Mumbai (Marathi and Hindi: मुंबई Mumbaī), formerly known as Bombay, is one of the largest cities in India and the capital of the state Maharashtra. A cosmopolitan metropolis, Mumbai was built on seven islands on the Konkan coastline which over time were joined to form the island city of Bombay. The island was in turn joined with the neighbouring island of Salsette to form "Greater Bombay".
Photos: Wikimedia Commons contributors.
Mumbai is a city built in successive waves of migrations. The neighbourhoods acquired their character from the communities that settled there first. These neighbourhoods are too numerous to list and there is no commonly accepted way to group these neighbourhoods into larger districts. But roughly, from the south to the north, this is how the city developed. Old Mumbai is the peninsular portion of city, representing the "city" within the Greater Mumbai area, as opposed to the "suburbs" further north. The suburbs covered in this article fall within the municipal limits of Greater Mumbai since the 1940s. Suburbs further north and east are covered in the North Konkan region.
Mumbai (moom-BIGH) is a bustling, diverse metropolis with a flair of its own. The entrepreneurial spirit and pulsing pace of life provide a sharp contrast to much of the rest of India. There has been much debate regarding the original name of the city. Some say the current name of the city Mumbai is the original name; and is an eponym derived from Mumbā (मुंबा), a local Hindu goddess, and āī (आई), meaning "mother" in Marathi. Others claim Bombay was an anglicised version of Bom Bahia, a name given by the Portuguese to mean "Beautiful Bay" and later made popular by the British as the name of the Bombay state. The name was officially changed from Bombay to Mumbai in 1995.
Most of Mumbai's inhabitants rely on public transport to and from their workplaces due to the lack of parking spaces, traffic bottlenecks and generally poor road conditions, especially in the monsoon. However, do ride in a taxi at least once in the city. Feel real adventure in a vehicle that feels like it might fall apart at speed with a driver who thinks he's Schumacher. For travelling using public transport, you can download the m-Indicator app for Android and iPhone.
Individual listings can be found in Mumbai's district articles There is a lot to see in Mumbai, but the typical "tourist" sights are concentrated in South Mumbai. By Indian standards, Mumbai is a young city and much of the land comprising the city did not exist until it was claimed from the sea over three centuries ago. It is therefore a pleasant surprise to find rock cut caves such as the Elephanta, Kanheri, and Mahakali within city limits. The British built a magnificent city within the walls of Fort St. George, which lies at the southern extremity of the city. Some fine examples of the Gothic revival, Neo-classical style and Indo-Saracenic style are seen within this area.
There is a lot to do in Mumbai, but lack of space means that for outdoorsy activities, you need to head north, often outside city limits. In North Munbai and Thane, you will find opportunities for water sports like H2O at Girgaon Chowpatty. There are two golf courses in the city, the more famous one is in Chembur in the Harbour Suburbs. Mumbai has a vibrant theatre scene with plays in many languages including English, Hindi, Gujarati, and Marathi. While South Mumbai has frequent performances, the best organised theatre effort is at Prithvi theatre, Juhu in the Western Suburbs. There are plenty of opportunities to enjoy Indian classical music and dance.
The dining experience at an upscale restaurant in Mumbai is more or less the same as anywhere else in the world. You can find cuisine from the Middle East, Western Europe, North America and China easily. But to get a real flavour of what's unique to Mumbai, you will have to go a little lower down the scale and experience the street food and Irani cafes. Since March 2015, cattle slaughter is largely banned in Maharashtra, and therefore in Mumbai. Therefore, it is uncommon to find beef served in restaurants. For individual restaurants and other places to eat, go to the individual district pages. Popular search engines to find restaurants easily include Justdial, AskLaila and DizyLocal.
Individual listings can be found in Mumbai's district articles Mumbai is one of the most liberal cities in India when it comes to attitudes to alcohol. Bars exist at virtually every street corner and many of them advertise themselves as "family" bars and restaurants, which indicates that they are primarily restaurants where one can also have a drink. Other places are primarily bars, some of them might be sleazy. In South Mumbai and in the Western Suburbs, you are likely to find many places where foreigners hang out. Mumbai is much more accepting of women drinking than the rest of India.
Unlike other parts of the country, especially Delhi where rape is prevalent, crime is rare, except for possibly common crime like pickpocketing. Violent crime in Mumbai is more or less like any other large Indian city. The southwest monsoon season affecting Mumbai can make travel difficult from the airports due to rains and flooding which is possible. Red alerts issued by the Indian Meteorological Service are common during the monsoon and cloudbursts are uncommon here. Take extra care during travel during the rainy season. It is best to err on the side of safety and act according to your local environment.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
Top-rated tours and tickets from €8 — book ahead for the popular ones.
Tours and tickets provided by Viator (a Tripadvisor company). Some links earn Stayonomy a commission.
In Jul, Mumbai typically sees ~28°C daytime highs and 31 rainy days.
Cheapest destinations travellers searched recently — refreshed daily.
Flight prices are real fares travellers found in the last 48 hours, refreshed daily — the booking site confirms the final price. Train, bus and ferry fares are shown on the operators' booking sites. Weather data by Open-Meteo; exchange rates: ECB reference. Data updated 2026-07-25. Some links earn Stayonomy a commission at no cost to you.
stayonomy