What I Liked
- Beautiful grounds
- Amazing breakfast spread
- Large room
- Excellent service
- On-site spa
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This review is for the Leela Palace Bangalore. A unique and majestic hotel in Bangalore.
The hotel is actually a palace, with beautiful grounds, colonial architecture and amazing food. I've genuinely never seen a bigger breakfast spread.
I stayed for one night with my family and enjoyed my stay here. When you walk through the door, you’ll forget you’re in the madness of Bangalore.
This review is a detailed guide. With loads of photos and videos. Click any photo to open the full slideshow.
I stayed at the Leela Palace Bangalore for one night with my family of four. The whole experience felt like stepping onto a period drama set rather than checking into a hotel. The room was on the 3rd floor, plenty of space for the four of us, with a proper bath the kids commandeered for a long soak. It cost 24,000 INR for the night, which felt right for what we got.
Not everything was flawless, though. The outdoor pool was so cold my daughter got in and got straight back out again, and there's no coffee machine in the room, not even instant. Small gripes against a stunning setting, but worth knowing before you go.
One quirky highlight nobody mentions: there's a snooker table tucked away in the cigar room on the 6th floor. I had a game against one of the staff. Won, for the record.
If Bangalore's traffic has you thinking ahead about getting to and from the hotel, my Recommended Resources page has Local Car Rentals listed, along with the rest of the deals I actually use.
I paid 24,000 INR for one night at the Leela Bangalore, staying with my family of four.
The Leela Palace Bangalore isn't cheap. It's not really trying to be.
For a palace hotel with those grounds, that breakfast at Citrus and a snooker table hiding in the cigar room, it felt like a fair trade for the money.
The Leela Palace Bangalore's airport transfer is a proper haul, and Bangalore's traffic made mine take a while. Cubbon Park is a much easier ask — noticeably closer than the airport, and quicker by taxi too. My taxi ride from the airport took two hours in the Bangalore traffic.
I always pre-book a taxi for hotel arrivals — less faff, especially with luggage after a long flight. I use Welcome Pickups, fixed price up front, driver waiting for you at arrivals, no haggling with anyone at the taxi rank. It costs more than jumping in a random cab outside, sure, but landing in Bangalore traffic is not the moment to be figuring out fares on the fly. Worth every rupee for the peace of mind alone.
I only ever left the hotel by taxi on this trip, so that's the only route I can genuinely vouch for. I didn't try the metro or a bus, so I won't pretend to know the fare or journey time for either — easier to say nothing than to guess.
If you're researching Leela Palace Bangalore India options from abroad, that airport transfer time is the detail that actually matters. Budget plenty of time for the taxi ride, since traffic made mine take a while.
Beyond Cubbon Park, I didn't venture out to any of Bangalore's other big sights on this stay. One night with the family doesn't leave much time for sightseeing when the hotel itself is this good a reason to stay put. Also worth knowing: the hotel sometimes appears online as Leela Palace Bengaluru, using the city's official name — same address, same hotel, just a different label depending on the listing.
Vidhana Soudha
Vidhana Soudha is one of Bangalore's most recognisable sights, and you don't need to spend a rupee to see it. It's the state legislature building, built from granite in a Neo-Dravidian style, and it's genuinely striking from the road. You can't wander inside without permission, but the outside view alone is worth the stop. A proper free landmark if you're short on time in the city.
Bangalore Through the Ages — All-Inclusive Guided City Tour
Book the full day here for $110. It's rated 4.95* from 455 reviews, which is a serious number of reviews to hold that score. It's the priciest pick on this list, but you get a proper guide walking you through the city's history rather than just ticking off landmarks from a coach window. Worth the extra spend if you want context, not just photos.
Street Food Walking Tour in Bangalore
You can book here for $55. It's rated 4.96* from 102 reviews. A food evangelist (their words, not mine) leads you round the city's street food spots — go hungry, and go with an open mind. If I only had time for one tour on this list, it'd be this one.
Old Bangalore Historical Walk — Palace, Temples, Fort & Market
Buy tickets here for $21. Rated 4.98* from 102 reviews — the highest score on this list. It's a walking tour through the old palace, temples, a fort and the market, and at that price it's the easiest yes here. Just wear comfortable shoes, you'll be on your feet the whole time.
The Leela Palace Bangalore is huge. It’s literally a palace with huge grounds. The hotel has the following features.
The Leela Palace Bangalore is very much colonial inspired. You can imagine the British Raj having meetings in hotels like this.
The lobby alone stopped me in my tracks — properly grand, not just 'nice hotel lobby' grand.
The hotel is located over 6 floors. The swimming pool is on the ground floor at the back of the hotel.
The spa is on the 1st floor. There is a gym, spa, jacuzzi and sauna all next to each other.
The Leela Palace Bangalore — sometimes listed as Leela Palace Bengaluru, using the city's official name — sits on HAL Old Airport Road, one of the city's best-known hotel addresses. It's part of The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts group, a brand built specifically around this kind of palace-style architecture with colonial influences, rather than a standard modern tower.
There's only one restaurant I can speak to from this stay: Citrus, on the ground floor. It's where the breakfast spread happened, and given how much choice was on offer, it's clearly built to handle a big buffet crowd rather than an intimate dinner.
I didn't eat anywhere else in the hotel on this trip, so I can't tell you about any other outlets here. One night with the family barely covers breakfast, let alone a full restaurant crawl.
I had room 377 on the 3rd floor. I stayed there with my family of four.
The room was large and had the following features:
There was loads of room for the four of us — no elbowing for space at bedtime.
There was a small selection of teas. The tea selection was of nice quality. Japanese Sencha, English Breakfast and Jasmine Green.
Weirdly, there was no coffee. No coffee machine or even instant coffee. I don’t drink coffee, so it didn’t bother me. But this will annoy some people. Coffee is probably available on request.
The bathroom was nice too. The bath was large and there was a separate shower. My kids each had a long bath.
Breakfast was the highlight — I've rarely seen this much choice on one buffet. It was served at Citrus cafe on the ground floor.
One of the best breakfasts I have had. Nearly as good as the breakfast at the Conrad Maldives.
The following was on offer:
I can’t list every dish they have. There are simply too many for me to remember!
I tried the Arabic mezze, roast potatoes and fresh fruit. My breakfast was excellent. The roast potatoes were very moreish. I enjoyed my fresh pineapple, papaya and watermelon.
I had an English breakfast tea. This was made fresh by the waiters. It was pretty good.
My wife had a masala chai, also made fresh.
There’s a pool at the back of the hotel. It was empty when I went there. The attendant told me that it was always empty.
My daughter got in the pool and got straight out again! The water was freezing. There wasn’t anything fun like a jacuzzi or water slide.
There was an indoor spa on the first floor. There was gym, jacuzzi, steam room and sauna.
I got into the jacuzzi for a few minutes. It wasn’t very hot. So I got out.
My wife used the sauna and steam room. She said it was lovely.
There is a cigar room on the 6th floor. It has a snooker table in it. I played with one of the staff. Happy to report I won.
The Leela Palace Bangalore is a unique experience. It’s like stepping back in time to the colonial era. The architecture is stunning and the decor is luxurious.
If you want an ultra-modern hotel, then this ain’t it. If you want to do something unique, then you’ll love it.
I'd recommend the Leela Palace Bangalore to anyone who wants a genuinely different kind of stay, not just a bed near the airport. The breakfast alone, with that huge spread at Citrus, is worth the visit. Add the snooker table hiding in the cigar room, and it stops feeling like a hotel and starts feeling like an event.
It's not for everyone, though. Families expecting a proper splash-about pool will be disappointed — mine got in and got straight back out again. There's nothing to soften the blow with coffee in the room either. If those two things are dealbreakers for you, look elsewhere. If you're after atmosphere and a proper breakfast over amenities, book it without hesitation.