliness are all par excellent.

Away from traffic. Stayed in June 2015. Excellent hotel. Rooms are nice. Dinner is tasty. Loved the feel there. Recomended

It is very cold out there. Food was tasty. Very big space. Many places to sit and enjoy the darjeeling beauty. Enjoyed it,

Last I stayed in Mayfair was in 2018. A lot has changed.

Hills are changing to become more commercial and Mayfair is no exception. They now have an elevator from the entry to the ground floor. Imagine.

They have also changed the play area, the lounge and the open area where they had performances.

The performance area is covered now. I wonder if they still have those bonfire kinda thing in the evenings.

The dining hall looked fresh. Can't remember if they have changed the wallpapers or given a fresh coat of paint.

They have also made a small area for parking at the main entrance. Not sure what purpose will it solve. But am sure they must have considered some data before making this parking.

Food was good. Prices as steep as always.

It made me want to come back for a stay here in my next visit

Excellent zoo. Not that much animals as compared to Odisha state museum.
But attractive thing is Bengal tiger.

Leopard red.panda royal Bengal tiger
Can't imagine how I waited to.see this magnificent creatures.
Love them

Your visit to Darjeeling is incomplete if you did not visit this place. You cannot afford missing the cute Red Pandas roaming playfully or just fast aseelp atop their resting places. The Snow Leopard and the Black Jaguar will surely give you chills with their cold, piercing looks. See the Royal Bengal Tiger taking a majestic stroll from one corner of the enclosure to the other. The Himalayan Black Bears will give you company. And last but not the least, the cacophony of the bird cage is something you might have never heard before.

Best property in Darjeeling without match.
Best view, awesome food, breathtaking views n mind blowing service.
Best experience you can get in Darjeeling

Had a good experience staying at this property, though there is not much to do once you are inside the resort. Very cordial staffs.

Heavenly Experience
Squeaky Clean n hygiene is maintained to the highest level
Food is Yumm
Place is gorgeous
Perfect for photo bombing

A must place to visit in darjeeling. There are many animals from panda to tiger to black Panther and all variety of reptiles. The mountaineering Institute provides activities like rock climbing and burma bridge.

It is commonly known as Darjeeling zoo. Many Himalayan species like Ghoral, blue sheep, thor, takin, snow leopard, black panther, tiger, pheasant and most importantly red panda are kept in the zoo. It is a high altitude zoo and requires uphill walk.
The enclosures are pretty good and specious. This needs a visit if you're visiting Darjeeling.

I had a wonderful experience at the May Fair, a beautiful hotel in a beautiful location.
Located just near the Darjeeling Mall, the hotel is clean and provides u great hospitality. The staffs were very helpful. The rooms were clean, very comfortable,  Breakfast was good with large variety.
Overall experience was awesome. I'll recommend dis hotel to every tourist visiting Darjeeling.

Very clean and tidy. The animals and birds there are kept in utmost care. There were appropriate sanitization facilities (for covid-19). And the museum imparted interesting knowledge.

পরিস্কার পরিচ্ছন্ন পরিবেশ
সৎ কর্মচারী
আমার মেয়ের সোনার আংটিটা ভুলে রুমেফেলে এসেছিল
চেক-আউট করে গাড়িতে ওঠার সময় একজন কর্মচারী দৌড়ে এসে আংটিটা দিয়ে দেন। ধন্যবাদ জানানোর ভাষা হারিয়ে ফেলে ছিলাম।

They are taking very good protection for entering.while entering they even sanitize your shoes.we have to walk over a cloth soaked in sanitizers.and the zoo is also very goof

A must go destination in Darjeeling. You can spot red panda & snow leopard, jaguar, Black Panther and many more wild animals and a variety of birds. You can do adventure activities in HMI.

Very very bad experience with manager Vikas. Very in experienced and doesn't know how to speak with human being. I would not recommend to anyone at least MAYFAIR DARJEELING!

Nature + animals. If you want to get a feel of jungle safari. Go to this zoo. Variety of animals. Black panther, snow leopard, bengal tiger etc.

The most poor service given by restaurant staff in Darjeeling Mayfair!
I will never ever suggest for this property to any of my friends!
I had 5 rooms booked but we all are dissappointed!

Small but nicely managed. Mostly hilly Goats and small herbivores animals. Bengal Tiger is the main attraction. Museum is also good for mountain lovers.

Legacy of Mayfair in Darjeeling too. Once you are there, feel ultimate comfort of their hospitality, I couldn't remember any staffer without smiling. Each of your needs are well taken care. Excellent room decor, neat and clean wash rooms, lobby, lounge and dining are beautifully decorated, even each and every corners will greet you by the live flowering plants. I will give them 100% marks. Advice for new comers - Please check in without hesitation provided booking is available. You can book directly from Mayfair website.
Location of the property is also among best available in Darjeeling. You can reach every place of tourist interest by walking except TIGER HILL.

Within zoo. People with mountaineering interest will love the Himalayan terrain, peaks and expedition.

Beautiful ambience, superb hospitality which I have never ever seen in any resort
Best experience ever
Thanks alot Mayfair for making our stay an unforgettable one

Great Resort. Best possible location.near to the Mall Road & the other tourist attraction like HMI, the zoo which is hardly 10-15 walking time. Staff service is excellent & very courteous / polite.

Beautiful property! The staff are very hard working and strive to develop a bond with you to make you feel at home!

Loved the stay at this hotel.
1. Really polite and professional staff. (Specially Manoj and Dhanbir)
2. The food is tastiest and a large variety is there.
3. Housekeeping is best in class too.
Next time again Mayfair

Awesome place with splendid interiors, great services. Rooms have all possible facilities. One of the best hotels in Darjeeling at a higher budget.

The place is nice and cozy very welcoming and polite staff great food great views highly recommended. They server all kinds of cuisine for breakfast lunch and dinner as well

Darjeeling, the Queen of the Hills in West Bengal, is welcoming visitors with renewed enthusiasm and strict safety protocols in place

The name Darjeeling comes from the Tibetan ‘Dorje’, which means thunderbolt, and ‘ling’ meaning land. It has over the centuries belonged to Nepal, Sikkim and the East India Company. Which has resulted in a hill station with influences from the Nepali, Tibetan, British and the original Lepcha, seen in architecture and, of course, food.

Darjeeling has reopened after a five-month closure, and big hotels like the Mayfair and smaller homestays are all welcoming visitors with traditional hospitality.

Here are some things to do when you get to this glorious destination.darjeeling tiger hill

Image: _pclicks_

Catch the Sunrise From Tiger Hill
It is a rite of passage for everyone who visits Darjeeling to make a sunrise expedition to Tiger Hill. Of course, you have to set out at an unearthly hour, but the view of the glorious sunrise across the 250km stretch of the Himalayas, including Mount Everest and Kanchenjunga (above) is also unforgettable. Still, even if you like to stay cosy in your bed, and yes, this time of year can be particularly chilly, there’s plenty else fo you to do in Darjeeling.

Worst property to stay in Darjeeling
Better stay in Elgin if you are looking for a luxury experience. The breakfast and Dinner buffet is so sad that we had to go outside to eat. We tried to get the manager number MR GIRODHARI, unfortunately he is such a lazy and unprofessional employee that we called him almost 20 times but he didn't bother to answer any calls
Would never ever recommend anyone to stay at such cheap property where they loot their clients.

Awesome property, very very helpful and prompt service of the staffs/ housekeeping etc, really enjoyed the stay.

The WiFi/ internet connection could be much better, frequent disconnection. Regular dusting should be improved. Hence deducted one star.

Absolutely loved our stay at the Mayfair Darjeeling. The ambience and location of hotel is great. The Mall road is at walking distance. The food was great too. Such picturesque resort. Highly recommended.

Nice and very comfortable. The only thing is food prices it'll make flush out whole money. Better you go to mall road and have local food

The rooms are really good and comfortable has a fireplace with good staff nd great service.it is close to mall road so location wise it is good.
However the food nd buffet are average.
And u don't have nature views or any mountain views from the room.
However the resort has plantationsball around.every small details have been worked up nd the resort is simply beautiful. Therr are benches all around to sit nd relax nd great place to loitter around.
Overall it's a great place for lodging nd chilling on a vacation.

Awesome experience.loved their service. Had a great stay.
Although, the food is quite costly.compared to the portions served.

Amazing property and great staff, the food has to improve though. Atleast have local delicacy on the menu.

Most beautifully maintained Cottages. Every corner is picturesque. Staff is friendly and very near to Mall Road. I look forward to visit again soon

Wish I had the access to give 10 stars to this property. This property is beautiful in itself & have such BEAUTIFUL sunset. If you are traveling to darjeeling then you must visit this place. From food to interiors to cosy rooms to courageous staff, They cover everything what a customer wants. Loved the hospitality & the place.

Stayed here for 3-nights.very nice and classy hotel.spa specifically was amazing.breakfast and service is really good.however, lunch and dinner menu is overly expensive and lack the quality.overall, thoroughly enjoyed the stay and will recommend.

Just a budget hotel. Not suitable for older and people with knee problem. You have to climb 30 to 40 stairs

Had a pleasant stay at Mayfair Darjeeling for 3 nights during January 2020. The hotel is located just opposite to Raj Bhavan. It took us nearly 3 hours to reach from the Bagdogra Airport. The checkin process was smooth with a warm welcome. The reception area was nicely decorated and the fireplace added warmth to the room. Our room was nice, spacious and had all facilities available. The hotel provided Room Heaters (2 types) which were sufficiently kept us warm. The bathroom had hot running water through out the day. The staff was courteous and helpful. Appreciate their thoughtfulness on providing hot water bags on chilly winter nights. The library room was very good and nicely decorated. Enjoyed the live music during the evenings. However, food was very average and overly priced. Overall had a very good stay.

Thanks,
Aritra

Fantastic place to see a Royal Bengal Timer, the elusive snow leopard and asiatic bears. Along with this the Bengal history museum is superb and has preserved remains and samples of 100+ years' old animals and birds. Truly unique in terms of its appeal. It also house Himalayan Mountaineering Institute and a mountaineering museum which exhibits the amazing Adventures of so many expeditions to Mt Everest & Other Peaks.

You can see different types of animals mostly found in himalayas and also can see the historic old monuments and crafts.

Very well designed & maintained zoo. Really worth visiting when in Darjeeling. Visit to HMI & Biodiversity museum is an added bonus as they adjunct to the same campus. Strongly recommended for a refreshing break!

Nice zoo and well organized. With the same entry ticket, you can visit the natural museum and the institute also. Main attraction of this zoo is Ted panda, which I believe you can not see in any other zoo in India. You must visit here when you are in Darjeeling

Red panda, Snow leopard, Bengal tiger are the attraction here. The visit of the zoo is conjoined with HMI. The duration will be around 1.5-2 hrs.

The zoo is great with a fantastic collection of rare Himalayan species of deers, mountain goats, snow leopards and more.

Even more amazing is the mountaineering institute with some incredible history of mountaineering in the Himalayas, history of the Everest climb and legendary climbers from early 1920 onwards who tried to climb Everest.

The memorabilia collection includes a telescope donated by a certain Adolf Hitler to the institute in Nepal.

It is a pity that photography is not allowed of these items of such historical significance. It would help in greater awareness of this collection amongst the general public.

Animal has enough room for roaming in cage. Very neat and clean area. Separate place for mammals, amphibians, reptiles and birds. A museum of Natural history enhance the attention of this place. Himalayan mountain institute is another educative spot located inside this zoo. It has also a museum composed of all history related to Himalayas and its climbers and good showcase of their used equipments.

Best place to visit, u will find health harbivrous and carnivorous animals, also you will get proper knowledge of mountaineering at HMI.

Best place to bring kids & family to see the different types of Leopard, Panda, Birds etc with scenic view of Darjiling town

The snow leopard is very rarely seen, even by wildlife photographers. One can see the feline here. Also, the HMI museum is very interesting.

A very beautiful zoo wth museum in it too. And der r beautiful animals which are a bit different frm der norml species too hairy n bushy.

The place having wild faunas viz, himalayan goat, tiger, red panda is really awesome to pay a visit Also, the museum of HMI is also included to it.

Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park is a 67.56-acre zoo in the town of Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. The zoo was opened in 1958, and an average elevation of 7,000 feet, is the largest high altitude zoo in India.

Zoo has many types of animals and Himalayan mountaineering institute with museum of animals found in snow peaks like Everest, Kanchenjunga

Beautiful animals but they have to little space. Cannot hunt or run more then 10meter. Their cages stink. (Can you imagine having strong smelling buds and be in a stinking cage).

This place is a heaven for zoologists. Many types of birds, animals and insects samples were kept there.
Photography is prohibited there so no photographs are available.

A well designed and carved Zoological Park on hill. A very nice place to visit with family. A big variety of animals are kept here in hill and natural environment. You can see here animals, birds, snakes etc in a systemic way one by one. Can fulfill your photography hobby by clicking animals in enclosures and nature. You can also be clicked on in local costumes

Very nice experience specially enjoyed with my young child of 12 years.he enjoyed a lot particularly hmi museum. Earlier he was familiar to mountaineering.this visit enhanced his knowledge.also the variety off birds and animals are very vast and situation of cages made perfectly.so that every corner of the cages are visible to the visitors.

Located at the height of 2000 feet's, it is the largest high altitude zoo in India. Just about 15 minutes from the Mall road, the zoo should be certainly in your list while visiting Darjeeling. It is the largest high altitude zoo in India. Please note it is closed on Thursday. It is open from 10 am to 5 pm everyday. Due to the hilly terrain, the animals cages are below and the visitors have to look down at the animals. The path is up and down while you pass every cage. Rare animals like the Red Panda, snow leopard and found here. One should take out at least 3 hours because of the HMI and museum located inside. Surprisingly a nice tourist attraction considering the elusive Royal Bengal tiger is in residence apart from a variety of Himalayan carnivores.

Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park (also called the Darjeeling Zoo) is a 67.56-acre (27.3 ha) zoo in the town of Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. The zoo was opened in 1958, and an average elevation of 7,000 feet (2,134 m), is the largest high altitude zoo in India. It specializes in breeding animals adapted to alpine conditions, and has successful captive breeding programs for the snow leopard, the critically endangered Himalayan wolf and the red panda. The zoo attracts about 300,000 visitors every year. The park is named after Padmaja Naidu  (1900–1975), daughter of Sarojini Naidu. The zoo serves as the central hub for Central Zoo Authority of India's red panda program and is a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums.