A cathedral that happens to run trains.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus is the southern end of the Central and Harbour lines and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Victorian Gothic building, designed by F. W. Stevens, opened in the 1880s and still handles the daily rush.
The guide
24 places worth getting off the train for. See the whole guide
See
Look up before you leave. Carved stone animals, stained glass and a great dome, all above one of the busiest stations in the country.
You are standing in itMap for The terminus itself (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The city corporation's 1893 headquarters, directly opposite and by the same architect, F. W. Stevens.
Short walk from the stationMap for BMC Headquarters (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Eat
A puri-bhaji canteen that has been feeding people off the trains since the mid-1800s.
On the plate: Puri bhaji
Short walk from the stationMap for Pancham Puriwala (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Shop
A covered market from 1869 for fruit, spices, dry fruit and everything else, with stone reliefs designed by Lockwood Kipling over the entrance.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Crawford Market (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
An 1864 stone fountain at the heart of the Fort business district, lit up after dark.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Flora Fountain (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Walk
The art quarter: the Jehangir Art Gallery, pavement artists, museums and cafés within a few streets.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Kala Ghoda (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The basalt arch on the harbour, completed in 1924. Ferries to Elephanta leave from its steps.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Gateway of India (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
Next door to the terminus and finished in 1913, with a dome modelled on the Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur. Walk in: the central hall is still a working post office.
Short walk from the stationMap for General Post Office (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The city's oldest Anglican church, opened in 1718. Churchgate takes its name from the gate in the old Fort wall that led to it.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for St. Thomas Cathedral (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Walk
A round garden ringed by a matching crescent of 1860s buildings. Sit on a bench at lunch hour with half of the Fort's office workers.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Horniman Circle Garden (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
A white neoclassical hall from 1833 at the top of thirty stone steps. The steps themselves are one of the city's favourite places to sit.
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Asiatic Society Town Hall (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Walk
A business district laid out in the 1910s in one style and one stone. On a Sunday the streets are nearly empty and feel like another city.
Short walk from the stationMap for Ballard Estate (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Eat
An Irani restaurant in Ballard Estate since 1923, known across the city for its berry pulao. It keeps lunch hours, so do not arrive late.
On the plate: Berry pulao
15 to 20 minute walkMap for Britannia & Co. (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The city's main museum, opened in 1922 as the Prince of Wales Museum. A domed Indo-Saracenic building in its own garden, with sculpture, miniatures and natural history inside.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The city's best-known public gallery, open since 1952 and free to walk into. Artists show their work on the pavement outside as well.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Jehangir Art Gallery (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
A Venetian Gothic reading room from 1870, restored in 2023. The small garden at the back is one of Kala Ghoda's quiet corners.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for David Sassoon Library (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
Built in 1884 by the Sassoon family and restored in 2019. Carry photo identification, which is asked for at the door.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The hotel on the harbour, opened in 1903, twenty-one years before the Gateway of India was finished in front of it.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Taj Mahal Palace (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Shop
A kilometre of pavement stalls selling jewellery, sandals, scarves and brass. Bargain, then stop at one of the old cafés along the way.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Colaba Causeway (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Eat
A café on Colaba Causeway that has been open since 1871. Loud, crowded and full of travellers at almost any hour.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Leopold Cafe (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Eat
A kebab stall in the lane behind the Taj that started as a cart in 1946. Seekh kebabs and rolls, eaten on the street late into the night.
On the plate: Seekh kebab
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Bademiya (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
One of the city's oldest docks, built in 1875, and still where the fishing boats land their catch. Go at dawn, and expect the smell.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Sassoon Dock (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
The Church of St. John the Evangelist, consecrated in 1858 in memory of the soldiers lost in the First Afghan War. Its spire once guided ships into the harbour.
Short taxi ride from the stationMap for Afghan Church (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
See
Rock-cut temples to Shiva on an island in the harbour, carved about 1,500 years ago and now a World Heritage Site. Boats are often called off in monsoon seas.
Taxi to the Gateway, then about an hour by ferryMap for Elephanta Caves (opens Google Maps in a new tab)
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On foot
9 stops · Most of a day
Museums and galleries in the morning, the Gateway and the Colaba pavements after lunch.
7 stops · Three hours
Fruit, cloth, gold and gods, through the densest square kilometre in the city.
The city’s year
Then and now
1890sBombay harbour · Photo by Photoglob Co., Library of Congress, Public domain
TodayGateway of India · Photo by Kush Jain, CC BY-SA 4.0
The mail steamer from England is coming in. For most of a century this was how the world arrived in the city, and the harbour front was its front door. The Gateway of India was built on it in 1924.
From the people who were there
Nobody has sent one from here yet.
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