Gateway Hotels, Chennai

Avril- Ann Braganza

Sitting pretty on Old Mahabalipuram Road (now known as Rajiv Gandhi Salai), right along the spine of the IT Corridor, The Gateway IT Expressway Chennai, which opened recently, is a classy blend of traditional hospitality and contemporary sophistication.

With a capacious 4,800-square-foot ballroom (which can host up to 600 guests); wi-Fi and internet throughout the hotel, a 24-hour business centre and meeting rooms, the hotel is well equipped to handle business requirements. The 198 rooms are built for both business and leisure. But if you prefer the outdoors to the comforts of a well-designed room or in-hotel entertainment, there`s a lot to see and do in Chennai, which is a major financial, cultural and educational centre in South India.

Walk along the sunny side of the 13-kilometer Marina Beach, India`s longest beach or stroll through the picturesque French colonial avenues of Pondicherry. Other places of interest include the temple town of Mahabalipuram; Dakshina Chitra, which showcases the performing arts, craft and architecture of India; the Cholamandal Artists’ Village, whose inhabitants are thought to have brought modernism to South Indian art; the Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health in Velankanni, which is known for miracles and 16th century Gothic architecture, the approximately 481-square-kilometre flamingo-hosting Pulicat Bird Sanctuary and Saint Thomas Cathedral, which houses the apostle Thomas, who brought Christianity to Indian shores.