cliff hall Andhra plays hard to get: its charms are subtle. But if you look closely, you ll find a long, fascin

Andhra plays hard to get: its charms are subtle. But if you look closely, you ll find a long, fascinating history of arts, culture, spiritual scholarship and religious harmony. In Hyderabad s Old City, Islamic monuments, Persian-inspired architecture and the call of the muezzin speak of the city s unique heritage.

Nowhere suits the term fit for royalty better than at the Falaknuma Palace, the former residence of the sixth nizam. Taking over a decade to restore, the Taj Group s latest luxury hotel has most certainly been worth the wait. The cheapest rooms have Italian marble floors, colonial furniture and great city views, while the Presidential Suite (an astounding 500,000 per night) was

111111111111111111HussainSagarRdNo 3 TankbundRd SP Rd BANJARAHILLSSECUNDERABADABIDSPATTHARGATTINAMPALLYSee Abids Area Map (p898) See Banjara Hills Map (p902) See Patthagatti Area Map (p900) See Secunderbad Map (p896) Hyderabad & Secunderabad 0 2 km 0 1 miles e To Nagarjunar Sagar (150km) To Golconda Fort (3km); Qutb Shahi Tombs (4.5km) To Ramoji Film City (12km) To Rajiv Gandhi cliff hall International Airport (15km) To Taj Falaknuma (1km) jobs, wealth and posh lounges. Opulence, it would seem, is in this city s genes.