INTRODUCTION

The Park Hotels is a collection of contemporary

luxury five-star boutique hotels in India belonging to
the Apeejay Surrendra Group, headquartered
in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. These hotels are
located
in Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Navi
Mumbai, New Delhi, Visakhapatnam and Goa. New
properties are under construction
in Kochi, Kolkata (E.M.
Bypass), Pune, Coimbatore and Jaipur.
Among these, The Park Kolkata was awarded the
"National Tourism Award" (2003–04) for outstanding
performance as the Best Boutique Hotel in the
country by the Department of Tourism, Government
of India. The Park Bangalore has been designed
by Terence Conran.

The Apeejay Surrendra Group  is one of India’s

oldest business conglomerates. It was founded in
1909 in Jalandhar by Lala Pyare Lal (1891–1944).
Shri Surrendra Paul (1936–1989) was chairman
from 1982 until his murder in 1989. Most of the
current senior executives are members of his family.
In 1951 the headquarters relocated to Kolkata.
The companies in the Apeejay Surrendra Group
collectively employ 43,000 people. The businesses
are tea plantations, fast-moving consumer goods,
tea brands, shipping, boutique hotels,
commercial real estate, warehousing, business
centres, retail brands, bookstores, tea rooms,
marine cluster logistics parks and knowledge parks

The hotel business was started by Surrendra Paul in

1967, with the opening of the Group's first hotel, The
Park, a 150-room hotel on the fashionable Park
Street in Kolkata, on 1 November; the hotel at
Visakhapatnam was added in 1968, while The Park
New Delhi commenced operations in 1987. After the
death of Surrendra Paul, his daughter Priya
Paul succeeded him in 1990. Subsequently, The
Park Bangalore was added in 2000, while The Park
Chennai was commissioned in 2002.
The Park New Delhi, took up the restoration of the
1724 built astronomical observatory, Jantar Mantar,
in 2000, after an MoU with the Archaeological
Survey of India (ASI).

In 2006, Forbes, listed "Atrium" in The Park Kolkata,

with its menu designed by Italian chef Antonio
Carluccio, amongst India's top 10 Most Expensive
Restaurants. In 2010, The Independent, listed The
Park Hyderabad amongst its list of "100 holiday
ideas for 2010.

The Park Group of Hotels is a pioneer in the concept

of luxury boutique hotels in India. Over the 40 years
since it was first established, the group has grown in
popularity and prestige, achieving global standards
of product quality and service excellence.
Located in some of the biggest cities around the
country, The Park is a likely choice of destination for
corporate and leisure travelers from India and
abroad. In each city, the properties are at prime
downtown locations giving the guests easy access
to the commercial and entertainment hubs around
town.
Kolkata was the first city to welcome The Park Hotel
in the year 1967. The Park, Kolkata, offers urban
luxury at the best downtown location.
Think of Indian hotels and you may call to mind
either grand palatial affairs or, on the other end of
the scale, homely B&Bs. For many years, when it
came to the hotel scene in the Asian country, there
was not much to cater for a savvy, younger traveller.
Back in the 90s, however, THE Park Hotels, under
the direction of newly appointed chairperson Priya
Paul (who took over the group at the tender age of
24, after her father died) started to shake things up.
This year the brand celebrates its 50 th anniversary
and is famous as the hotel group responsible for
bringing the idea of ‘boutique’ hotels to India, as well
as being widely regarded as a pioneer of design
hotels in the country.

It all started back in 1967, when the group’s first

hotel opened on the fashionable Park Street
in Kolkata. The ever-evolving street was also the
inspiration behind the name and character of the
company. The following year, a beachside hotel THE
Park Visakhapatnam became the group’s second
hotel and the first deluxe hotel in Southern India’s
Andhra Pradesh area.
Fast forward 50 years, and the properties are these
days renowned for their characterful and fun
interiors, lively bars and inventive restaurants.
From THE Park Goa’s beachfront living concept
(which includes a rooftop open air lounge, poolside
cabanas and a white-on-white décor in luxury
rooms) – to the slick THE Park Chennai – a
member of Design Hotels, it is carved out of the
historic Gemini Film Studios. As well as a relaxed
Italian restaurant with its own Pasta Bar, guests can
enjoy a screening room for private cinema evenings
and The Box – an in-house boutique selling curated
homewares.

With eight hotels in total belonging to THE Park

collection, six are in India’s major cities (Delhi,
Calcutta, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai)
and two are in the resort destinations of Goa and
Visakhapatnam. This year, sees the ninth Park hotel
opening – THE Park Mumbai in the city’s Juhu
district. What’s more, the brand is launching a mid-
market design hotel concept, called Zone By THE
Park, with 17 properties in the pipeline slated to
open in the next three years.
The woman in charge Priya Paul is responsible for
the overall vision of the company and has a
particular hand in their design ethos – with all the
properties decorated with around 3,000 pieces of art
from her personal collection. Referred to as the ‘Ian
Schrager of India’, Priya is widely recognised as one
of the most innovative hoteliers worldwide and has
been nominated Business Person of the Year a
number of times by Economic Times of India and is
ranked by Forbes among the 50 most powerful
business women in India.
As well as the hotel business, Priya and her
siblings own and run the Apeejay Surrendra
Group, one of India’s oldest and largest business
conglomerates, employing over 43,000 people, and
which includes Typhoo Tea, shipping, real estate,
retail and finance businesses under its umbrella.
ZONE BY THE PARK HOTEL JAMMU

Zone by the Park is nestled against the backdrop of

the snow-capped Pir Panjal Mountains, in Jammu.
The 51-room hotel is strategically located within 6
kms radius of the airport and is in close proximity to
the key city attractions, like Bahu Plaza, Palm
Island, Wave Mall, and City Square.

It boasts of the city’s largest banquet space with a

7500 sq. ft. party hall, and an open lawn of 1800 sq.
ft. making it the ideal destination for weddings and
large conferences. The hotel also has two large
party halls for high-powered meetings and events.
The menu has been carefully curated for food lovers
and is truly going to make you and your stomach
feel elated. Beverages, soup, Salad, appetizers
(veg/non-veg), main course and the best part of any
meal-desserts, this buffet menu has it all.
The choice of appetizers in buffet menu is going to
be the favourite part for both the vegetarians and
non-vegetarians.

Bazaar, the signature restaurant of Zone, is inspired

by multi-hued charismatic native markets. The 24-
hour restaurant with interactive service formats and
LIVE cooking stations will give guests an unrivalled
experience.

Liquiteria at the lobby level will serve quick bites and

health drinks to the guests. Z Bar will offer a wide
selection of refreshing beverages. An open lobby
that can be re-arranged for private events; a bulletin
that connects the guests with the city’s action;
gaming consoles and the coolest Zone Auto, are few
attractions of this new hotel

Zone by The Park Jammu, the 51 room hotel is

strategically located within 6 kms to the airport and is in
close proximity to the Bahu Plaza, Palm Island, Wave
Mall, City Square, Shopping Arcade and various famous
tourist destinations such as Dogra Art Museum,
Raghunath Temple, Ranbireshwar Temple, Amar Mahal
Palace, Mubarak Mandi Palace and Vaishno Devi
Temple.

CONCLUSION
Zone by The Park’ is an upscale social-catalyst
brand, devised to cater the ‘design-conscious, price-
conscious’ travelers. Drawing from The Park’s
design spirit, the concept envisions an interactive
series of buzzing spaces using the best of
contemporary design, with creative and playful
interiors, multifunctional spaces, great restaurants,
bars and vibrant nightlife.