Taj Connemara

Chennai, India. Located on Binny Road off Anna Salai, on the eastern bank of the Cooum River beside Spencer Plaza.

Taj ConnemaraChennai, India

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Practical information

147 rooms and suites in Colonial, Art Deco and Geoffrey Bawa “Tropical Modernism” styles.
Raintree for Chettinad cuisine, The Verandah all-day café, and The Lady Connemara Bar & Lounge, the city’s first licensed bar.
Ballroom for up to 600 guests, swimming pool, J Wellness Circle spa, a 1922 grand piano and temple carvings from Mahabalipuram.
Located on Binny Road off Anna Salai, on the eastern bank of the Cooum River beside Spencer Plaza.

11 dates, written by Grand Hotels of the World from the sources below.

1799
John Binny buys a garden house on the site from the Nawab of Arcot.
1854
The property opens as the Imperial Hotel, run by Triplicane Rathinavelu Mudaliar.
1886
Leased to two Mudaliar brothers, the hotel is renamed the Albany.
1890
It becomes The Connemara, named after Lord Connemara, Governor of Madras from 1881 to 1886; Spencer’s buys it the following year.
10 May 1929
The Rotary Club of Madras holds its first weekly Tuesday lunch at the hotel, a tradition that continues.
1934 – 1937
Spencer’s director James Stiven modernises the hotel, which reopens with an Art Deco look and air conditioning.
1974
Spencer’s leases the hotel to the Taj Group; Geoffrey Bawa designs a tower block and pool, completed in 1977.
February 1981
A fire in the neighbouring Spencer’s building nearly destroys the deluxe wing; the main building is spared.
1984
The Taj Group acquires the hotel on a 100-year lease.
September 2010
The hotel is rebranded Vivanta by Taj – Connemara.
20 October 2018
After a 22-month restoration involving 1,400 workers, it reopens as the Taj Connemara.