Taj Connemara Will Be Closed for a Year

On May 10, one of Chennai’s most landmark hotels will be closed for a year for renovation work.

Taj Connemara – which joined the Vivanta brand in September of 2010 – was originally built in 1854 as the Imperial Hotel and then re-established as The Connemara in 1890 in honour of Robert Bourke, the Baron of Connemara, who was also the Governer of Madras (as Chennai was known then) from 1886 to 1890. Then in 1984, The Connemara Hotel came under the Taj Group of Hotels on lease from Spencer’s.

This 125-year old hotel is one of the oldest landmarks of the city of Chennai and was last renovated in 1993. General Manager, Ahmar Siddiqui said, “Post the renovation, the hotel will ensure that the discerning traveller finds all modern amenities and conveniesnces discreetly placed beneath the hotel’s old-world charm, colonial legacy and heritage for which it has been admired for over a century.”

Structwel Designers and Consultants from Mumbai – who also renovated the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumabi – will be taking on the renovation of the 150-room property for a change into a boutique hotel.

Currently all bookings are being diverted to the Taj’s other four hotels in the city – Taj Coromandel, Taj Club House, Vivanta by Taj-Fisherman’s Cove and The Gateway Hotel IT Expressway Chennai. Meanwhile, amidst the talk of recreating old menus and reconnecting with past guests, the Taj is planning to convert closure into celebration.