Asia's Legendary Hotels. William Warren

      The hill-stations of India, especially those in the Himalayan foothills of the north, were largely British creations. Beginning in the early 19th century, the colonial rulers wanted somewhere to escape the searing heat of the Indian summer, also perhaps to escape the demands of their often troublesome subjects, and they found it in those high enclaves where the weather and plant life comfortingly resembled those of home.

      "Your hill-station was scarcely more than a village,” Jan Morris wrote in her trilogy about the rise and fall of the Empire, “and was dwarfed by the scale of the country, but it had the startling impact of an intruder. It was definitely, gloriously out of place—a figure of despotic privilege. Where there should have been an eaved white temple with prayer flag up there, a Gothic steeple rose instead, with a weathercock on top and the white blobs of tombstones in the yard behind. Where one might expect the palace of Mir or Maharajah, a hotel in the Eastbourne manner stood, wicker chairs upon its terrace, awnings above its windows. There were military-looking buildings here and there, and genteel half-timbered villas disposed above rustic steps, and along the top of the ridge there ran a wide paved esplanade, with a bandstand, a fountain in a public garden, and benches, as on a promenade at home, surveying the Himalayan prospect.”

      The most famous of all these retreats was in Simla (now spelled Shimla and the capital of Himachal Pradesh state), perched on a mountain ridge 7,250 feet (2,200 meters) above sea level. The setting for Kipling's Plain Tales from the Hills, Simla was the summer capital of British India, where the Viceroy had an ornate palace at the top of Summer Hill and where for several months a year almost the entire government moved, along with countless family members. The trip itself was memorable, on a narrow-gauge railway that ran thrillingly for 60 miles (95 kilometers) and traversed 103 tunnels, 969 bridges and 900 curves before delivering its passengers to a magical destination with pine-scented air, a leisurely social life and spectacular scenery.

      Some of the families had homes there, with very English names like “Strawberry Hill” and “Fair View” (the earliest, Kennedy Cottage, was built in 1822), and many retired to Simla’s invigorating climate after their work was done rather than return to the now-strange land of their birth. For visitors there were several hotels, of which one of the most popular was the Cecil, known as the finest hotel in north India for its comforts and colonial grandeur.

      The Cecil opened in 1884 and for the remaining years of British rule its spacious rooms were crowded at the height of the summer season with a mixture of civil servants and their families, young military men on leave, and occasional tourists making a grand tour of India. There were picnics in the Glen, bracing walks through forests of cedar and pine, amateur performances at the Gaiety Theatre (where Kipling was once booed off the stage), shopping excursions to the bazaar and for a select few individuals, invitations to dine and dance at Viceroy House. It was not uncommon for romances to blossom in such pleasant settings, and occasionally there were scandals to enliven the generally bucolic atmosphere (indeed, a favorite destination on promenades was Scandal Point).

      Hill stations like Simla inevitably suffered a momentary decline after independence came to India but as it turned out, sophisticated Indians were just as eager as their former rulers to enjoy such novelties as chilly air and open fireplaces and were just as willing to make the effort to journey to places that offered them such niceties. Consequently, many of the old hotels were bought by new owners and given makeovers that brought them into the top ranks of international resort facilities.

      After a period of neglect, the Cecil was acquired by the prestigious Oberoi group and lovingly restored and expanded; it reopened in 1997 with 79 rooms and suites. In addition to the original Tudor Wing, there is a new five-story Cecil Wing with a lofty atrium, both with sweeping views of forested hills stretching off into the distance to the snow-capped Himalayas. Furnishings include custom-made sofas, chairs and wardrobes in the spirit of the Cecil’s past, while other amenities include two restaurants, an indoor swimming pool, a billiard room, a fitness center and a children’s center offering supervised activities as well as special meals.

      The peak season in Shimla, as it was in British days, is between April and June, but it has now become almost as popular in the winter months of November and December. At either time, jackets and sweaters are welcome in the evening, cheery fires encourage cozy gatherings and public gardens display a rich profusion of exotic flowers unknown to the plains far below. The little railway running up from Kalka, shut down for a number of years, resumed service in November 2003, further adding to the nostalgia of a visit.