Marine Drive, Mumbai

Visitor Information:

• Famous For Sightseeing, Walk, Photography

• Fee Free

• Visiting Time Anytime

• Duration of Visit As much time one can spend

The Marine Drive is a long boulevard located in the southern part of Mumbai. This road was built by philanthropist Pallonji Mistry and Bhagojisheth Keer. This road is a C-shaped concrete road with six lanes running along the coast. This road connects Nariman point with Malabar Hill, along Babulnath. The Marine Drive is also called as Queen’s Necklace. The view of this road and the street lights during night would resemble a giant necklace with a string of pearls.

Location of Marine Drive

The Marine Drive is located in South Mumbai overlooking the Arabian Sea. The road stretches for 3.6 km

History of Marine Drive

This road is officially named as Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Road but, most of the locals even do not recognize it with this name. This was not a major tourist attraction built in Mumbai. It was in fact, a failed project of 19th century.

The Backbay reclamation project of Mumbai started in 19th century and it was first tried out in 1920s. Under this project, 1500 acres of land was planned to be reclaimed but, government was able to only reclaim 440 acres of land. Even in that, 235 acres of land were allocated for military purposes.

Most of the land got tied up in other commitments and only 17 acres of land was left unused.

Eventually, the region became an attraction. For 72 years since its construction, it was sturdy. In 2012, resurfacing project was initiated for safety purposes.

Things To Do in Marine Drive

• The promenade is filled with palm trees. Locals and tourists love to take a walk along this region.
• You can find the Chowpatty Beach on the northern tip of this road. This beach is famous for strolling, tasting local street food and so on. If you walk along the region, you would find Walkeshwar, which is famous for fancy luxury buildings. This is the place where the rich cream of people lives.
• Along the Marine Drive, you can find many buildings in 1920s’ Art Deco style.
• You can find many sports club along the way. However, most of them are members-only club.
• If you visit during February, you can watch the Mumbai Marathon, which takes place along this road.

Accommodation near Marine Drive

Top luxury accommodations around Marine Drive are:

• The Taj Mahal Tower
• Trident Nariman Point
• Residency Hotel Fort
• Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai
• ITC GRAND
• The Taj Mahal Palace

Top budget accommodations around Marine Drive are:

• Sangam Guest House
• Empire Royale Hotel
• The Beds Dormitory
• Hotel Shadab Palace
• Milan Guest House
• Hotel Silver Elite

Top pet-friendly accommodations around Marine Drive are:

• Travellers Inn Fort
• Hotel New Metro Guest House
• Hotel Care Inn
• Chateau Windsor Hotel
• Hotel Krishna Palace

How to reach Marine Drive

Marine Drive is one of the top landmarks of Mumbai. Thus, you can easily find autos, taxis and other road transportation to reach this road. If you are choosing to ride the local train, you can get down at Churchgate station or Marine Line station.

Both the stations are located on the western line. From both the stations, it would not take more than ten minutes to reach this road, on foot. If you are driving a car, you can easily get a parking spot near the boulevard.

If you are planning to catch a bus, try from CSMT or Churchgate. Double decker buses are common from these stands to Marine Drive.

Also Read : How to Reach Mumbai